Keena’s Edublog

This is a [Podcast] of my final presentation for TE 302

Here is the link to my podcast (not embedded)

www.msu.edu/~siouikee/Podcasts/sioui.mp3

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One would assume that after three years of teacher preparation and intensive amounts of time spent monitoring student activity in a variety of classrooms, they would be closer to figuring out who they are going to be as a teacher. By definition a teacher is someone who is a specialist in the theory and application of education, so wouldn’t that make a teacher someone who is constantly learning from their classroom and students? I do not believe that I will ever volunteer to arbitrarily reflect on who I am or want to be as a teacher seeing as I do not believe we are ever going to stop learning and growing as educators and human beings. I do believe however, that the way in which I teach and manage my classroom will be directly correlated with the experiences I have observed throughout my education and student teaching. Although these broad queries are very difficult to answer and may not have concrete solutions, there are many things that a teacher can do to facilitate increased understanding of their own practice and methods, and the success they have on their students. Inquiring about the purpose of schooling, educational pedagogies and goals, and our students’ backgrounds and ambitions are a few ways in which teachers can attempt to be more effective and play a positive role within the realm of the educational system.
            There are many different opinions when it comes to the main purpose of schooling. What purpose does education and schooling actually serve? It seems as though this question is elementary in its focus, but every subjective answer one adapts will be incorporated into the way in which he/she teaches. At first thought, I would respond to this question with the simple ascertainment that the purpose of schooling is for the acquisition of knowledge that would allow for personal growth and societal success. Many however believe that this has been conflicted with deep-rooted social and political agendas. David F. Labaree commented on these goals in the American Educational Research Journal. He believes that there are three main contradictory goals behind the policy, practice and purpose of education.
          Democratic equality, social efficiency and social mobility are the terms he used to differentiate between schools that focus on preparing citizens, preparing workers, and preparing individuals to compete for social status (Labaree, 1997, p2). I believe that all three of these goals are essential for a school to produce successful and satisfied students. Providing an equal opportunity for all students to learn the basic needs to properly function in society is fundamental for any school to adequately provide education. Vocational training is an astounding way to prepare students for the workforce by using valuable time to effectively equip them with the tools they are going to need to be accomplished in a single occupation.  Last but not least, the most prevalent goal of schools today is to prepare students to be competitive in the job market so that they can create their own opportunity and success. Although all of these goals are extremely different, I do not think any of them individually can compensate for the realistic education of American students. Unfortunately in our country there is a very large gap in the distribution of wealth between the rich and the poor, and many students are not being equipped with the means necessary to close that gap. I believe that there has to be competition within the job market which in return relates to competition within the education system, but every student should be given the tools necessary to create their own success. This is going to be one of my main focuses as a teacher. Although I might never be able to change the way in which our society views the objective purpose of education, I will be able to provide each and every one of my students with the most adequate knowledge and experience that I have to offer them. Whether in an urban or rural setting, I will not allow myself to designate how I will teach a student based upon preset social and political discriminations.  It can still be argued that the purpose of schooling is extremely controversial and subject to bigotry, but the way in which a teacher approaches their own classroom can greatly determine the level to which a student learns and grows.
            The way in which a teacher interprets the educational goals of the policies and procedures of the school in which they teach directly affect the way in which they pursue their own didactic ideologies. There are many educational philosophies that teachers acquire throughout their teaching career that directly affect the way in which a student interprets and understands the information being presented.  In the “Philosophical Roots of Education”, Ornstein details four different educational philosophies that define how teachers will use their own methodologies to accomplish the goals of their classroom. After heavy consideration of each of these educational philosophies, I know that I will not fully utilize the concepts of idealism and existentialism in my teaching techniques.  I do not believe that in my field, teaching the fundamental ideas of the universe and focusing on the human condition and self-awareness are effective means of transferring applicable knowledge to my students that is essential to surviving in the real world (Ornstein, 2000, p3,p9).
Realism and pragmatism are two ideological approaches that I can picture myself utilizing in the classroom. Realism stresses objective knowledge and values and focuses on the physical world in which we live (Ornstein, 2000, p5). According to Ornstein: “Formal education, the realists would say, is the study of the subject-matter-disciplines into which knowledge has been organized and classified” (Ornstein, 2000, p5). I definitely agree that in order to make any sort of difference in today’s society students must be equipped with the fundamental knowledge needed for utilization in every aspect of the workforce. Pragmatism is the last of the four educational philosophies that Ornstein presents, which happens to be one of those that I can see myself incorporating into my own classroom. Pragmatism emphasizes on the need to test ideas by acting on them and considering that knowledge is subject to change over time problems must be solved through a step-by-step process originating from multiple resources (Ornstein, 2000, p7). I believe that focusing on objective and purposeful content areas requires the incorporation of many different aspects of other subjects and the break down of previous knowledge. With the combination of these two philosophies and a positive attitude any teacher can effectively provide the knowledge base for every student in their classroom.

