Relevance
It is very fitting for this blog post to address relevance, because that is exactly Jonathan Kozol's argument— how real the presence of apartheid education still is in America today. Throughout the novel, he has proven through his primary rhetorical methods of quotes and statistics that although we as a society may turn a blind eye, so many children in poorly-funded, typically inner-city schools are suffering without much hope for a better future.
In chapter ten, Kozol discusses the major economic differences between successful school districts and struggling ones, which more often than not, correlate to white versus minority student populations. He used San Antonio, Texas as one example, noting that, "Edgewood ended up with only $231for each child. Alamo Heights, meanwhile, the richest section of the city but incorporated as a separate schooling district, was able to spend $543 on each pupil. Alamo Heights, then as now, was a predominantly white district" (242).
Reading statistic after statistic like these, about children not being given equal opportunities or any lasting support from their regional governments, makes me wonder about how they are faring now, during the biggest current event that our nation has faced in a long time: the coronavirus pandemic. In Hopkinton, while not every student or family has there own personal laptop or desktop computer to use at home, our school district provided laptops for those students. In addition, every student has been given access to an abundance of resources, particularly access to our teachers, that students in poorer districts do not even receive during "normal" times. Are they even able to learn while quarantined at home? How much farther behind will they fall once life returns to the way it was?
A 2008 study by the Institution of Education Sciences revealed that while approximately one hundred percent of schools in the United States have at least one computer in the building, only fifty-eight percent had laptop carts available to students for work (Gray, Thomas, Lewis 2). While this research does not align exactly with the timing of The Shame of the Nation, it can be inferred that the schools Kozol visited were not included in this percentage, because if they cannot even afford basic materials like textbooks, they cannot possibly have the means to purchase enough laptops for their overflowing student populations. Additionally, the teachers in these struggling schools are already undertrained and underpaid, so there are no possible means to support the necessary IT personnel required to maintain the functioning of school laptops.
While distance learning has been a nice break for some of us, not having access to education for an uncertain span of time could have detrimental effects on not only the progress of these students, but their emotional health as well. Julie Evans, the CEO of a Project Tomorrow educational progress movement called Speak Up, explains that having open communication with teachers through technology helps reduce students' anxiety by " 'wanting to share the problem with someone...' " and "arriving knowing their teacher is already aware of the problem" (Mathewson).
Many minority students already face stressors outside of school such as family conflict, economic struggles or jobs of their own, and now the COVID-19 panic. School should be a place of learning and growth both academically and personally, and Kozol continues to prove that this is not the nationwide standard for all students, and action needs to be taken.
In chapter ten, Kozol discusses the major economic differences between successful school districts and struggling ones, which more often than not, correlate to white versus minority student populations. He used San Antonio, Texas as one example, noting that, "Edgewood ended up with only $231for each child. Alamo Heights, meanwhile, the richest section of the city but incorporated as a separate schooling district, was able to spend $543 on each pupil. Alamo Heights, then as now, was a predominantly white district" (242).
Reading statistic after statistic like these, about children not being given equal opportunities or any lasting support from their regional governments, makes me wonder about how they are faring now, during the biggest current event that our nation has faced in a long time: the coronavirus pandemic. In Hopkinton, while not every student or family has there own personal laptop or desktop computer to use at home, our school district provided laptops for those students. In addition, every student has been given access to an abundance of resources, particularly access to our teachers, that students in poorer districts do not even receive during "normal" times. Are they even able to learn while quarantined at home? How much farther behind will they fall once life returns to the way it was?
A 2008 study by the Institution of Education Sciences revealed that while approximately one hundred percent of schools in the United States have at least one computer in the building, only fifty-eight percent had laptop carts available to students for work (Gray, Thomas, Lewis 2). While this research does not align exactly with the timing of The Shame of the Nation, it can be inferred that the schools Kozol visited were not included in this percentage, because if they cannot even afford basic materials like textbooks, they cannot possibly have the means to purchase enough laptops for their overflowing student populations. Additionally, the teachers in these struggling schools are already undertrained and underpaid, so there are no possible means to support the necessary IT personnel required to maintain the functioning of school laptops.
While distance learning has been a nice break for some of us, not having access to education for an uncertain span of time could have detrimental effects on not only the progress of these students, but their emotional health as well. Julie Evans, the CEO of a Project Tomorrow educational progress movement called Speak Up, explains that having open communication with teachers through technology helps reduce students' anxiety by " 'wanting to share the problem with someone...' " and "arriving knowing their teacher is already aware of the problem" (Mathewson).
Many minority students already face stressors outside of school such as family conflict, economic struggles or jobs of their own, and now the COVID-19 panic. School should be a place of learning and growth both academically and personally, and Kozol continues to prove that this is not the nationwide standard for all students, and action needs to be taken.
Works Cited
Gray, Lucinda, et al. "Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools: Fall
2008." National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education
Sciences, Apr. 2010, nces.ed.gov/pubs2010/2010034.pdf. Accessed 14 Apr.
2020.
2008." National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education
Sciences, Apr. 2010, nces.ed.gov/pubs2010/2010034.pdf. Accessed 14 Apr.
2020.
Mathewson, Tara Garcia. "The learning experience is different in schools that
assign laptops, a survey finds." The Hechinger Report, WordPress, 20 Sept.
2018, hechingerreport.org/
the-learning-experience-is-different-in-schools-that-assign-laptops-a-survey-find
s/. Accessed 14 Apr. 2020.
assign laptops, a survey finds." The Hechinger Report, WordPress, 20 Sept.
2018, hechingerreport.org/
the-learning-experience-is-different-in-schools-that-assign-laptops-a-survey-find
s/. Accessed 14 Apr. 2020.
Your discussion of the inequalities that exist throughout America's schools, especially in this time, is apt and thoughtful. There are some schools across the country that are pretty much done for the year, and are having parents cobble together lessons, which, if we think about the jobs some of the parents in low-income communities might have, as well as their own lack of education, this just exacerbates the problems.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, and while healthcare is currently the primary concern of government officials in all areas of the country, I do not see this problem being solved anytime soon, which is unjust and a shame.
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