Educ625Issues in Schools, Communities and Families

Clare KupchoSpring 2010

Define what is meant by the term culture. What is the difference in your mind between high and low culture in American society?  

When looking up “Culture” I find examples of fine arts and humanities; an integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief and behavior  used for social learning; and a set of shared attitudes, values, goals and practices that characterize a group. It was interesting to read the difference between high and low culture. The definition of high culture was to know the best that has been said or thought around the world.  To me this might mean high culture is the more educated individual.  . Low culture was represented by more “pop” media.  It was interesting that the word derogatory was used to describe low culture but many of the examples of this culture are what our typical American person would be involved with: slapstick, reality TV, popular music. A term that I grew up with discussed people as being “high brow”. These people usually attended symphonies, plays, or other “cultural events”. People who lacked such culture were inferred to as people who enjoyed the simpler things in life many of which might need little mental thought.

School as Cultural Institutions

Can you think of examples of how you were socialized in your experience as a student? What were the sources of that socialization?

Students socialize by going groups that have common interest. In example, if students are interested in sports (or have ability in sports) they join those organizations. In elementary school, students have few groups to join. There may be girls or boys clubs they can join such as scouting. This starts the socialization by gender. It may also be determined by the amount of participation the students parents are willing to make. Students may socialize by their living situations… in that if you ride the bus you might socialize with the country kids. Students also socialize by class sections. When assigned to a specific classroom, those students become your friends for the year. Someone that has been in your class previously may not be as good a friend just because you don’t have the interaction anymore. As students get older and more opportunities for outside interests are available – drama, music, leadership, church activities, sports, specialized class groups (such as FFA, FBLA, FCCLA).

How do schools socialize students?

I believe that schools need to provide opportunities for children to socialize. In having these groups and advisors the students should be in a setting that is conducive to having positive situations for all members of the group. In other words, students shouldn’t be in a situation that would make them feel bullied or teased. This is usually a child’s first way to learn how to socialize with individuals. Usually it is with individuals that have common interests.

Do you think that it is bad that schools socialize people?

How does our choice of curriculum reflect specific cultural values? Because we do live in America, we do have some choices of what is taught in schools. Those choices change periodically because of events that happen in the world: legislature, current trends, technology, economy and many more… But many times where you live affects the curriculum. Larger cities contain more ethnic diverse populations which will indeed affect the curriculum. Teachers need to be cognizant of all their student’s backgrounds when lessons are presented so that students are aware of differences between people’s culture and so that students learn to respect all people.

How do we determine what should be taught in the schools?

Although I am in a predominately white community, we have several Native American families and we are starting to have more African American families and mixed race families. I actually think that younger students handle different cultures better than adults. But children are also easily swayed to thinking like their parents. The culture that is most evident in our community is the strong German ethnic culture.

Examples of cultures competing with one another in your own community

I thought it was interesting to read on http://www.zompist.com/amercult.html things that are considered distinctly American: Belief in the First Amendment, guaranteed by the government and perhaps God; Familiarity with TV Icons such as – David Letterman, Saturday Night Live, Sesame Street, Bill Cosby, Donald Duck and the Three Stooges; Knowledge of the three all American Sports – baseball, basketball and football, and if you are Male you know all the rules; Lastly, you are fortunate if you get three weeks of vacation a year.

In the article “What Does It Mean to Be an American? Patriotism, Nationalism, and American Identity After 9/11”, this article presented what is American in a different light than the above paragraph. They conducted a survey of college students and a small community sample of adults to assess the interrelationships among patriotic American identity, nationalism and attitudes toward cultural diversity.

What most people identified as being distinctly American was speaking English, Being born in America and being Christian. It seemed that there is a common factor with having a patriotic national identity then people are more tolerant with cultural diversity. The effects of 9/11 brought a heighted sense of patriotism and with more people having common feelings about their patriotism it allowed them to relate to cultural diversity issues in more tolerant attitudes. They may not have the same backgrounds, but they felt the same about the country and this brought them together

What is distinctly American about American culture?

There are many types of capital. Mostly people think of economic capital as some monetary exchange for profit. Cultural capital is using culture to describe capital. Some examples of cultural capital might be to know how to dress for success, how to talk intelligently to others, how to select the right wine at dinner, golf, manners, choosing the right neighborhood to live in… all of these are capital resources of the person, but not human resources. In education, the opportunities that schools offer can aid in a person’s cultural capital. The quality of education and the degree earned becomes capital because it has value and can determine the type of job a person can attain.  

What do you think is meant by the idea of cultural capital?

In my quest to research this area of concern relating to Families, School and Children the research that kept my interest was about involvement of families in schools. As a parent of four successful children in their educational endeavors I know the importance family played in their upbringing. Many of the web sites that I looked at (nea.org; pta.org; hfrp.org) suggested including families into the curriculum in the schools. Realizing that all families are not the same with economic, social, and cultural differences this presents some difficulty for schools.   “To be successful in school and in life, children must have access to multiple supports, including enriching early childhood experiences, effective schools, out-of-school time programs, and nurturing families.” (Bouffard, 2009). No Child Left Behind initiatives have placed most of the teaching responsibilities onto the school systems. Family involvement has not been stressed in past educational policies. The information that I have read suggests that when schools encourage and provide opportunities for families to be included in the child’s education the students are more likely to be prepared for the 21st Century.  