After all educational goals and philosophies are put in motion, the most fundamental component of being an effective teacher is the ability to learn about and then compensate for the students’ backgrounds and attitudes within the classroom. Throughout my experience in the classroom, whether it be from a teacher’s prospective or student’s, I have witnessed how the level of successful learning varies based upon not only the student’s environment and background but also how the teacher handled those attributes. After attending a rural, middle-class high school and then tutoring in an urban lower-class middle school, it was easy to see the relationship between the student’s behavior and teachers’ classroom management. Behavior, motivation and classroom management are all inter-related and directly affect the way in which students learn and interpret course content.  It is up to a teacher to decide how she is going to incorporate all of these facets into her curriculum and educational ideologies. An excerpt from Brophy’s book, titled: “Rebuilding Discouraged Student’s Confidence and Willingness to learn”, presented many different ideas behind why some students do not succeed in school. These ideas ranged from self-efficacy to learned helplessness including psychological, physical and emotional factors in between. It also gave many unique approaches that teachers can take to bring these children up to par, many of which I believe can be very effective and plan on utilizing in my own classroom.

There are many students with extremely different motivational problems. It is very important to be able to distinguish whether or not a student is physically challenged and is not willing to try and learn, or whether someone has sincere self-confidence issues and does not want to be humiliated (Brophy, 2004, p120). That student is much more likely to so steer clear of the limelight in order to prevent further embarrassment. The idea of “learned helplessness” really struck me as being something that is visibly present in many, if not all, of classrooms today and can be very detrimental in the achievement of students. Learned helplessness and the failure syndrome are ideas that state a student will not be motivated to learn or participate after they have failed at previous attempts and have been categorized as incompetent students. These students will tend to give up quickly at the first sign of failure (Brophy, 2004, p121).

            There are many methods in which Brophy and other various educational researchers outline as being effective means of dealing with these types of motivational issues. After my experience tutoring in an urban middle school, the only method that I observed to even remotely work on students with motivational issues was communication. I believe that it is critical to be a positive influence and to use positive reinforcement in the classroom, especially with students that are failing to realize their potential, and giving up. Brophy describes how to communicate with students that have low expectations and low levels of achievement. Picking on a student or embarrassing them in the classroom by giving them less time to answer a question, than a more successful student will only further their issues with self-esteem. One suggestion that Brophy makes is to frame questions to these students so that they will believe they figured out the solution on their own (Brophy, 2004, p  ). I have witnessed students who present these types of motivational issues and have seen first hand how difficult it can be for them. There were many students in my classroom that genuinely knew how to answer the questions on the paper, but were so afraid to get it wrong in front of their peers that they either refused to work on their assignment or purposely put down comical answers that made their peers laugh, thereby taking the focus off whether or not they answered it correctly. The only way that I managed to get those children to do their work was to constantly talk to them about the correct answer, hinting and prodding at them that I could tell they knew the answer. I sat with those students and their friends so that the whole group could work on the assignment without any feelings of competition or embarrassment. As a teacher, I will always try and effectively communicate with my students. If I do not understand their problems and never make the attempt to figure it out, then I will not be a successful or honorable teacher. Communication is definitely the key to unlocking a student’s potential and allowing them to excel by their own means.

