The Certificate in Social Justice and Education examines equity in educational policy and practice. It provides students with a foundational understanding of the social inequities that shape education and broader society. Students also learn how educators, students, administrators, parents, and community members have effectively responded to these inequities.
This certificate prepares UW–Madison students to critically analyze the role education policies and practices play in broader social inequalities and social justice efforts. Students connect course concepts and ideas to both their own lives as well as to historical and contemporary social and educational issues in education (in the U.S. and/or globally).
How to Get in
All current UW-Madison undergraduates are eligible to complete the Certificate in Social Justice and Education. Students intending to complete this certificate should visit the School of Education's Certificate Programs page to complete the declaration form.
Students pursuing the Education Studies major or the Certificate in Educational Policy Studies are not eligible to complete the Certificate in Social Justice and Education.
Requirements
The Certificate in Social Justice and Education requires the following course distribution for a minimum of 12 credits. At least 6 credits must be completed in residence. Completion of the certificate requires a minimum GPA of 2. 0 in certificate coursework.
Required Course
This course provides students with foundational knowledge about social justice in education that they can build from and connect to their other coursework and assignments as part of the certificate.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ED POL 212 | Education for Social Justice | 3 |
Elective Courses
Select three additional courses that have a central focus on social justice in education. Two of the three must be in ED POL coursework. These courses meet most or all of the certificate’s Learning Outcomes, and enable students to tailor the certificate to their specific topical and disciplinary areas of interest (e.g. historical perspectives on social justice and education, social justice and education in the U.S., comparative/global studies of social justice and education).
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ED POL 197 | Listening to the Land | 3 |
| CURRIC 240 | Critical Aspects of Teaching, Schooling, and Education | 3 |
| CURRIC/CHICLA 321 | Chicano/Latino Educational Justice | 3 |
| CURRIC/C&E SOC/ENVIR ST 405 | Education for Sustainable Communities | 3 |
| CURRIC/RP & SE 406 | Race, Intersectionality, and Equity in Education | 3 |
| ED POL/HISTORY 143 | History of Race and Inequality in Urban America | 3 |
| ED POL 145 | Introduction to Education Policy | 3 |
| ED POL/GEN&WS 160 | Gender, Sexuality, and Education Policy | 3 |
| ED POL 180 | Education and White Supremacy | 3 |
| ED POL 200 | Race, Ethnicity, and Inequality in American Education | 3 |
| ED POL 205 | Language and Social Inequality | 3 |
| ED POL 210 | Youth, Education, and Society | 3 |
| ED POL/INTL ST 220 | Human Rights and Education | 3 |
| ED POL 237 | Wealth, Poverty and Inequality: Transnational Perspectives on Policy and Practice in Education | 3 |
| ED POL 240 | Comparative Education | 3 |
| ED POL/CURRIC/LEGAL ST 250 | Incarceration and Education | 3 |
| ED POL 300 | School and Society | 3 |
| ED POL/HISTORY 412 | History of American Education | 3 |
| ED POL 423 | Education for Global Change | 3 |
| ED POL 435 | Education in Emergencies | 3 |
| ED POL 460 | Immigration, Education, and Equity | 3 |
| ED POL 505 | Issues in Urban Education in the U.S. | 3 |
| ED POL 510 | Urban School Policy | 3 |
| ED POL/CURRIC/HISTORY/JEWISH 515 | Holocaust: History, Memory and Education | 3 |
| ED POL/GEN&WS 560 | Gender and Education | 3 |
| ED POL/AFROAMER 567 | History of African American Education | 3 |
| ED POL/ANTHRO 570 | Anthropology and Education | 3 |
| ED POL 575 | Education Policy and Practice | 3 |
| ED POL 595 | Language Politics and Education | 3 |
| ED POL/HISTORY 612 | History of Student Activism from the Popular Front to Black Lives Matter | 3 |
| RP & SE 100 | Disability and Society | 3 |
| RP & SE 300 | Individuals with Disabilities | 3 |
| RP & SE 466 | Diversity in Special Education | 3 |
Certificate Completion Requirement
This undergraduate certificate must be completed concurrently with the student’s undergraduate degree. Students cannot delay degree completion to complete the certificate.
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate an understanding of how education, and education policy and practice specifically, has been used as a tool for both social justice and the (re)production of inequality in the United States and/or globally.
- Identify and describe the social inequities that shape education and broader society, as well as how various social actors (e.g. educators, students, administrators, parents, and community members) have responded to these inequities through their social justice efforts.
- Draw from theory and research to analyze issues of social justice in education.
- Demonstrate an ability to apply critical thinking skills to the study of inequities in education, by recognizing and questioning knowledge claims and their own assumptions and preconceived notions.