The Changing American Family

Some of the concerns are with disadvantaged families that have less access to information about school policies. These families lack the cultural and social capital need to help their children at home and are not as likely to communicate with teachers, volunteer or know how to relate to common parenting problems associated with children and schools. Many of these disadvantaged families have not been exposed to common practices, experiences or values that normally belong to middle class family’s philosophy of education (e.g. extracurricular activities, tutoring, and summer camp). Research consistently demonstrates that families from all backgrounds report a desire to be involved, want their children to do well in school, and hope that their children will achieve a better life. (Bouffard, 2009).

 

With disadvantaged families having less access to resources the idea of building a program of shared mutual responsibility for learning is the foundation for a new approach to family involvement. This type of program can work with support from school administration and legislative support. The initiative of many organizations is to put family involvement back into the school and help families learn how to be supportive of their students. The idea isn’t to put the teaching back onto the parent but to encourage communication and support from the family to the student.

One such program is (TIPS)Teachers Involving Parents in School. This program involves weekly homework assignments that require students to talk to someone at home about something interesting that they are learning in class. With this type of program, homework becomes a three-way partnership involving students, families and teachers at all educational levels. The program on the following web page has several examples of homework assignments for different subject matters. While it is not a free resource, the concept of making a homework assignment the involves interaction with family members reinforces the importance of support from family and community in the schools. http://www.csos.jhu.edu/P2000/tips/index.htm 

The Changing American Family, continued…

PTA, the National Parent Teachers Association also has created six standards for Family School partnerships. They also have found research that there is a positive relationship between family involvement and student success regardless of race/ethnicity, class, or parents’ level of education. Their six standards are:

Standard 1: Welcoming all families into the school community—Families are active participants in the life of the school, and feel welcomed, valued, and connected to each other, to school staff, and to what students are learning and doing in class.

Standard 2: Communicating effectively—Families and school staff engage in regular, meaningful

communication about student learning.

Standard 3: Supporting student success—Families and school staff continuously collaborate to

support students’ learning and healthy development both at home and at school, and have

regular opportunities to strengthen their knowledge and skills to do so effectively.

Standard 4: Speaking up for every child—Families are empowered to be advocates for their own

and other children, to ensure that students are treated fairly and have access to learning

opportunities that will support their success.

Standard 5: Sharing power—Families and school staff are equal partners in decisions that affect

children and families and together inform, influence, and create policies, practices, and programs.

Standard 6: Collaborating with community—Families and school staff collaborate with community members to connect students, families, and staff to expanded learning opportunities, community services, and civic participation. (PTA)  To be successful in school and in life, children must have access to multiple supports, including enriching early childhood experiences, effective schools, out-of-school time programs, and nurturing families. 

The Changing American Family, continued…

Social class definitely affects the quality of education an individual receives. Many times we hear that race and ethnicity affects the educational achievement of children but most of the articles accessed stated that socioeconomic factors are much more critical to a child’s educational success. These factors include parental education levels, neighborhood poverty, parental occupational status, and family income.Data in the Rand Review claims that the achievement gap is narrowing for black students but not for Latino Americans. Latino students face more socio-economic challenges. Some of these are disproportionate attendance at resource-poor school, lack of qualified teachers, low-income households, high mobility of students whose families are migrant farm workers, students who are undocumented and cannot attend college or work legally, English language learners. (Lara-Cinisomo,2004) Looking at these factors it is easy to understand why children are falling behind. Living in poverty areas can have an effect on a child’s behavior, they may be more aggressive or anxious or they may not be able to have access to adequate play because of the neighborhood. Some connections were made between a mother’s education and the school-readiness of children. The Rand Report suggested that these programs should be focused on children of poorly educated mothers rather than on a particular ethnic group. The more access to higher education, occupational advancement, and wage increases for parents the better chance there is of improving the socioeconomic status of the poor and improving the test scores of students. (Lara-Cinisomo, 2004)

Race and Culture

It was interesting to read NEA’s position on full day kindergarten. They promoted full day kindergarten and also encouraged access to pre-kindergarten to decrease the achievement gap. Parents preferred full-day kindergarten because of work schedules, less disruption in the child’s day and more time for focused and independent learning. Many states, including North Dakota, have adopted full day kindergarten programs and list academic benefits, developmental and social benefits as well as closing the gap on literacy skills. (Strategies)Parental and family involvement correlates with student performance. Family members include parents, step-parents, grandparents, foster parents, relatives, caregivers even community members. When family and community involvement takes place students are more likely to stay in school and earn better grades. A research-based framework, developed by Joyce Epstein of Johns Hopkins University, describes six types of involvement— parenting, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision making, and collaborating with the community—that offer a broad range of school, family, and community activities that can engage all parties and help meet student needs. (NEA, Parent, Family, Community Involvement in Education, 2008-2009) When students have the backing of a support system they are more likely to engage in healthy behaviors and be successful in school. When looking to provide equal educational opportunities for students schools need to promote more rigorous coursework for all students, more attention needs to be placed on keeping students in school and strengthening dropout prevention programs. Professional development for educators on effective instruction for English language learners would be helpful as well improving resource-poor schools and early childhood education programs. (NEA) Unless we improve the quality of the education that students receive and include parents and some type of support system for students they may not achieve much better than their parents. Students need school programs and out of school programs that will help them set goals and encourage literacy and math skills that will help them succeed in the work force.