            There are many factors that determine whether or not a teacher will be successful in properly providing the appropriate education for his/her students. I feel that the real question lies within the attitude and goals of the teacher themselves. A teacher must have open eyes and open ears so that they to can learn and grow from the happenings of their classroom. One of the most comprehensive subjects covered in my teacher education course was literacy and how it affects the students. A common definition of literacy is the ability to read and write, but after analyzing and breaking the word down literacy encompasses a whole new meaning (Tozer, 1995, p ). To be literate in something is to be knowledgeable not only in a comprehensible manner but in an ideological and methodological way. It is very easy for people of other professions to say that “Those who can’t do; teach” when in all reality teachers are the fundamental building blocks of society and are required to be literate and knowledgeable in almost every facet of education in order to provide for a well-balanced knowledge base for their students. I cannot predict what kind of teacher that I am going to be. I cannot tell you how I am going to handle particular situations in my classroom because I do not believe that I am literate enough in basics of education. With the appropriate experience gained in future teaching opportunities and maybe after twenty years of acquiring knowledge within my own classroom, then I will be able to tell you what type of teacher I am. I do know that I have a passion for education and will giver everything I have to ensure that each and every one of my students has the opportunity to learn and grow within my classroom so they maybe someday, they can become literate in the field of education and life.

 Bibliography

 Tozer, S. E., & Willis, A. I. (1995). Liberty and literacy today: Contemporary perspectives. In S. E. Tozer, P. C. Violas & G. B. Senese (Eds.), School and society: Historical and contemporary perspectives (2nd ed., pp. 247-264). New York: McGraw-Hill. 
Brophy, J. (2004). Supporting students’ confidence as learners. In Motivating students to learn (2nd ed., pp. 55-86). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Brophy, J. (2004). Socializing uninterested or alienated students. In Motivating students to learn (2nd ed., pp. 307-334). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.  
McNeil, L. M. (1986). Defensive teaching and classroom control. In Contradictions of control (pp. 157-190). Boston: Routledge.
 
Ornstein, A. C., & Levine, D. U. (2000). Philosophical roots of education. In Foundations of education (7th ed., pp. 388-420). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
 

Labaree, D. F. (1997). Public goods, private goods: The American struggle over educational goals. American Educational Research Journal, 34, 39-81.
 

This lengthy article basically boiled down to three main concepts: democratic equality, social efficiency and social mobility. From a social science prospective I immediately recognized these words in terms of national government, societal problems and issues with legislation. Very few times have I related these terms to the educational structure that exists within our country today. As Labaree described it, democratic equality entails the education of all students equally so that they are all similarly prepared for the demands that society will place on them. Every gender, race, religion, income bracket should receive the exact same education in the exact same format so that all students are equal. I do not see this being a very realistic idea and do not support it by any means. I believe that it should be the schools responsibility to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to succeed but I do not think that all students need to be learning the same things, at the same times and in the same manner. If this were to happen there would be no advancement, no willingness to succeed and no differentiation between occupational opportunities. The second idea revolves around social efficacy. Social efficacy basically entails an emphasis on vocational training and occupational preperation. This goal basically focuses on the ideathat education should be formatted so that each student is preparing for the occupation that they are going to obtain after high school. Mechanics should not be taking human biology and doctors shouldnt have to be taken Machine shop. This seems like a viable and efficient means of ensuring that each student is going to be the best at what they do but there are many obvious pitfalls in this system. It is not realistic to expect students to know what they want to do for the rest of their lives and it makes it very difficult for later transition to other careers. The last goal Labaree outlines is social mobility. Personally, this is the goal that I agree with the most in that all students should be able to advance in society through hard work and determination. Social Mobility entails educating students so that they will best suit society. The best of the best are most likely to be the top of the top and those at the bottom are not going to be as successful. Although this has clearly caused problems between the distribution of wealth in America today, I do not think any of the other options are fair or realistic in their application especially in a society that focuses on a competitive market and free enterprise. I believe that all students should be given the basic right to a proper education but I also believe that there should be a definite difference in the way that we reward those that come out on top and those that dont.

