Part 1: Reconstruct Dewey’s argument. Organize Dewey’s points in a manner that is effective and logical for the paper length. The paper should be organized
in such a way as to make each component seem cohesive with the whole. A single thesis should be explored and explained logically. A bad paper will read as
though each paragraph was written without thought to the other paragraphs and, consequently, the paper will feel choppy and disjointed.
Part 2: Creatively apply Dewey’s ideas in an invented educational context. In the second part of the paper, you must apply Dewey’s argument(s) from the first
part of your paper to an educational context of your choice. In this part, you will need to consider how an educational institution or program built upon the
ideas on the first side of your paper would be established. Ideas for educational contexts include: a primary school, a secondary school, a vocational school,
a college or university, a community education program, an apprenticeship, and so on. In other words, how would a particular space in which we organize
around the practice of teaching and education happen according to what your chosen author has described? To be clear: you should not choose an existing
school—for example—and then reform it; design and conceive from scratch!
In applying the text, you could consider what classes an institution would offer, what sorts of teaching and learning the school/program would prioritize,
where they would seek to be built/initiated and what their physical environment would look like, what sort of readings and material they would teach, what
type of assignments and projects they would establish, what majors or tracks they would offer, and so on. In applying the text you must include the why,
which needs to explicitly reference the points made in the first section of the paper. You do not need to agree with the author’s ideas, but you must articulate
and justify what education the author would endorse if they could design their own educational institution from the ground up. I would expect that your
application of your author’s ideas will (likely) result in some radically different illustrations of education than is the norm today. If your application and
analysis seem entirely aligned with norms of educational practice today, you are probably not thinking deeply enough.
You will have 1,250 words to reconstruct the argument and 1,000 words to apply his ideas to an educational context of your invention. The paper should be
single-spaced in 12-point font. You do not need to attach a bibliography. Only cite the primary text. Cite your main text in the body of your paper in the
following manner: (Authorlastname, p. #). For example, “Only the oppressed can liberate themselves” (Freire, p. 46).
The paper should be explicitly divided into two sections. A strong first section will include an opening paragraph that states the thesis of the textual
argument you are reconstructing, as well as an overview of how the section will proceed (sometimes this might be called a “roadmap”). Do not worry about a
“hook.”
The second section can begin with a sentence like the following, “In this section, I will apply Du Bois’s ideas by sketching out what a contemporary high
school based on Du Bois’s ideas would look like.” There is no need for a conclusion wrapping everything up.