Race and Culture: Full Day Kindergarten

Responsibility of Schools

http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/19_04/name194.shtml

What responsibility do school board members have for the local school district? The primary role for the school board members is to raise student achievement and involve the community in that goal. The National School Board Association (NSBA) determined there are eight components of key work for school boards: vision, standards, assessment, accountability, alignment, climate, collaboration and continuous improvement.

Vision refers to identifying the future of the school. School boards will look at goals for the school, short term and long term goals and develop objectives and tasks for those goals. “Developing a shared vision for student achievement is a starting point for a school board and its community.” (NSBA)

Standards explain the educational expectations for each subject are and grade level. Standards are generally set by the state but national standards may also be a foundation for a districts vision statement. School boards need to understand where the school assessments are coming from and how to interpret data from the identified assessments. The school board is concerned in the school making its AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) and the assessment information can help them analyze any problems that are identified. A school climate is determined by how the staff and students feel about their school.

If a school is going to be successful the board needs to feel that the people in the school are comfortable in their settings and are respected. Schools might start a school improvement plan to change the environment of the school. By improving the climate of the school they may also change the culture of the school, the values and behaviors of those in the school. (Stover)

The schools accountability is related to its educational outcomes. Understanding the standards and the assessments is important for the school board if they plan to hold the staff accountable for how the students succeed. The laws of No Child Left Behind have affected the accountability of the staff and the school board so that they align the standards and assessments to meet AYP.

School boards need to know how the public feels about issues affecting the school. Members of the board need to collaborate with various members of the community, parents and legislators to develop trust and confidence in the school. It is important to be involved in other activities besides school related because very often the school is the center of activities in a town. If a school board is effective it can align all the above resources together to create a great school district. They are responsible for managing funds correctly and creating policies and budgets that support teaching and learning. They review data to ensure all students are treated fairly, they develop partnerships with community leaders and parents, and they look at all the factors that involve student achievement. (Black)What is the role of the superintendent for the local school district? The superintendent should provide guidance to the school board in policy issues, resources, community engagement support and oversight. The superintendent should identify options for the board to consider, implement those decisions, and provide data and information on success or deficiencies. Accountability for the superintendent is federally mandated through adequate yearly progress (AYP).  By creating collaborative relationships with business and political constituents the superintendent can keep them current on school success standards.  Working closely with the school board the superintendent has the responsibility to enhance the educational program of the students, improve the student achievement, and see that district policies are implemented.

Responsibility of Schools

The principal is a cheerleader for staff and students.  The Principal is a supportive participant for both teachers and students. By creating a friendly, welcoming environment or providing feedback to teachers about instructional techniques, this individual is developing the learning climate of the school.  His/her opinions, comments, actions send specific messages to both staff members and to students.  As a “coach” to the staff, the principal, can provide opportunities to allow the teachers to grow and develop a healthy learning community.  According to the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) the following reflections should be considered to create a culture of continuous learning: (Scholastic)Provide time for reflection as an important part of improving practice.Invest in teacher learning.Connect professional development to school learning goals.Provide opportunities for teachers to work, plan, and think together.Recognize the need to continually improve principals' own professional practice(Standard Four: What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do, NAESP, 2001) By providing opportunities for professional development of adults, school leaders are promoting the idea that continuous learning builds better programs for student learning.  The principal wears different hats to fit the needs of the school.  He/she can instill academic excellence in both the teachers and students.  The principal is involved in business and community relations, financial responsibilities, parent involvement as well as creating the school climate.  (Scholastic)

Role of the principal -

What role should parents have in the education of their children and what should be their involvement in the schools? Research has found that parental involvement in education correlates with higher academic performance and school improvement. (PTA, 2009) When parents, schools and the community work together students are more likely to get better grades, stay in school and further their education after high school.  Involvement with parents and community affect all students regardless of their family status, parental education, racial background or economic status.   Often parents feel that they aren’t able to help students because of busy schedules or lack of knowledge or complain that schools only contact them when student are in trouble.   When schools offer opportunities to involve parents for events that are positive, parents are often willing to participate.  Parents are more likely to become involved when they understand that they should be involved, they feel capable of making a contribution and they feel invited by the school and their children.  (PTA, 2009)

Parental Involvement

The size of schools and school districts can vary between rural and metropolis areas of a state.   The size of the school refers to the student enrollment in the school.  The size of the school district refers to the number of students under a single school board or superintendent.  When people are talking about size of schools the discussion usually develops into a discussion of quality of education in small schools versus large schools.  In smaller districts, schools usually receive less funds because much of the funds are based on per pupil expenditures.  Smaller schools have higher fixed costs such as administration, teacher salaries and transportation.  Consolidation in smaller schools is becoming a trend, reasons for this are improved academic results and lower operating costs. (Kinnaman) Research doesn’t support the trend. “Small schools promote higher achievement and get better academic results, including more students likely to participate in extracurricular activites; lower dropout rrate; higher graduation rates; and a greater likelihood of academic success in college.” (Kinnaman) Larger districts may spend more money on exceptional instruction or support services for at-risk or gifted students. The quality of education that happens at a school can be measured by inputs, throughputs, and outputs.  The inputs are what the school has to offer a student: Money, books, materials, equipment, course offerings, facilities and attributes of teachers. (Hinz)  Throughputs refer to what the school or district does with its inputs to improve student learning. (Hinz) Outputs are forms of evaluation of the school or student performance.  The most common measures are attendance, standardized tests, dropout rates, graduation rates and number of students attending college. (Hinz)

What does the research have to say about the size of schools and school districts?