My twenty minute chat with Miss Pifer turned out to be quite educational. I learned a lot about the students in my urban classroom. Throughout my tutoring experience there were a lot of negative expectations that perhaps played a role in the way that I approached mentoring in this stereotypical urban environment, apparently those same apparations and expectations were shared by the confident student teacher that was sitting in front of me. Not only was Miss Pifer from a small rural town located six miles from the town I was raised in, but had the same sort of attitude and experience that I had. I told her my frustrations and about the things that I have been witnessing and documenting throughout this process, and how I feel helpless in this sort of environment. Her response was pretty much everything that I needed to hear. She told me how she had the same feelings throughout the first months of her year-long student teaching. She told me how she went home crying because not only did she witness appalling behavior and infuriating actions by her students, but because too felt as though she was not going to be able to do anything good for these students. She swore that she would never teach in an urban setting because she could not stand the feeling of desparity and hopelessness with the social and economic status of the students in her classroom, not to mention all of the problems that were extremely prevalant within the surrounding community. She told me how she wanted to give up and ship out, but decided to stay and give this school and this classroom a chance. She said that she has learned so much in relationship to teaching and education, let alone about her students,their situations and ambitions. She went into detail about several students in the classroom who have parents that are addicted to multiplugs and illegal activities. How over sixty percent of these students come from single parent homes in which the father, or mother completely abandoned their family and siblings. She named off many facts that described your typical urban classroom setting but then she started talking about how many, if not most of these students want to succeed and sometimes try to succeed when taken aside. How many of them do not receive any attention at home and in turn act out so that they are the center of attention in front of their peers. She told me how involved social services are with this classroom because of the amount of students that are subject to physical and mental abuse at home. She told me so many things that in the back of my head I already knew but my heart just weaped in that I have been witnessing this for the past couple of months. I have been judging these students from day 1 whether it be on race, gender, appearance, or attitude and I never really gave much thought to the fact that many of these children are living the lives of those that we see in the media and read in the newspapers. These students have not chosen this pathway and many of them are trying very hard to make the best of it. Throughout all of my tutoring reflections I have been commenting on the impact that the community and socioeconomic status of the families effect the students attitude and performance. There are so many problems and issues that pertain to urban schooling, but there are even more issues regarding how people perceive these students and treat them. I am not saying that we can excuse their behavior and let them think that the way they treat adults and eachother is acceptable but it does mean that people with passion to truly help these students can really help them. Newly graduated and unexperienced teachers, looking for a paycheck, are not the most efficient choice for schools to be placing in classrooms. I do not believe that teachers should take on the roles of parents but I do think that it should be exected of an urban teacher to provide some support and guidance for their students. I also think that it is important for males to become more active participants within the educational system. The day that I taught Mrs. Crane’s classroom there was a fight in between classes. There were three female teachers trying to break up the fight but the students were not quick to respond. When an obviously respected male from across the classroom came out and used a stern demanding voice with the kids, the fight was almost immediately dispersed. I am not saying that women are not equipped for the job, I am just saying that if so many of these students are missing their fathers and that masculine support system then maybe male teachers can have that effect on their students. I think that the role of a teacher has historically been filled by a female, but in modern times and an urban area, I think that effective and competent male teachers could really help students that do not have anyone like that at home. At the end of my conversation with Miss Pifer she told me that she would not trade her experience in this urban middle school for the world and in many ways, I agree.

