Reply to This American Life about desegregation in schools

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]than actual poor black kids with indivdiual responsibility in poor black neighborhoods are screwed.  They can go to school and get staight As and graduate completely unprepared for college and with terrible scores on national tests (remember the kid they followed in teh NPR story had teacher actually teach him something on the day they follwoed him).    [/quote]

Are you saying teachers don't teach anything?  I don't think it's true.

I have friend who went to a very bad black school, graduated in top and got into a good college.  His family couldn't afford tutors, I assure you.  I also know a teacher who has been teaching at a failing school.  He is a very good teacher and is very motivated.  I don't believe that teachers just give up on those kids.
[/quote]

Listen to the NPR story about the kids at that school..  The day the honors kid was shadowed, there was one teacher who cared, showed up the entire class, and taught. That school was the worst of the worst, but even one twice as good is not preparing kids for college.  The relative I was talking about went to a school without any AP classes offered. The highest math was trig. LOTS of coaches teaching and, worse, subs teaching for the entire year. And this was a rural white school that attracted better teachers to it than a rural black school would.

Exceptionally smart (and generally exceptional) kids might be OK in this situation.  But those are few and far between (and show me even an exceptionally bright kid who come come out of Newton ready for college).  The kid with average smarts but lots of  personal responsibility and work ethic (like my relative) is not going to make it out without some extraordinary luck (which hasn't befallen her).  lack of educational opportunity IS one reason that 9 out of 10 kids born in poverty stay in poverty.  But it is also the one that we as a society could do something about.  Bus the willing poors to good schools.  Those good schools can absorb them without sacrificing their children's success. Turn the failing schools for the poors who don't choose to spend their mornings on a bus into votech schools.  The problem with all this, of course, is that there might not be enough good schools within 30 miles.  And that is a problem that will get worse with growing wealth disparity.  The problem is turf wars and school administration. Can you imagine DCPS shipping students to fairfax and shipping out that money/cutting positions?![/quote]

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