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While there are many positions on quality of schools and school size, the Minnesota extension web site discussed two positions: one best system and good schools come in all sizes. (Hinz) The one best system feels that there is higher student achievement from broad, comprehensive array of courses and specialized teachers. They also promote moderate size schools as using the best use of funds.  They claim higher costs in both small and large districts.  A moderate size of a school district was described as 300-2600 students in this study. Weaknesses of this position are acknowledgement of geographic location as a need for some schools and not always taking consideration the costs of consolidation.  Also, a concern that more courses offered provides too many choices and not enough depth of the course material.The good schools come in all sizes position is defended by close links between school and community, focused curriculum, participation by students that affect higher student achievement. The weakness of this position is the limited curriculum focus, fewer teacher, and limited instructional techniques.  All things considered, when it comes to the educating today’s children we need to realize that the world is now the classroom, instruction needs to be customized, most students will desire higher education, only a few will require basic education, and leaders need to become visionaries.  Education has entered a new level what people are calling the “information age”.

 

Quality of schools and school size

First a written statement of charges should be issued to the teacher. The notice should be given to the teacher with the intention to suspend the teacher without pay or dismiss the teacher after ten days from the date of the notice. If the charges for dismissal contain immoral or unprofessional conduct a governing board may file a complaint with the department of education. The teacher may then be reassigned or placed on administrative leave.If a teacher is issued a notice of inadequacy the teacher may be given opportunity to correct those charges. Typically a school may allow not less than 60 days for a teacher to make changes in their performance. If the teacher does not demonstrate adequate classroom performance the school may dismiss the teacher within 10 days of the next notice or at the end of the contract year. (Dismissal)A teacher may request a hearing to discuss the inadequacies with the governing board. The charges given for dismissal and any rules or polices of the governing board concerning this issue should be given to the teacher so that he/she can prepare a defense. The teacher has a right to a hearing within 10 days of service of notice.

What due process procedures need to be followed when a district attempts to dismiss a tenured teacher?

The Phi Delta Kappa/ Gallup Poll of Public’s attitudes towards Public schools is designed to inform educators and is used as a source of information for those who set policy.  The poll ask the American public about national education standards, federal funding for schools, how they felt about funding and measuring achievement for public schools. They also were concerned how schools compared to schools in different countries. Ten years ago in Reading Today (1999) discussion about evaluating school had standardized testing as a third choice in the best method for evaluating schools.  Ahead of it was the percentage of students attending higher education and the percentage of students going on to successful employment.  Standardized testing was a distant third followed by graduation rate, student projects, low rate of violence and student volunteering. In the most recent PDK Gallop Poll they found that Americans are warming to the idea of national standards but believe state educational leaders should work together to develop these standards (Bushaw, W.J., 2008). They favor an increase use of federal funds to support young people who want to attend college (Bushaw, W.J., 2008). They believe children of today will need a college education and some of this instruction can and should begin in high school (Bushaw, W.J., 2008). Americans are warming up to the idea of online learning as an alternative to traditional schooling (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A., 2009). They also favor national teacher certification, teacher career ladders, and incentives for teaching in high need schools, but they are split on performance pay linked to standardized tests. Only three out of 10 Americans approve relaxing teacher requirements for technical subjects (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A., 2009). Americans continue to support one area NCLB, annual testing of students in grades three – eight (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A., 2009). They also support half day or full-day kindergarten. 40% of Americans feel that starting children earlier in school would improve a child’s achievement. (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A., 2009).

According to the poll summaries the blame of school failures has shifted from the school to the law.  The 2007 poll claimed 43% polled blamed the schools as 49% blame the law. (Rose, 2007 p. 35) The data in the 2007 poll is saying that even though NCLB is expecting high standards and accountability the public doesn’t agree with the strategies used to reach those standards. The 2009 PDK poll identified that the public has a one out of two unfavorable position towards NCLB, only one out of four views NCLB as favorable. (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A. (2009). “FINDING: Not only do Americans support such testing, they also support using a single national test, rather than letting each state use its own test, again by a two-to-one margin. This opinion is held by Democrats and Republicans equally.” (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A. (2009).) The subject of standardized testing comes up often in our school, usually more during the two testing periods a year.   Many of the teachers are concerned about the results of testing in relationship to the effort the student gives, best conditions when testing and student understanding of the material. A concern is that more teachers are choosing to teach to the test rather than to teach to the standards. 