After my first real teaching encounter in Mrs. Crane’s classroom, I never wanted to step foot in this urban middle school again. In all reality I did not really ever want to even drive by it or be located in the same neighborhood. Leading this classroom was not only an eye-opening experience in that I realized I had absolutely no authority over a group of fifteen year olds, but it really made me reevaluate the way in which I view urban education overall. Driving to my fifth tutoring session, part of me really wanted to turn my car around and give up on accomplishing anything in the classroom I was placed. This total state of desperation and frustration really made me stop and think about how full time teachers must feel in this type of setting. Teachers, all of whom spent at least four years of their lives improving their socioeconomic standing through higher education, were dealing with the types of issues I have on a daily basis and in most cases to a much higher degree. A common definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over expecting a different result. Are these urban teachers insane for dealing with the disrespect, violence, and general discontent for education every single day without witnessing major steps in improvement? My first response was immediately an affirmative answer. I did not understand what motivated these teachers to even stay on pay roll in a school of this sort, let alone schools of worse magnitude. Then I realized that the answer to that question is really one of the most underlying qualities that all teachers must have to be effective and substantial whether in an urban area or suburb. Teachers must keep a positive attitude when trying to motivate themselves to put forth the effort to make a difference in the lives of all students in their classroom. A teacher’s main goal is to promote knowledge and success and if a teacher is willing to give up after hard times and a couple road bumps then what kind of message does that send to her pupils? What kind of message are students in urban areas receiving when their teachers are not willing to stick it out through the hard times and setbacks, especially since a lot of these children have already been given up on by their families, communities and in some cases government? It is only natural to assume that these students will carry these attitudes over into their daily life and behavior, better yet their success in the general population. So I decided that I was not going to give up on these students whether my two hours of participation effect them or not, I was going to finish what I set out to do.

            Every ounce of gusto I built up was soon diminished when I walked in to find the classroom watching an “X-FILES” movie. The oh-so-typical scene that I have grown accustomed to witnessing was not so amusing this time around. An unrelated entertaining movie that could barely pass any curriculum requirements and a group of rowdy non-engaged preteens was not something that I could stomach sitting through for the second time in two weeks. What were these children learning? I do not even know what unit or topics that they are covering in class because there is absolutely no evidence that they even are learning biology. I approached Mrs. Crane and asked her if there was anything I could do in the classroom or anyone that needed help and she just shrugged her shoulders and directed me to a seat. Outrage is probably the only word that could describe the way I was feeling at that moment in time. About half way through the class period when a student asked me to pass a note to her friend when I was standing next to her, I decided that I had enough. I told Mrs. Crane that I was leaving and walked out of the door. Part of me really felt as though I failed at something. Although I had no opportunity to work with the students directly and I know I would not have made a difference in one hour, I felt like I was giving up on these students and this experience. I went to the library around the corner and checked out the book fair that was taking place. If there was nothing I could do in the classroom, I was going to at least monitor behavior in a more social setting. It was in the library that I found Miss Pifer, who was the student intern for Mrs. Crane’s classroom. I sat down with her and had a little chat.

