tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1457422002171939579.post2867375429083241823..comments2024-03-20T04:19:52.573-05:00Comments on Stuff, Things, etc.: This American Life: A Problem We All Live WithKristinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075708535155080258noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1457422002171939579.post-23377932500517688502015-09-14T05:14:44.705-05:002015-09-14T05:14:44.705-05:00This is very thought provoking. I agree that stude...This is very thought provoking. I agree that students of all races can be extremely intelligent or have many learning difficulties be they actual learning issues or caused by circumstances. As you know, my school is predominantly white because the area in which it is located is predominantly white. I think people forget that schools are located where they are. And the population of the area determines the population of the school. Becky Doughertyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11137408537369933534noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1457422002171939579.post-35939218600069385872015-09-13T17:42:00.434-05:002015-09-13T17:42:00.434-05:00I need to listen to that. I think, besides race an...I need to listen to that. I think, besides race and test scores it's all about money. The schools with the lowest test scores probably have the lowest incomes. They're in the poorer areas and, sadly, those are the areas with the highest non-white populations, it seems. Those schools have no hope - unless money starts flowing into those districts ( which probably won't happen because it's very, very hard in today's economy to switch "classes" from poor to middle class, etc.) or unless they desegregating schools across districts. Schools are desegregated by law, but I can bet that in those underperforming districts entire schools/districts are almost all white or almost all non-white. It's just another way that our country gets divided. What came first? The money woes? The racism? Or the test scores? (I'm betting the racism, but that's just IMO.)Dorothy @ Crazy for Crusthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02372290856586991757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1457422002171939579.post-8020697188007300012015-09-11T15:07:28.275-05:002015-09-11T15:07:28.275-05:00I would argue that low scores often reflect much l...I would argue that low scores often reflect much larger issues. One of those issues is institutionalized racism. The creation of ghettoes and the lack of access to public transportation lead to higher rates of poverty. This, in turn, leads to higher deficits in education.You begin to have cultural issues in neighborhoods due to poverty and lack of opportunity and suddenly, you have issues of gangs and drugs. You are correct when you say that schools want kids who will do well on tests but studies show that kids who come to school from poverty have a difficult time catching up, no matter the interventions put in place by the schools.<br /><br />If you ever want to read a great book on the creation of ghettoes and the effects of institutionalized racism stemming from the 1920s, there's a fantastic book called The Warmth of Other Suns. It is long but is incredibly well written and I found it really fascinating. The Tale of Three Pshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17957948373555154150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1457422002171939579.post-35843781237208733532015-09-11T13:44:16.397-05:002015-09-11T13:44:16.397-05:00I see where you're coming from, but I think th...I see where you're coming from, but I think the answers of high vs. low scores comes partly from within the school - teachers and students and environment, but also from outside of the schools...why did the predominantly black school have low test scores versus the predominantly white school? What goes on in the homes and communities outside of school, the laws of the streets where you live very often dictates how well you do in school - sometimes you don't have the luxury of time to study if you have to work or watch a sibling because your parent is cracked out, you don't have tutors, being the smart kid might get you killed. My college friend Heather taught with Teach for America in the worst part of Baltimore and wrote a book about it called Teaching in the Terrordome. That was one of the first things that really snapped my eyes open as to how I remember and think of experiences in schools vs. what a lot of kids in lower class urban areas experience in schools. SMD @ lifeaccordingtostephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09884611147965544589noreply@blogger.com