Public Attitude towards Schools

I found it interesting to note that the polls felt that earning credits in online classes for high school students is gaining more support.  Considering more college courses are offered online, parents may be more willing to attempt some high school credits in this way, but not all high school credits.  In the schools, I believe, we are seeing more technology being used.  Our teachers who teach (distance learning) on the ITV system in ND have talked about using blackboard like we used in our VCSU online classes.  Teachers are starting to use more digital forms of assignments that helps prepare students for online classes.  Some form of online learning is definitely the future of education as it allows us to fit more things into our busy lives.The end of the poll discussed the biggest problems facing the schools.  The past trends have addressed areas of discipline, lack of funding, use of drugs and violence/gangs as areas of concern.  But since 2004 the lack of funds is the major problem public feel is important when evaluating schools. (Rose, L.C.; Gallup, A. M., 2007) Schools are working to have school improvement be in the forefront of discussions.  Our school is working on Math and Language Arts for school improvement.  But if you were to ask most teachers what the school improvement issues are in the school it would be technology.  The commentary on page 42 of the Phi Delta Kappan article talks about meeting the demands of teaching students a foreign language, but explains that technology and globalization can provide a high quality language education if done right.  What is needed to keep these types of programs viable is creative thinking, policy support and FUNDING.  (Rose, L.C.; Gallup, A. M., 2007) After the Economic Stimulus legislation was passed in 2009, the poll added questions related to this. They found that 60% of Americans knew a great deal about the legislation passed, much more than in 2002 when only 24% of the Americans knew about NCLB. Americans are also interested in schools being more innovative. When asked what issues are most important in schools moving forward, better teachers and more parental support were cited. (Bushaw, W. J. and McNee, J. A., 2009).) NCLB and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act have forced schools to toughen up on teacher certifications, educational standards and preparing students for the 21st Century. The public is beginning to understand that schools need to change with the times and provide students with an education that will help them compete with people from all over the world.

Public Attitude, cont.

“Academic freedom consists of protecting the intellectual independence of professors, researchers and students in the pursuit of knowledge and the expression of ideas from interference by legislators or authorities within the institution itself.” (Horowitz) This also means that no political or religious pressures should be imposed on faculty in the hiring or termination process or other administrative means of the academic institution. This also relates to students: teachers should not take advantage of a students’ immaturity by impressing their opinions onto them without presenting adequate information on all sides of an issue. A list of eight principles has been devised to secure the intellectual independence of faculty and students and to protect intellectual diversity.

1. All teachers should be hired on the basis of their knowledge in their field of study. They should not be hired/fired on the basis of political or religious beliefs. 2. No staff member should be excluded from tenure based on their political or religious beliefs.3. Students will be graded solely on their class participation and knowledge of subject matter, not on their political or religious beliefs. 4. Curriculum should contain a diversified view of material for students to develop their own perspective on the subject matter. 5. Exposing students to a variety of reliable scholarly viewpoints in their coursework is the responsibility of the teachers. They will not use their courses for purposes of sharing political, religious or anti-religious views.6. Selection of speakers or student activities should observe the principles of academic freedom and promote intellectual pluralism. 7. An environment of civil exchange of ideas is essential to promoting academic freedom. Causing some form of obstruction or destruction of and an exchange of ideas will not be tolerated. 8. Academic institutions should maintain a position of organizational neutrality when there are disagreements within or outside of a researcher’s field of study. Knowledge advances when individual scholars are left to form their own conclusions about facts, methods or theories when they have been validated by research. (Horwitz)

What does academic freedom mean for the teacher, and what are its limits?

Teachers have three duties that require attention to avoid liability for an accident: instruction, supervision and maintenance. Instruction would include explanations and warnings about equipment, materials and procedures in verbal and written form. Other forms of instruction could be step by step instructions for using equipment or doing experiments, signs warning of a hazard or activities advising students how to handle certain hazards. Supervision involves being present and attentive when students are in the classroom. Maintenance refers to the upkeep of instructional equipment in your classroom. All equipment should be in safe conditions, this refers to equipment that both the teacher and the student uses. Some guidelines to prevent injury in your classroom are:

Protect the safety, health, and welfare of your students.Foresee the reasonable consequences of your students’ action (or inaction).Be in the classroom and attentive while activities are in progress.Instruct your students in the use of equipment.Modify such instruction to compensate for the age and maturity of your students.Maintain appropriate behavior.Immediately address or report hazardous conditions. (Holt Science)

What are some guidelines that teachers could be given to minimize the risk of having a negligence suit filed?

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Students have a right to freedom of expression. There are many social issues that affect students today. Issues like school budgets, discrimination, pollution and war. The Supreme Court has said that students do not “shed their Constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate” (Tinker v. Des Moines independent school district) (COMD) Students have the right to hand out leaflets, express themselves in school publications, circulate petitions, set up information tables, organize clubs, sponsor speakers, organize peaceful rallies or demonstrations at school and wear buttons, badges, insignias or armbands.  School officials can legally set some limits. They can legally require you to comply with a few regulations. Speech content cannot contain anything obscene, libelous or slanderous as defined by a court of law, not just their opinion of what might be these things. Content being discussed cannot urge students to do something illegal or violate lawful school regulations. It should not disrupt a school function or class.  The rules about content also have limits on when and where you can express yourself. You cannot block the hallways or entrances so that students can’t get through. Leaflets or petitions should not disrupt the normal functioning of the school. If the school has a rule about where students can distribute materials is should be followed. Generally, before or after school, during lunch and in a place where you won’t block people or cause a disruption would be the best place to distribute literature. School officials may ask to see literature ahead of time in order to warn you of any violation that you might incur. Schools also need to take a stand in protecting students from harassment. School should respect the free expression of rights of students. For example, students have a right to speak out about their sexual orientation or gender, even if their ideas are unpopular or disagreeable. In the same fashion, student s have a right to speak out about their objections to gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender people. If the topic arises in a classroom and it is relevant to the topic the discussion is valid as long as it does not intimidate or attack other students because of their sexual orientation. (ACLU) Schools need to intervene in places where conduct is not appropriate and educate students about why slurs and other harassing behavior are harmful.