 
To be continued…

The day before I was given the opportunity to lead instruction within Mrs. Crane’s eighth grade biology classroom. I knew the task wasn’t going to be easy, but as for any presumptuous student in teacher education all I could think about was getting that first chance to head up a classroom. If I were blessed with the gift of hindsight, my decision to be thrown into the deep end of the pool would have been a little different. Today was probably one of the most challenging and exasperating experiences of my education so far. When I was given the offer to be in control of the classroom my immediate assumptions were that it would be a monitored and mediated environment. I had no idea that I was going to be thrown to the wolves and forced to find my own means of survival. Mrs. Crane literally reintroduced me to the classroom and left for the next fifty minutes. I didn’t really understand as to why this teacher, who has been so reluctant in even utilizing my presence for the last couple of months, was now basically handing me the key to her classroom, a piece of chalk and wished me adieu. The answer to my question will never be answered seeing as how I do not know where she went for the next two class periods or how she utilized this paid free time, but by the end of two class periods I didn’t care where she was, I wanted her back in that classroom.
It can pretty much be assumed that students will most likely be a little more rambunctious when their teacher is not present in the classroom but throughout my education I have never seen a classroom go absolutely a-wall like this one did. The noise level went from a dull roar when Mrs. Crane was reiterating the fact that I would be in charge, to complete chaos when she left. I immediately had to raise my voice to a level that is absolutely unacceptable for such a confined space but I had no choice. I finally got the students’ attention and began to go over the day’s assignment. I was left with about 40 “CREATE-YOUR-OWN CROSSWORD PUZZLE” worksheets that required students to write clues for their most recent set of vocabulary words so that they would be compiled into a classroom crossword puzzle. On the top of the paper, for some unknown and asinine reason, it was stated in big bold letters that this was assignment was not a grade. I passed out the sheets, and did the best I could to give directions. Probably half of the classroom was yelling at me that they did not understand the assignment and the other half either tossed the papers to the side or just put it in their folders. I had no idea what I was supposed to do considering students were out of their seats running around, disregarding my directions and the assignment, and being socializing in the most obnoxious manner. The biggest question that went through my mind, besides why the HELL Did I sign up for this, was where in the world did these students learn that it was acceptable to behave in this manner whether their teacher is absent or not. No where in my entire educational history was it acceptable for me to act barbarically, especially when there was a substitute teacher. I remember whenever my teachers were absent we were expected to treat the substitute with the utmost respect otherwise we would have been severely punished in the form of grade reduction or detention time. Neither one of these punishments were even presented to these kids and in all reality I do not think that they would have even been phased by that sort of retribution. What does detention time do? It gets you out of the classroom. And considering that approximately 35% of these students will not pass this class or grade level to move onto high school, I do not think penalizing them grade wise would really bother them all that much. Once again the urban teacher is left to alternate means of finding organization and structure in an environment where the students really do not even remotely care about their education or success.
After a while, when a total of three students were working on their assignment I told the children that I would be collecting their papers at the end of the hour and would be giving them to Mrs. Crane for examination. A few students began to work on their papers putting little effort into writing the appropriate answers and I knew that they just wanted to have something to hand in. The rest of the classroom continued to talk, yell and run around. I kept warning these students of the repercussions that were going to be had, and asking them to sit down. When all else failed I was shocked to find myself with this stern and sharp “teacher voice”. I finally just started reprimanding students in a very warning manner until they either sat down or stopped talking. But it only lasted a couple minutes. Some students thought it was funny to argue, talk back and almost compete with me for authority. It is really concerning to think that these students had to have been learning these ideals from outside sources such as their home environment and community. There was no respect for authority, which happens to be oh-so-common and problematic for police to witness in urban areas and it is really troubling for me to think that these eighth grade students were going to be going to high school in a couple months, some of them would be getting their drivers license within a year or two and then it is not unreasonable for me to assume that some of these students will be forced to enter the working world before the end of their secondary education. No one can be successful in any place of employment without obtaining the highest degree of respect and diligence. No employer or supervisor is going to tolerate an employee with absolutely no work ethic or drive to succeed. Does this attitude begin to reflect the vicious cycle of poverty and violence within an urban area?  In my opinion chances are high, and this was visible within two hours of teaching this classroom.
 

