Can schools really reform society?

The topic of discussion that I selected for this week is called: Can schools really reform society? “As the article states, it is not uncommon to hear people say that schools are the best way to transform society, but is this really true?”

First, society can be defined as an organized group of people that is associated together for religious, benevolent, cultural, scientific, political or other purposes. The common purpose of school is to make the world a better place and to equip students with the essential skills that they will need to move onto the next stage of their lives, whatever that stage may be. On the other hand, the goals of schools and its educational purpose is to help "build a better more equitable society through reforms in schools organization, curriculum, instruction and in technology.”

In my opinion, times have changed. Education has become the business. I think that our society is helping to reform schools simply due to the fact that culture, diversity and social justice is so ever changing these days. In our society, we have so many different issues and circumstances that do not allow anything else to surface but the problems itself. There is no denying that there are flaws in our current educational system. Teachers and administrators have somehow become the scapegoat for a system that they did not develop, nor implement.

In previous instances of school reform, policymakers saw schools as serving the economy and protecting the nation. Today, “the actions of the current reformers are seeking to insure that the poor and minority students that are trapped in failing schools would be able to have equal opportunity, have the experience of going to college, preparing them for college and for better jobs and not aiming graduates to fight for a more equitable society.”

To me, assumptions can be misleading. As valuable as children are, it is difficult to understand why many Americans continue to make assumptions instead of searching for a deeper understanding and a solution to the problem of reform.

Reference

Strauss, V. (2012, October 10).Can schools really reform society? The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2012/10/10/can-schools-really-reform-society/?print=1

The 'educational" value of being born rich

Raising the test scores are doomed to fail, but the focus of school reform efforts still looks very slim. According to Arne Duncan, “education is the one two path out of poverty.  It is the great equalizer that overcomes differences in background, culture and privilege. It is the only way to secure our common future in a competitive global economy.”  The article that I selected for this week’s blog is called: The ‘educational’ value of being born rich. This was a very interesting article.The Annie E. Casey Foundation produced a 2013 Kids Count Report that examined the child’s well being in the nation and in the state. Well, just to let you know, my state made the list as usual, South Carolina.
South Carolina ranks down from 45^th and down from 43^rd in the report. The report reflected social and educational changes such as: economic, education, health, family and the community in which the results were very low and did not pass the standards. South Carolina represents states that remain heavily burdened by the negative consequences of poverty along with social inequality and its complicated factors. Reports showed that social and education reform should remain top priorities for South Carolina because the children do deserve better schools. The report also showed that the current school reform policies should be placed to the side and that more time needs to be spent on education reform that can help to address the conditions of better teaching and learning.

Therefore, children in South Carolina and across the United States are born into relative affluence and those children even without attending college are apt to succeed over impoverished children who rise above the challenges of their homes and communities by graduating college. Rich kids are more likely to get a better education which translates into being richer and wealthier as adults. It is certainly the case that richer kids are more likely to get a college degree, and it is certainly the case that getting a college degree leaves you much better off on average than not getting one.

So the answer to the title is that: "You are better off being born rich regardless of whether you go to college than being poor and getting a college degree."

Reference
Strauss, V.(2013).The ‘educational’ value of being born rich. Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/07/15/the-educational-value-of-being-born/

Bruenig, M. (2013).What’s more important: a college degree or being born rich? MattBrienig.Politics. Retrieved from http://mattbruenig.com/2013/06/13/whats-more-important-a-college-degree-or-being-born-rich/

Why schools aren't businesses: The blueberry story

Education is often criticized for being too theoretical and that it leaves young people ill- prepared for the real world. The world is changing so fast that students should be able to earn while they learn and learn while they earn. 

The topic that I selected this week is: Why schools aren’t businesses: The blueberry story. When I first read this article, I had mixed views. In my opinion, schools today are ran like a business. They have forgotten about the quality of education and its students. On the other hand, education is a business that does need rediscovering and that we should embrace this as a time when we are eager as a profession to compete. To me, the real truth is that education is the business.

Jamie Vollmer was a successful and a former ice cream company executive and he was also an education advocate and the author of the book called “Schools Cannot Do It Alone.” In the middle 80’s, People Magazine chooses their blueberry as the “Best Ice Cream in America.” (Let’s say blueberries are associated with students in this article). One day a speech was given by Vollmer during teachers in-service to a room filled with about 290 teachers, principals, bus drivers, aides, custodians and secretaries. His speech was consisted of many views:  “Public schools need to change, schools were out of step with the needs and demands of our emerging society and that educators helped to contribute to the problems. Teachers resisted change, they were hunkered down in their feathered nets and protected by tenure and shielded by a bureaucratic monopoly.”