What limitations do student have in their freedom of expression?

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There are often many reasons for parents to choose homeschooling over public schools. Primarily the parent should be looking at the child that needs to be educated. Do they have special needs: physical, social or intellectual? They also need to consider their own situation. Can they provide an environment conducive for learning? Which environment is better for the child public education or home schooling? Some of the benefits of public school are learning in a group setting, extra- curricular activities available, more curriculum opportunities, and a diverse social education. Some reasons for not choosing public education might be the student-teacher ratio, scheduled learning (less independence), no choice in the curriculum, and the choice of peers in the school system. A parent may choose to home school their child so that they can choose the curriculum. They also are free to schedule the time when it is convenient to the family. The student-teacher ratio is much smaller and it teaches students to be independent in their learning choices. Home schooling is usually more expensive than public school. The teachers may not be highly qualified to teach all the subjects. Students may have difficulty interacting with peers because they lack day-to-day contact. And, colleges may have stricter admission policies with homeschooled students. Often homeschooled students do not graduate with a high school diploma they are required to take the GED.

Why would some parents want to have their children educated in their homes rather than in the public schools?

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In Ohio, one school took a different approach to public education that affected homeschoolers. Grahm Local Schools had lost enrollment to a surge of homeschooling in the 1990’s and they surveyed families for reasons for leaving. Many of the parents left for the right reasons: to be involved with their kids; to instill the right values; to avoid their children from being bullied. Some stated reasons for leaving as the schools weren’t friendly to them, and they were allowing dress, language, courses of instruction - especially in sexual education – that were not conducive to their beliefs. (Demski)The Graham School district, in Ohio, decided to take another approach. They developed a program for distance learning. They were offering courses from different delivery sites such as Apex Learning, Lincoln Interactive, and Aventa learning. By the beginning of the 2009 school year they had course offerings of 20 AP classes and boasted 270 students. Many of the students that were currently being homeschooled were taking these classes as well as students in their own school district. They offered on-site computer labs for the classes and students were given the choice to work online from home or complete their online curriculum in one of the academy’s six computer labs. (Demski)

 

The 1600’s brought the Pilgrims to America and the need to have some type of formal education.  Education was primarily the responsibility of the parents. Religious views were commonly taught and parents were expected to teach the child some type of trade that would help them earn a living.  The Massachusetts Bay School Law of 1642 stated that if a child wasn’t properly trained the child could be removed from the home and placed with a master for some years. (Massachusetts) This decade also brought the development of many schools of higher education.  Harvard College was the first college of higher education and was established in 1636.  The Massachusetts law of 1647 stated that any township with 50 or more families had to hire a schoolmaster to teach children to read and write.  Townships with 100 families or more would have a Latin school to train students for higher learning.   This could easily be understood as the beginning of public education.  Some influential people to education in the 1700’s were Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and Noah Webster.  Benjamin Franklin formed both the American Philosophical Society and the first English Academy.   He emphasized secularism, science and human reasoning into education clashing with the religious principles of the time.  Thomas Jefferson proposed a two-track educational system, with a different learning method for the laboring and the learned person.  Noah Webster developed three different books: a spelling book, a grammar book and a reader because he was so dissatisfied with the text books of the day. The land ordinance of 1785 put in place after the Revolutionary War also showed the importance of education to the American citizens.  When setting up townships one section of the land was set aside for a public school.  A town was set up to be 6 miles long and sectioned off into 36 square mile sections. Section 16 was set aside for a public school. Towards the end of this century, 1791, the Bill of Rights is signed.  Education is not mentioned in the Bill of rights except in the 10th Amendment where it is stated that the powers not delegated to the federal government "are reserved to the States, respectively, or to the people." (Sass)  This takes education away from the federal government and puts the responsibility onto the state government.