Tutoring on thursday was not the most efficient use of my time and energy considering the class was watching a “Transitional” movie the entire period. I asked Mrs. Crane if there were any students that I could have possibly taken aside to help them, but that idea was shot down when she was unable to find the assignment that  one absent-prone student had missed. So instead I sat there for an entire class period watching “The Crocodile Hunter”. The dull roar of student voices has become a familiar resonance throughout my tutoring experience so there is not much to comment regarding the expected misbehavior exhibited by students in this classroom during an entertaining movie. One thing that struck a nerve and perplexed me was that the teacher knew I would be tutoring that day and hour and did not have anything even remotely prepared for me to do or any student lined up for me to help. One would think that a teacher in this type of urban classroom would utilize any sort of assistance or help that was available. To this date I have not been given the oppportunity to work one-on-one with a single individual. I have instead been monitoring classroom behavior and management. As one could probably tell from reading previous reflections, I have gone from a state of shock, bewilderment and outright anger to a state of embaressment and sadness. Now the only word that can describe my feelings about my tutoring experience this day was mystification. I am extremely confused as to how students in such a diverse classroom setting are expected to succeed when their teacher is not organized or motivated enough to give their students the appropriate support they need. I can understand how Mrs. Crane would not want to interrupt such an educational film as the ”crocodile hunter” and I can even understand that she might be extremely busy and overwhelmed with the requirements of her job and managerial duties, but if I were in that situation I would make sure that I would take advantage of any opportunity possible to give my students any extra help that presented itself. After constantly telling students to “be quiet” or “pay attention” I was annoyed with the whole situation.  It made me wonder if these students were being offered other readily available opportunities for assistance but were denied these chances because there was not enough time or willingness to organize and designate responsibility. Being a teacher in any classroom is a challenging and expecting occupation, but being a teacher in an urban school takes the job to a whole new level. After the period ended I asked Mrs. Crane for the opportunity to work directly with an individual student or even a group of students. My heart hit the bottom of my stomach when she replied with the answer that if I came in on Friday, I could teach and supervise the whole classroom for an entire afternoon. I didn’t know whether to jump up and down for joy, or to run home and take shelter.

Caylan Cook’s Tutoring Reflection

Caylan,

It was really nice to see you finally had a positive experience in an urban school. I am actually very jealous that you were able to work with an alternative teacher this week and experience a classroom environment that actually enabled you to put your education to good use and witness how much of a difference an effective teacher can make on the achievement of their students. It is really refreshing to see that with the proper guidance and discipline these students can accomplish a lot. It is so easy to give up hope and lose sight of what we are trying to do with poverished schools not only in our tutoring, but locally and nationally as well. It is so important for people for keep trying and working towards improvement in city schools. People like Mr. Jones can play a major role in aiding our mission and I am so happy that you got to witness that first hand.

ED.gov: Secretary Spellings Praises Urban Schools for Raising Scores, Narrowing Achievement Gap

In a press conference in Washington D.C. US Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings, praised urban schools for raising acheivement. She commented on the importance of NO-Child-Left Behind and its implications for student success. How grants have enabled over 50,000 students to receive free tutoring and how continuing focus on literacy, math and science is allowing for American students to achieve at much greater levels on a global level. The main focus of this press release was to comment on the increasing progress that students have made in urban areas. I thought this press release was very important to the morale of urban schools in such a time of relentless contreversy regarding the NCLB act and educational inequalities present. Secretary Spellings said that fourth grade students in American cities have posted a 14-point gain in math and a 11-point gain in Reading since 2002. She stated that “All students can succeed, regardless of their race, background, or ZIP code”. It was really nice to hear something positive about urban schooling considering I have been tutoring in an urban school and have seen the devestating effects that an urban area can have on its children. I have read countless materials regarding educational inequalities and social injustices within the classroom. Although this press release shed some positive light on a gloomy situation, it is not hard to see the hidden agenda behind the whole conference which was to promote the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND act and its success. This act has been incredibly contreversial and immensely debated so it would be in any politicians best interest to show the positive effects of heated legislation. Urban schools have a long way to go, but I think there is hope and a means of actually narrowing the gap.

BBC NEWS: Parents Urged to Talk to Children

 Studies have shown that there is an increasing gap between parental involvement and student acheivement in the classroom. Because parents are not talking and interacting with their children enough, they are lacking the necessary verbal development skills needed to actively participate in a social setting such as the classroom. Researchers are saying that because of parents’ long work days students are spending their day watching television and resorting to other digitized means of involvement. This problem could also be stemming from the “decline of the family meal”. I have stated it over and over in this blog that family involvement is essential for any student to be successful in their educational career. A teacher will never be able to substitute the role that parents play in a child’s life. I believe that this is one of the biggest contributing factors for the failure of urban schools. There are so many values and skills that are acquired through family interaction and participation that cannot be gained by any other means. My family has been the most influenctial components of my educational success. The ongoing decline in verbal skills is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to family splintering. I think that it is imperative that schools and teachers try to involve and interact with the parents to get them more involved in their children’s schooling.