A call for separate and unequal
Two recent items in the NYT on education are worth a read:
Chicago school teacher Will Okun:
"[O]ur school has too many students who are making no legitimate effort to learn or pass classes. These students attend periodically to socialize, to sell drugs or to alleviate boredom. Some are mandated to attend by the court of law or by a relative. Others are just too young to drop out. They do not carry book bags; they are not in possession of pen or paper. When the hallways and classrooms are in order, these students mourn, “It’s dead as hell in here.” The threat of F’s, parent conferences, detentions, and suspensions are pointless. Unfortunately, no one in the family seems to care. Only the threat of expulsion garners temporary compliance."
A gem in comments:
"Disruption and dysfunction are the enemy of achievement for enormous numbers of students. Yet we do nothing for them. We simply must draw a bright, shining line around those who are ready to learn, and let nothing interfere with their education."
Chicago school teacher Will Okun:
"[O]ur school has too many students who are making no legitimate effort to learn or pass classes. These students attend periodically to socialize, to sell drugs or to alleviate boredom. Some are mandated to attend by the court of law or by a relative. Others are just too young to drop out. They do not carry book bags; they are not in possession of pen or paper. When the hallways and classrooms are in order, these students mourn, “It’s dead as hell in here.” The threat of F’s, parent conferences, detentions, and suspensions are pointless. Unfortunately, no one in the family seems to care. Only the threat of expulsion garners temporary compliance."
A gem in comments:
"Disruption and dysfunction are the enemy of achievement for enormous numbers of students. Yet we do nothing for them. We simply must draw a bright, shining line around those who are ready to learn, and let nothing interfere with their education."
Comments
It has been the hope of classroom teachers for years that the administration would listen to their pleas. They didn't and haven't and now the situation is totally out of hand. I simply no longer have an answer or remedy. When the numbers of "couldn't care less" was much smaller is when the problem should have been tackled.
More charter schools to get those who want to learn out of the public school zoo is all that seems possible.
It is also a fact that Black males are the majority of the "ccl's" . Do we build more prison's? Or does the Black community finally realize that their own behavior of accepting one parent families with no father figure in site is the problem? Some have even suggest two types of public schools: one for the learners that are run like charter schools and the other type is run more on the military school model. This may work. A well disciplined military school model is certainly better than the armed camp we are quickly approaching even here in Greensboro/Guilford. BB military
Posted by: Brenda Bowers![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://reidsvillenow.com/jhs/nav-commenters.gif)
|
April 28, 2008 10:14 AM
I have male children; however,they also have a strong father that doesn't deal with the bull from them, and I don't interfer. Black women are the problem with these boys. You have child support laws that don't favor people staying together. Disciple is gone from the schools, because white parents didn't want Black teachers disciplining their child, now30 years later they all are out of control. Thank god my last son went to college in 2007. It got to start at home with these single mothers!I am of the Black community however, my behavior didn't create the problem, and there are also strong Black mothers that may be single that didn't create the problem.
Posted by: Bernadette![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://reidsvillenow.com/jhs/nav-commenters.gif)
|
May 1, 2008 10:12 AM