Project D: History of American Education

The 1800’s bring a different flair to education.  Women start to be valued in education with the first college for women being opened in 1837.  Catherine Beecher founded a school for girls in 1823.  Only being educated until she was 10, Catherine believed there was a need for a school to challenge girls’ intellectual abilities.  The 1800’s also brought awareness for persons with disabilities.  Horace Mann was instrumental in the issue of humane treatment and accommodations for the insane.  Schools were started for people with visual impairment and for people who they considered feeble minded or insane.  In the latter part of the century a school was opened for deaf individuals.  The first public library opened up in Peterborough, New Hampshire in 1833 after the philosophy of a free public education had been developed. (History Mag., 2001) The first kindergarten was started in Watertown, Wisconsin.  The first state funded school for teacher education opened in Lexington, Massachusetts and was known as a “normal” school.  In 1852, the first mandatory attendance laws were enacted although they were hard to enforce.  The National Teachers Association was founded in 1857. In 1879, the first Indian boarding school opens in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. And the first practical fountain pen was invented in 1884. The Department of Education was developed to establish effective school systems.  Many of the historical events of the 1800’s, while not directly related to education, affected education a great deal.  Abraham Lincoln was elected as President of the United States; the 13th Amendment was passed abolishing slavery.  The Civil War ends and 10 years later a Civil Rights Act is passed banning segregation in all public accommodations.  This was then ruled unconstitutional almost seven years later.  The 15th Amendment was passed allowing all men age 21 and older to be able to vote, including freed slaves.  Booker T. Washington, a black educator, became the principal of a normal school in Tuskegee, Alabama. He became an influential leader for black Americans.  The Spanish American War makes Theodore Roosevelt a hero and developed international relations during his presidency. In1859, Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species was published which has been a controversial subject since then.  

History of American Education, cont.

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Public education in the south started slowly after the civil war.  This happened for several reasons.  The South believed that education was a private matter not a concern of the state.  Many areas did not have enough pupils in an area to warrant having a school.  Only four states in the south had public schools in the 1850’s North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama (Kingwood, 2008). The South’s religion was not as concerned about religious indoctrination through schooling as the north. And, Southerners feelings about slavery affected how education would be handled.  The 20th century brought about changes in the way children were taught.  Changes in theories of teaching, civil rights education, the effects of wars on the school and changing technology all have had an impact on education in America. The early 1900’s brought the use of IQ testing into the schools.  Lewis Terman felt that finding a person’s intelligence quotient would help educators sort pupils into grades and help make decisions about promotions and school transfers.  Terman argued for the sorting of schoolchildren into a tracking system that matched the intellectual potential with the rate of academic progress. (Minton) In the 1920’s /1930’s, John Dewey became known as the modern father of experiential Education.  John felt the purpose of education was to help people become more effective members of democratic society.  The authoritarian delivery of schooling was not effective; students need educational experiences which enable them to be valued, equal and responsible members of society. (Neill)

History of American Education, cont.

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1925 the “Monkey Trial”  captures national attention as John Scopes, a high school biology teacher is charged with a crime of teaching evolution.  He was convicted and fined $100.  This was the beginning of many court cases between the subject of evolution and religion in the schools. 

Jean Piaget was an important theorist of education.  He developed the theory of cognitive development, 1929, which influenced American developmental psychology and education.  He questioned: How does knowledge grow?  His answer was that the growth of knowledge is a progressive construction of logically embedded structures superseding one another by a process of inclusion of lower less powerful logical means into higher and more powerful ones up to adulthood. Therefore, children's logic and modes of thinking are initially entirely different from those of adults. (JPS)

Many civil rights cases happened in the 20th century.  As early as 1931 Alvarez vs. the Board of Trustees of the Lemon Grove (CA) School District had the first successful school desegregation court case forbidding the school district from placing Mexican-American children in a separate “Americanization” school.  In 1946, a similar case Mendez vs. Westminster and the CA Board of Education , the U.S. District Court in Los Angles rules that educating children of Mexican descent in separate facilities is unconstitutional.  In 1948 there was a case that ruled against schools allowing “release time” for students to participate in religious education in public schools.   In 1954, Brown vs. the Board of Education of Topeka, ruled that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal” (Sass).  In 1960, Ruby Bridges is the first African American to attend an all white school.  She becomes the only student in class as the parents removed their students from the school for a whole year.  In 1964 the Civil Rights Act becomes a law.  It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion or national origin.

History of American Education, cont.

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In 1972 the Indian Education Act becomes a law to meet the needs of the American Indian and Alaska Native students.  In this same year cases providing rights to students with disabilities and prohibiting discrimination based on sex in all aspects of education.  In 1973, the Rehabilitation Act becomes a law.  The Section 504 guarantees civil rights for people with disabilities and requires schools to provide access into buildings and participation in programs.  504 plans are still being used today for students with disabilities that do not qualify for special education. In 1975 the Education of All handicapped Children Act is a law.  It requires that a free appropriate education is offered in the least restrictive setting for all handicapped children.  In 1990 the terminology for this act is amended from Handicapped to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Again, in 2004, more changes are made to this Act (IDEA) modifying the IEP process and procedural safeguards. 

 

The 70’s and the 80’s called for educational reform.  Newsweek’s December 8th 1975 cover story “Why Johnny Can’t Write” started the debate about national literacy and the movement to get back to the basic.  The 70’s brought issues of school segregation and bilingual language. School districts started busing African American students to predominately white schools in order to achieve racial integration of public schools.  Testing of students was recommended to be done in a student’s native language.  California tried to create a bill that would not allow public funds to be used for illegal aliens, including education.  This bill was overturned.  President Reagan stated the need for educational reform but not until 2001 was the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) signed into law which holds school accountable for student achievement levels.

History of American Education, cont.

