New York City and It's Youth

Catalog description

The New York City Department of Education serves roughly 1.1 million students. Put another way, roughly one out of every 330 *people* in the United States is a student served by the nation's largest public school system. How does this massive, dynamic, complex, diverse, complicated city and its people support and educate its youth - in formal and informal settings, both in and beyond its schools and classrooms? Understanding the scale, approach, impact, and importance of this project provides an enlightening glimpse into the social, political, historical, geographical, and cultural dynamics of a unique American and global city. Approaching an exploration of the city through the lens of its youth also provides an important angle of perspective that will help shape one's understanding of New York City, as well as its values, priorities, systems, opportunities, limitations, and more. In this course, students will engage in an interdisciplinary, field-trip oriented experience designed to explore the city of New York through the perspective of its youth and the resources and institutions designed to support them.