COSC 604 Foundations of Education

This course provides foundational knowledge of the development of the American education system and the evolution of school counseling. Students will explore the trajectories of diverse learners and learning environments. Students will understand the social, political, spiritual, and cultural influences on the educational system as well as how their role as a school counselor impacts education today.

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

Course Guide

View this course’s outcomes, policies, schedule, and more.*

*The information contained in our Course Guides is provided as a sample. Specific course curriculum and requirements for each course are provided by individual instructors each semester. Students should not use Course Guides to find and complete assignments, class prerequisites, or order books.


Professional school counselors should have an understanding of the historical and philosophical foundations of education so that they can evaluate educational trends, articulate their own personal philosophy of education in context of existing theories, and practice in the profession with intentionality.


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After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, for each Discussion, one of which being a Benchmark Discussion, the student will provide a thread presenting a thought-provoking question for the rest of the class. In addition to the thread, the student will reply to 1 classmate’s thread. Replies must go beyond simple agreement by extending discussion of the topic. Each thread must be a minimum of 200 words, and each reply must be a minimum of 150 words. All writing must comply with current APA format, including in-text citations and references. (CLO: A and K)

The student will post a 2–3-minute video thread following his/her weekly readings. In his/her video, the student will discuss the prompts listed each week of the video discussion. The student will also post a 1-minute video reply to the video threads of at least 1 of his/her classmates. Kaltura should be utilized for all video assignments. Please utilize the Kaltura resources and reach out to the IT Help Desk if you have questions. (CLO: I, J, K)

Prewriting threads are portions of the Educational Philosophy in Practice Paper submitted prior to the final assignment. These will be peer-reviewed in discussion form. (CLO: B, F)

Discussion: Biblical Worldview: Prewriting and Peer Review

Prewriting threads are portions of the Biblical Worldview Paper submitted prior to the final assignment. These will be peer-reviewed in discussion form. (CLO: B, F)

The student must see the specific directions and grading rubric for this 4-page paper.  It is a paper conveying an understanding of a biblical worldview and the implications of such on the field of education. (CLO: B)

The student will write a 5-page paper (excluding title, abstract, and reference pages) according to current APA professional standards outlining his/her beliefs about the purposes of education. He/she will relate those beliefs to the content of this course, citing specific examples of educational thinkers and philosophies by way of comparison and contrast to his/her own. The student must include at least 4 references for this paper, including the textbooks for this course. Turnitin will be used to evaluate the originality of the paper. (CLO: A, B, C, and H)

The student will complete the School Sims: Midterm Assignment. As you complete each School Sims Simulation, follow the instructions to save and retain the .pdf feedback report for each simulation because you will need to upload it later. (CLO: B, G, H, I, K).

The student will complete the Benchmark School Sims: Final Assignment. As you complete each School Sims Simulation, follow the instructions to save and retain the .pdf feedback report for each simulation because you will need to upload it later. (CLO: B, E, H, I, K).

The student will take 4 quizzes corresponding to the topics in the Addressing the Hole in Whole Child Education content. Each quiz will be open-book/open-notes, consist of 5 questions and have a 10-minute time limit. (CLO: D, G, H, J).

Quizzes: School Sims (5)

The student will take 5 School Sims quizzes corresponding to Modules 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7. Each quiz will be completed using the embedded School Sims Simulation software and consist of 5 multiple choice questions. As you complete each School Sims Simulation, follow the instructions to save and retain the .pdf feedback report for each simulation because you will need to upload it later. (CLO: J)

Two open-book/open-notes quizzes are assigned during this course. Each quiz will contain 25 questions. The student will have 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete each quiz. (CLO: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, and K)

This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 10 multiple-choice and essay questions, have a 60 minute time limit, and allow 1 attempt.


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