Tracking, Oakes

 After reading the article, I thought back to how schools I had attended grouped its students. In

my middle school, there were three classes. One class was for those who had difficulty focusing but were still capable. Next, was the class I was in that was full of average kids and few above average students. The third and final class, concluded of those who excelled in the previous grades and were the smartest students in the grade. This form of tracking seemed to be working as my classes never felt unappreciated. We always had homework, semi-complicated projects, weekly quizzes, etc. However, the aforementioned students who excelled in the previous years that were placed in higher level courses, had roughly the same workload, yet higher difficulty and a higher standard.

    What is important to note, is that the article, and my own personal experience in school,  stresses that there is a, “goal of provid­ing high-quality, relevant education to all students.” This ideology seemed to be present in my middle school as classes where an education level that was  relevant to the collective intelligence of the class.

    The article was very sensical and straightforward, however, there is one aspect of the article that I do not agree with. The aspect of the article that I do not agree with is that, “More over, the nature of these differences suggests that students who are placed in high-ability groups have access to far richer schooling experiences than other students.” This statement implies that students who are not placed in the highest level courses, will not have access to richer schooling experiences. Although, I understand what the author is trying to convey. It is also true that both my brother and myself and many people I know were placed in course levels that were not the bottom of the course load, but were certainly not at the top, and we all were accepted to college on the first attempt. Thus, it is possible that students who are not enrolled in higher level courses can face great difficulty enriching their education, it does not seem to be more often than not as the article suggest.

http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/108013/chapters/What-Tracking-Is-and-How-to-Start-Dismantling-It.aspx  

    

Blog Post 10 "Citizenship in School: Reconceptualizing Down Syndrome”

     This post will be a reflection on Racheal B’s post. Much like Racheal’s experience in school concerning the mentally challenged, my interaction with the students grew less and less through the progression of schooling. Like Racheal, my elementary school classes were integrated with students of all types. However, middle school was not as integrated. Instead, my school had regular classes, and then a class with students that needed more attention. The students with special needs would attend this class but only if they wanted to. Everyone has good days and bad days and the mentally handicapped are no exception, thus, they only attended this class on their good days. The only time the special needs students were fully integrated was in gym, but even that was understandably strenuous on the special needs students  at times with all loudness of the gym once everyone got to jumping around and playing basketball that always ended with someone getting hit in the face or what not. As high school came around, much like Rachel, my school had a program called, “The Options Program”, that was solely made up of students with special needs. However, when the special needs students one to to class, they were joined by a student in a program that was full of student volunteers that would take time out of gym, lunch, or leave a class early to assist the special needs students in class. Overall, like Racheal, I do think special needs students should have the opportunity to be in an inclusion classroom because it really does benefit everyone. The only problem I could see is if the teacher is not aware of how to interact with a student with special needs, in which that case could yield an overseer or something of this nature to stay with the student with special needs from class to class.  

https://library.down-syndrome.org/en-us/research-practice/04/1/integration-down-syndrome-mainstream-schools-teachers-knowledge-needs-attitudes-expectations/

Separate and Unequal and The Problem We All Live With

Quote 1 : In, Separate and Equal, by Bob Herbert 

“Schools are no longer legally segregated, but because of residential patterns, housing discrimination, economic disparities and long-held custom, they most emphatically are in reality.” 

     This quote is a prime example of how yes, the legality of segregation states that schools are not to be segregated. However, this has proven to be almost irrelevant as each area has a specific set of individuals based upon the area in which the school is located. Proving that yes, schools are not segregated by law, but instead by environment which is articulated in the podcast, The Problem We All Live With, by Nikole Hannah Jones, stating, “the zip code is the anchor that traps you.” 

Quote 2 : In, Separate and Equal, by Bob Herbert 

“If you really want to improve the education of poor children, you have to get them away from learning environments that are smothered by poverty. This is being done in some places, with impressive results. An important study conducted by the Century Foundation in Montgomery County, Md., showed that low-income students who happened to be enrolled in affluent elementary schools did much better than similarly low-income students in higher-poverty schools in the county.” 

     This is a longer quote, however each part is key to understanding that placing kids that are natively from an impoverished area, and enrolling them in an affluent school has statistically proven to benefit the students, at least academically. However, in tandem with the podcast, The Problem We All Live With, by Nikole Hannah Jones mentions how going to a nicer school and fitting in/ feeling like you belong in the school you are in, are two different things. 

Quote 3: The Problem We All Live With, By by Nikole Hannah Jones. 

“One of the best district of Missouri was just five miles away. Why not send them there? Well, if you don't want students to leave your district, one way to keep them is to make leaving inconvenient. Make them ride a long distance to school everyday. The Normandy officials deny that’s why they chose Francis Howell.”

     This quote is a prime example of how the school board actively attempted to deter students from leaving their native school to attend a nicer school in order to better themselves. Making it hard to leave their school was an aim to keep students in their native school, however, nearly a thousand students were willing to endure the half hour commute. This made me think of my high school days. Just like these students, I left my hometown school that had a subpar high school and took a bus at 5:45 that arrived at school at 7:45, all to better my education. Thus, it can be done, but with a bit of luck and willingness to make it work. 

https://www.fhsdschools.org