UNC School of Education

Curriculum Vitae (PDF)

“Do not seal off the stage.
Leaning back, let the spectator be aware
Of the busy preparation going on
Cunningly intended for him. He sees
A tin moon floating down, a shingle roof
Brought in. Don’t show him too much.
But do show him! And, friends, let him be aware that
You are not conjurers, but workers.”

– Bertolt Brecht

Overview

Madeleine R. Grumet is a professor in the School of Education and in the Department of Communication Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. In the School of Education, she teaches courses in curriculum theory in the Culture, Curriculum and Change Area and the Curriculum and Instruction Program. In the Department of Communication Studies, she teaches courses in performance studies. From 1998-2003, Grumet was dean of the School of Education, a position she previously held in the School of Education at Brooklyn College, City University, NY.

Drawing her scholarship from literature and philosophy, Grumet is interested in understanding how society influences what goes on in schools. Grumet’s early work explored the use of autobiographical narratives in the study of educational experience. In Bitter Milk: Women and Teaching, Grumet addressed the influence of gender on knowledge and teaching. Current projects address the arts and their integration into the curriculum of the academic disciplines and analyses of current trends in curriculum theory.

Grumet’s research and scholarship explore issues of subjectivity and the ways that students and teachers bring their own experiences to the symbolic codes and social and political structures of institutional knowledge to make sense of the world. This agenda takes many forms: a comparative study of resources in the neighboring school districts of Orange County and Chapel Hill-Carrboro; an analysis of cognitive, social and emotional processes of arts integration programs; and a study of how deans of schools of education perceive the effects of accreditation. Her recent essay, The Public Expression of Citizen Teachers, published in the Journal of Teacher Education, expresses her strong interest in supporting the dignity and agency of teachers.

Educational Background

• Ed.D. 1979 - University of Rochester, Curriculum Theory
• M.A. 1974 - University of Rochester, English Education
• B.A. 1961 - Barnard College, Literature

Research Interests

• Curriculum Theory
• Arts and Education
• Feminist Theory and Education

Teaching Areas

• Reinventing Teaching Course
• Teaching Fellows Creativity Course
• Curriculum Theory Seminar for Doctoral Program
• Pedagogy and Performance

Courses

• EDUC 600: Reinventing Teaching
• EDUC 753: Introduction to Curriculum
• EDUC 851: Curriculum Theory
• EDUX 701: Teacher Leadership and Democratic Schooling

Honors & Awards

• Lifetime Achievement Award, April 2009, Granted by Division B/Curriculum Studies, American Association of Educational Research.
• Willystine Goodsell Award, April 2008, Granted by the Special Interest Group on the Education of Women and Girls, American Educational Research Association.  This is an award given annually to a woman recognized for feminist leadership and scholarship in education.

Funded Research

• Capital Campaign for School of Education
• Development of Carolina Teaching Network
• AT&T Grant for Development of on-line instruction
• Jesse Ball DuPont grant for M.Ed.
• Development of School of Education CTN Wing at Smith Middle School
• Research Triangle Professional Development School Partnership

Selected Professional Affiliations

• American Educational Research Association
• Modern Language Association
• Philosophy of Education Association
• Association of American Colleges of Teacher Education
• Society for Existential Phenomenology and Philosophy
• Professors of Curriculum
• American Association for the Advancement of Curriculum Studies

Selected Publications

“The Public Expression of the Citizen Teacher” in Journal of Teacher Education, 2010, 61: 66-76.

“Curriculum Theory, Inquiry and Politics,” in Curriculum Inquiry, 2009, Volume 39, Issue 1, pp. 221-234.

“Subject Position and Subjectivity” in E.  Malewski, ed., Curriculum Theory Reconsidered: Exploring the Next Moment. New York: Routledge. 2009

“Finding Form for Curriculum Reseach” with Amy Anderson and Christopher Osmond, in K. Gallagher, ed. The Methodological Dilemma. New York: Routledge, 2009

“Thoughts in a Box” in A. Fidyk, J. Wallin, and K. DenHeyer, eds. Troy, New York: Educators’ International Press. 2008

Grumet, M. R. (1988). Bitter Milk. Women and Teaching. Amherst: The University of Massachusetts Press, 225 pages.