Racism and America

[mac]

Hard to figure out RR. Sometimes he makes insightful comments that add to the discussion, sometimes he channels his inner Mike Fick. Particularly when he tries to put words in my mouth. I guess he does that when he doesn't understand what I wrote, or can't be bothered to read it.

Techno--I suggest that you read Diane Ravitch's book, "The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education." She systematically goes through how much of the ideology on the right about school choice is not borne out in research done on those efforts. I've found this with Michele Rhee, who is absolutely unwilling to tolerate any views that don't match hers. I particularly recommend to you the sections of Ravitch's book about parochial schools, I think you will find them insightful.

There are no simple answers to improving education for the hard to teach, or for closing the achievement gap. I haven't met a single teacher who wasn't committed to the latter--but if anyone really knew what to do it would have been done. Some human endeavors are like that--we must constantly struggle, and we will fall short of our goals no matter how committed we are or how hard we work. In the Berkeley schools, they have identified kids--42 in the school where I volunteer--and are intervening. I spent this morning with two of them. As a teacher or as a volunteer, I know that establishing a relationship and trust are key. Kids who have not been successful are usually fiercely defensive, and often don't try because they are afraid of failure. I have one girl, who is a quality athlete in track, close to grade level in reading, and was lost in math at the beginning of the year. I have helped her, but I insist on drilling her on times tables every time I do. Gradually she is learning them--and starting to feel better about herself. Another girl in the same class, with serious dysfunction at home, plays with rubber bands and writes "I suck" when she doesn't try. The first has learned to trust me, and it is now reinforced because she knows she is learning. I'm not sure whether the second trusts me, or is just too unhappy to be able to concentrate.

I've had both successes and failures in this approach over the nine years I've been doing this significant hours. As a practical matter, no teacher with 28 or so kids in a class can spend this extra time with kids who are slipping behind. If we don't intervene, too many of them will cost us more in jail. If our vision for success is reaching them all, we are doomed to failure.

RR--I will respond seriously if you can manage a serious comment. Don't try to be lies or nonsense in my mouth.

[KGB-NP]

LOL! Mac, see that smilie? That was me laughing as I wrote it and not intended to be a serious comment. Dude, loosen up a bit!

[mac]

Oh, my mistake. I assumed you made a serious comment rather than a series of judgmental and hateful comments. So sorry. I guess "obese" was a joke.

[KGB-NP]

Ok Mac, here's your serious response; agree it is time that usually the answer to many of these issues, as I stated before with the homeless. Our inherent selfishness is what limits our time invested in finding or being part of the solution. Writing the cheque to make the problem go away is the quick fix bandage solution. Governments write those blank cheques all the time with tax dollars until there's nothing left in the coffers, and the easy thing to do is to blame government. The tough part is to be introspective, roll up ones sleeves, and put our own selfish wants aside.

Put into practice that is a solution to most problems. The easy part is what we do here - provide lip service without sweat equity. The crazy part is we deprive ourselves of the pure joy of the sweat equity part while we pat ourselves on the back about how much we gave.

Biblical principles that are lost on a "me" society, or to quote my journeyman mentor as an apprentice, "just shut up and do it!"

[uwindsurf]

What does the Bible have to do with education?

[KGB-NP]

I don't know, did I say it had anything to do with education or did I say it had to do with principles?

[KGB-NP]

Obese is an observable physical attribute as is ones hygiene and both can say a lot about ones confidence, self respect, self worth as well as their concern for their family and the example they set or their concern about participating in their families lives in an active and healthy manner. I try to stay in shape for all of those reasons listed. I also do so because it increases my ability to nuture and provide for my family. It's hard to sell services with greasy hair, food stains on my shirt weighing 400 pounds. That's a fact of life, not hatred.

[J64TWB]

We need to start focusing more on the strengths of each student. Everyone is different. Left brain right brain stuff. Certain kids have an aptitude for math, but not get English etc. Focus on the math then. Standardized testing seems out of date. Follow the child’s strengths as opposed to the systems weakness. Students will have more of an interest and apply themselves. Different way of thinking, less energy wasted, different system, better results. So what if Billy doesn’t have an interest in chemistry, he is a wiz at computers and loves math. Focus on strengths. Mac?

[isobars]

[mac]

RR--you say something insightful--and then something pretty vile. The initial posting wasn't bad; I agree with you that human capital is more important than economic capital, particularly in the lives of kids that aren't getting meaningful interactions with adults at home. Putting in time with kids, in whatever role, is very important. But calling a child obese, out of the blue, is mean-spirited. There are people with medical conditions that you don't know about, or learning issues that you don't know about, that may cause disability or weight gain. ADHD medication and steroids for serious medical conditions have these side effects, and fat people are discriminated against enough. The point I was making is that you do not have a right to know, and will never know, whether a kids difficulty in learning is due to a medical condition. They have privacy rights--and I was indeed scolding your insensitivity. You have a right--and a responsibility--to demand a classroom where all can be educated. But it may be more complicated than you realize.

Frederick--their is indeed a difference between facility, or gifts, and training. For me, the object of education is to allow each person to realize their special gift, and have the opportunity to develop it. That does require a certain minimum level of skill. Master carpenters need to understand math, and big pieces of geometry and trigonometry, to be able to ply their craft and make sense of the business end. Reporters may not. So two years of algebra as a high school pre-requisite to college may be silly for musicians and artistans. But I certainly didn't want to constrain myself for the rest of my life at 16--which is the age of a high school sophomore. (On the other hand, despite 16 years of math, I struggled with math analysis and statistics.)

Young girls do much better than a generation ago in math--we were making assumptions about ability that turn out to have been in large part cultural. I've had years where 7 of my 8 advanced math kids were girls.

The bigger problem here is the emotional learning step to overcome failure at first. That is actually the most important lesson for kids to learn, and heavily dependent on their emotional state and support at home. With advanced math kids I was explicit that teaching them to overcome not getting a problem right was the most important lesson. I can teach any kid very difficult things--if they don't quit when it gets hard.

Anyone that has been paying attention for 60 years or more of life, and has worked in teams or been responsible for the work of others, knows that people who aren't afraid are at their best. To work education you need to address the fear of failure. Helping kids overcome their fears, and appreciate their talents is far different than the right wing meme of giving every kid a trophy no matter how he did. It is learning, which some adults never do, how to get the best out of every person--and, as you say, appreciate them for their strengths.