Inequality Class Activity Response 2015.10.1

Olivia Canavan

September, 2015

Class Activity Response

Mrs. DeSimony, SUPA

During the class activity, I experienced the “working class school.” Our individuality was suppressed and there was minimal instruction from the teacher. Perhaps the most apparent part of the activity was the lack of choice that we had as students. Our teacher expected us to look at vocabulary words, read them, and have them memorized for a quiz, without implementing our own processes of learning words. Not only were we expected to be silent, but our desks also had to be straight, our bags under them. It seemed like everything, regardless of the magnitude was a disruption and being unique was frowned upon. Throughout the duration of the activity I felt as if the teacher had no right to micromanage my every move. I eventually had my name written on the board because I turned around in my seat one too many times. If I were forced to attend school in an environment that restrained my personality I would eventually start to believe that being an individual is wrong. Educational philosopher Jean Anyon believes that the rote learning methods found in working class schools are meant to prepare students for a working class lifestyle. In her book, Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work, Anyon observed elementary language arts classes, where a teacher said “It tells them exactly what to do, or they couldn’t do it.” The lack of expectations feeds the “working class” cycle and creates more people who are brainwashed into learning without feeling. It could be argued that the economy needs the working class, otherwise there would not be unskilled or semiskilled laborers, however having these workers as an economic base should not be at the expense of child creativity and imagination.  Anyon also discusses the grading procedures for the working class school, “Work is often evaluated not according to whether it is right or wrong but according to whether the children followed the right steps.” The long term effects of being forced to learn only one way go beyond the classroom, and into the daily lives of individuals. If someone has never been taught to “think outside of the box,” they will struggle to find a way out of the working class, since high paying jobs often require a more creative side.

Critical Summary- Podcast 2015.10.1

Olivia Canavan

September 2015

“The Problem We All Live With” Response

SUPA Mrs. DeSimony

Quality of education in the United States is often determined by socioeconomic status and the extent to which individuals are represented in government. Across the nation efforts have been made to equalize the educational system. Programs such as magnet schools and No Child Left Behind attempted to help all students learn. These attempts were never successful, and in many cases widened the achievement gap between white students and minorities. Investigative journalist Nikole Hannah- Jones analyzed the decisions of the Missouri State Education Department and presented her findings in a podcast on This American Life. She strives to show the magnitude to which minority students are mistreated by the education system. A product of a school integration program, Hannah- Jones offers an experienced perspective and suggestions that could be implemented to improve the lives of students nationally. She believes that most effective way to eliminate the disparity in achievement among minority and white students is to integrate the students, in other words, put them in the same schools. Despite the fact that most people view segregation in obsolescence, it continues to be a barrier today for students and adults alike. By referring to critical moments in the 1970’s desegregation movement, Hannah- Jones forces listeners to question our nation’s progress in obtaining total equality. Statistics show that between 1971 and 1988, the achievement gap decreased by nearly one half. During that period of time America made a national effort to provide students of color the same opportunities as White students scholastically. Today, the achievement gap has widened again, and our schools are “resegregated,” unintentionally of course.

According to Hannah- Jones,  the generation of Black students who went through integration programs were healthier, more successful, and the longitudinal data shows that they were given more educational opportunities than other minority students. It seems like it would be a simple to provide all students with an environment where they can be successful, however it isn’t a no brainer for everyone.