After his speech, a veteran English teacher challenged Vollmer. The questions that she asked Vollmer were: Even though you have an exceptional and profitable business that caters to and serves the best ice cream in America and even though the ice cream has super premium ingredients, sixteen percent butterfat and is rich and smooth in taste……. but what happens when you receive an inferior shipment of blueberries? He stated, we send them back. The veteran English explained that we cannot send our blueberries back. “The come to us big and small, rich and poor, gifted and exceptional, abused and frightened, confident and homeless, rude and brilliant, ADHD, junior rheumatoid arthritis and English as their second language. We take them all! Every One!”

The moral to the story is that Jamie Vollmer realized that schools help to reflect attitudes and beliefs. Teachers are not the problem, society is. Teachers cannot fight our educational system alone. Voices must be heard to make a difference.

Reference

Nevins, B.(2008).”Why Schools Can’t Run Like A Business”.Browardbeat.com. Retrieved from http://www.browardbeat.com/why-schools-cant-run-like-a-business

Spinder, P.(2013). Is it a business or a school? The Fifth Conference. Retrieved from http://www.fifthconference.com/topic/people/it-business-or-school

Strauss, V. (2013). Why schools aren’t businesses: The blueberry story. The Washington Post. Retrieved from  http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/07/09/why-schools-arent-businesses-the-blueberry-story/?print=1

Arne Duncan praises, slaps charter schools

Hello Everybody!…….....The new kid on the block is called the “Charter School.” The Charter School Movement is one of the most promising reforms to hit public education in a long time. Charter Schools have become the “incubators of innovation.” The charter school is an independent public school of choice that is freed from rules but accountable for results. It has become the new way of reinventing public education. The topic of discussion that I selected is “Arne Duncan praises, Slaps Charter Schools.”

In the article, Education Secretary Arne Duncan expressed his concerns that the charter sector has had some “extraordinary accomplishments,” but on the other hand, it has experienced and faced many issues. In my opinion, too many of our students are being short changed by our current educational system which has failed many of our students. Our students are emerging without decent preparation for citizenship, college and the workforce.

Although the challenges of education reform have already begun to dominate our education ecosystem, the charter school has the potential to renew and to redefine public education in the United States. Turning a potential into a reality can be a challenging task, however, the idea of a charter school can have a powerful implication for the entire enterprise of public schooling. What’s significant about the charter school is that it is helping to reach low-income black students, hispanics and other students of culture.

According to Duncan, “we all know the dream of the charter movement is not yet a dream fulfilled, but it is a movement that is on the rise.”

Reference

Strauss, V. (2013). Arne Duncan praises, Slaps Charter Schools. The Washington Post. Retrieved from
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/07/03/arne-duncan-praises-slaps-charter-schools/?print=1

Education and its views today has become politically complex. You can say that our education system has many broken areas and it has many lost pieces to be found. I often ask myself the question, can the pieces to the puzzle be solved and challenged in a way that it helps to bring methods, policies, practices and instruction to education that can be deemed fair, just and appropriate for our students?

Each and every person should have the option and the opportunity to attend college regardless of what their race, color, creed or religion is. The article that I selected is "Obama’s student loan rules are denying blacks in disproportionate numbers." I agree and respect the Obama Administration in what they are trying to do for all students that are attending and wanting to attend college by allocating, dispensing and trying to stabilize funds that are being offered to college students and their parents.  In my opinion, I feel that every student should be able to attend the college of their choice no matter what the cost may be.

I can attest to the new student loan rules. Obama’s new student loan rules are denying not only blacks in disproportionate number but it is affecting all students’ not just minorities.  Funding for all public and private institutions are being effected in great ways. School s are laying off teachers, reducing of staff, some institutions are doing away with certain degrees and athletic programs, less scholarships are being offered,  enrollment is on the decline and the list just goes on and on.

Due to the economy and life’s circumstances, my household income has changed tremendously.  Just a couple of months ago, I had the opportunity to apply for a Parent  Plus Loan for my son and I was denied the loan amount due to some blemishes on my credit report. If it was not for the hard efforts of my son’s financial advisor, he might not be able to attend school this coming fall. His advisor was able to find the funds for him and all of his tuition and expenses for the 2013-2014 school term is paid in full including housing, meals and books. We were very fortunate and very blessed. But how many students in the same situation that we were in are able to come out on top and are able to find other resources and funding to help pay for their college tuition?  Yes, I do believe in so many ways that “The tougher credit criteria’s are having a disparate impact on underrepresented minority students….but let’s say all students are having a disparate impact , the very ones that stand to benefit the most from a college education.” (Strauss, 2013)

Reference
Strauss, V. (2013). Obama’s Student loan rules are denying blacks in disproportionate numbers. The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/06/26/obamas-student-loan-rules-are-denying-blacks-in-disproportionate-numbers/?print=1