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The First Amendment is challenged in many ways during the last part of the 20th century.  Several court cases involving religion evolve throughout the 80’s and 90’s as courts argue about creationism vs. evolution and prayer in the schools.  The First Amendment is challenged when school administrators try to censor or ban books in a school library because they felt the content was offensive.  Computers were introduced by Apple in 1977 and technology continues to grow and affect education today.  Microsoft introduced Microsoft Windows 1.0 making MS-DOS obsolete in 1985.  The first smart board (interactive white board) was introduced in 1991 and within 4 years starts replacing the blackboard in the classroom.   In 1998, Google was introduced as a new search engine.  Technology continues to be in the forefront of education as the Stimulus bill of 2009 allocates $650 million for educational technology. What can we learn from looking at the history of education? We can look back at history and see how Americans have progressed in education. Education is important to all people, at all ages and to all races. When we look back at events that shaped our educational process hopefully we will not repeat events that held education back such as the events of the civil rights. The laws that have shaped the past will be used in the future to determine the rights of more individuals. The new Arizona Immigration law that was passed in May of 2010 will be interesting to watch and how it affects children and education. It is important to understand how history has affected education and continues to be important in evaluating new ideas that the public, legislation or theorist may devise.

 

History of American Education, cont.

Metaphysics is defined as a philosophy that examines the nature of reality, including the relationship between mind and matter, substance and attribute, fact and value. (Metaphysics). The earliest writings about metaphysics were referred from Aristotle’s writings on physics. This philosophy attempts to understand how anything exists.  Epistemology refers to the philosophy of studying knowledge. Distinguishing what is accurate and what is not. Relating epistemology to education, the teacher in involved in helping students learn, think, understand, and justify by offering opportunities in various curriculum to cause some type of reflection by the student. Education uses many different models to help students become ‘autonomous knowers’ (Lankshear) from sensory perception to problem solving, trial and error and natural and social scientific inquiry. The epistemological ideal for education has been to promote the development of knowers as well as to transmit knowledge. (Lankshear) Axiology is a form of value science. Dr. Steven Hartman discovered that the concept of valuing is a mathematical and logical structure. This structure allows scientists to measure how a person thinks or perceives rather than what a person is thinking. Axiology can measure the level of development or perception in one’s thinking and the person’s ability to value. Value patterns can change with experiences and develop with experiences. Education has a role in helping students develop personal values. As students grow in knowledge they also will grow in the various values that will affect their choices, values such as empathy, self-esteem, practical thinking, role awareness, system judgment and self direction.http://www.drdonmacdonald.com/

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Philosophy 101

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The philosophy of idealism is a view that reality exists through the mind or spirit. Our experiences, plans of action, and thinking all have a common purpose. This process of planning (internal meaning) must materialize into action. (Radical Academy)  Idealism may have connections to religious thoughts in that belief in some absolute power or God may affect a person’s attitude towards reality. Two philosophers Josiah Royce and Borden Parker Bowne had religious upbringing that may have affected their positions on idealism. Brown stated “The key to reality is the thinking self that interacts with other selves in a world where ethical achievement is a primary goal.” (Radical Academy) The goal of education is to develop each individual’s ability and moral values to better serve society. (Cohen) The philosophy of realism in based on three beliefs: that there is a world that exists that man did not create; that this real existence can be known by the human mind; and this knowledge is the only reliable guide to human conduct, individual and social. (Dolhentry) “An authentic Realism precisely formulates these principles, analyzes their component concepts, and examines them in the light of the evidence.” (Dolhentry) Realism is about using common sense, but not just common sense, that would be called Naïve Realism -a common sense theory of perception. (Wikipedia) When common sense is questioned then someone who is using the philosophy of realism critically examines information before accepting them as fact. This is also what we need to be teaching students. We hope that they will develop good character and common sense, but we also need to develop their minds to question information, examine resources, get facts that support a decision and think critically before making judgments.

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John Dewey was noted for saying “Education is not preparation for life: Education is life itself.” (Dewey) Dewey believed that children learned by doing and recognized the value of play in a child’s development. Education became child centered and teachers were trained to observe students interests and help them develop those interests as they learned. Many of these same skills are still instilled in children today by giving students jobs in the classroom that help students apply knowledge to real life situations. Pragmatists believe that only things that are experienced or observed are real. Dewey determined that learners must adapt to each other and to their environment (Cohen) Teachers who follow this philosophy typically use method of hands-on problem solving, experimenting and working in groups. Existentialism is described as reality exists within the individual. Some believers of this philosophy were of Christian orientation and others believe that we are just a small part of this planet and our salvation is not guaranteed by God. “Existence comes before any definition of what we are. We define ourselves in relationship to that existence by the choices we make.” (Cohen) Educators teach to develop character and individual responsibility for decisions.  Progressive educational theory is to focus on the whole child, rather than the content of the teacher. Teachers are to provide experiences for the child so that they can become problem solvers and thinkers and make meaning of their experiences. The scientific method is used by teachers so that students can study matter and events in a systematic way and learn the process for understanding. Teachers using this theory are more likely to share decision making and planning with the students.

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The perennialism theory is the idea students can learn from works of the western civilization that have lasted through many centuries. Students will learn by analyzing works of history, literature and principles of science. These ideas have the potential for solving problems in any era. (Cohen) The idea is to understand the principles that are constant and do not change. These are the most meaningful to students.

 

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