I wanted to give a shout out to Kilroy and Fix Red Clay who have done an amazing job at energizing Red Clay’s school district and who have applied direct pressure to force their school board to get their act together. Probably the most impressive endorsement which any gubernatorial candidate could have earned this season, would be that one from Kilroy, for if anyone knows what Delaware educational needs are, it is him. Likewise to go from bad to good in Kilroy’s view, shows all just what a great person we have in our new Chief of State.
There are millions of causes out there needing attention. The one offering the greatest bang for the buck, would be that one which persuades Afro Americans to take education seriously and rise to their potential. The challenges are multiple, requiring changes within the black community towards appreciating education. requiring changes within inner city schools, as well as requiring changes in our funding apparatus. The one thing that should not change, is the qualifications needed to graduate. They should be set in stone……
There are many obstacles to overcome. Parents who have no time to parent. Uneducated parents incapable of challenging their children…. A curriculum that is interesting. schools financially strapped. bullies. All of these issues involve changes in parenting.
Now there are two ways of acting when meeting an obstacle. The first is to blame or shift blame away from oneself. The second is to own the problem…
This second course is the road little traveled…
The title of this post may imply to some, that black children are the prime problem within our schools… That’s not the title’s intention… Instead it distills into the simplest statement that which we need to do to make our state’s education become world class. For if we can figure out how to turn inner city black children into world class students, we can do for others as well.. Or put another way, if we focus our efforts upon this one segment of our population, and motivate those students to want to learn within our school system, we can do it for all…
The opposite approach, figuring out the “how” for the “all”, has proven far too complex, broad, and controversial to accomplish any of its intended results. That broad approach has burnt up so much money, and has had little to show for all its efforts…
Therefore I am promoting a paradigm shift, if nothing else… I am proposing that we continue to do some things exactly as we are, but instead,… just this time, we measure this one segment as our benchmark on whether we succeed or fail… If we can define the problem to a level where we can manage it…. we can fix it. For if we can succeed at raising the graduation level among inner city blacks, for if we succeed at increasing the numbers of their group entering college, and above all, for if we succeed at instilling in them the hope that education is truly their opportunity to a better life… then we have something to show for our efforts…
Here is a rough draft of what needs to happen in Delaware.
A) We make the SAT the standard on which we base our results..
B) We begin training to that standard from the beginning of our educational process.
C) We focus tremendous effort on the 9th grade: allowing none to slip by that critical marker.
D) We redesign our districts and return to neighborhood schools, re-engaging bonding between schools and their local community. We recognized shuffling of money may be required for impoverished areas.
E) We drop Black History Month and other ridiculously mandated curriculum that do little to improve our student’s competitive edge. Instead we focus on the basics: math, science, reading, writing. (Social Studies: what a fricken waste) If children are knowledgeable in the basics, they can do the research of extra curricular topics on their own…
F) We make being a geek socially acceptable, by establishing an ample rewards system for those who perform well; not something one feels forced to hide in order to maintain social acceptance among one’s peers.
G) We reward improvement… The simple goal of shortening the school year if SAT scores go out the roof… would be a powerful incentive upon those involved, students, teachers, parents, and administrators, to scratch a little deeper and find solutions that work, which then move them (and us) toward our goal of a world class education… And something that simple, wouldn’t cost a penny more. It would actually cost less.
The last segment holds the key… There have been many times when I have needed something done, and my admonitions have fallen upon deaf ears.. But attach an incentive to an impossible proposition? Nine times out of ten, it gets done… And even on the tenth time…it comes damn close….
In tough financial times, all of these propositions cut back millions on what we spend today. If we start, then in six years… those in sixth grade now, can be world class by 2015. It can be done if we just focus on those problems which interfere with a black child’s right to learn.
Just keepin’ it simple.
kavips 
13 comments
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November 16, 2008 at 10:49 am
PublicSchoolKinderMama
Some interesting ideas here.
I agree the most predominant issue is engaging the parents; making the school a place where they feel welcome. No child will value education if they see a parent who never bothers to visit their schools, for whatever reason.
And while simplifying it to “black kids” is fair enough in the context of our area, I personally prefer to simplify it as “poor kids”. Isn’t that as accurate? If not as provocative?
Shifting the simplification might help accomplish another fundamentally important issue for the longterm view: to reduce the demonization of this population from the minds of middle class parents, so that they recognize in the elevation of this population holds benefits for themselves, rather than just seeing in these kids as future denizens of prisons and welfare offices. If the “thug” stereotype – which I have disturbingly seen applied in the minds of middle class parents to VERY YOUNG lower class children – and other negatives, remain emphasized, schools will remain starved of educated and assertive parents with the drive to be involved and fight for school betterment, which is to the benefit all of their school’s children. And this view gets reflected even in school attitude, and becomes self-fulfilling.
And…why are social studies a waste? What could be more fundamental than historical, civic, and geographic context for everything else? Where else will students receive this?
November 16, 2008 at 2:15 pm
kavips
Thanks for your gracious insights.
There is one problem stemming from using the classification of “poor”.. That dilemma is..no one wants to be seen in that category.. We spend much of our lives dressing within our means to hide the fact that we are poor… Therefore a good class for poor people is often not very well attended, ( “Oh, I’m sorry….I didn’t know you were poor.”) even though it could be helpful.
There is no stigma attached with helping blacks.. Every political entity can get on board with little blemish to their reputation, even though the majority of those blacks participating, may be poor… Plus data to assist in their classification is less intrusive than acquiring economic data from every family…
And if one wants to truly reduce the demonetization of this population, I can think of no better way to accomplish that, then educating them.
As I have said before… there is nothing holding back black children… You visit first grade, and ask questions: they want to learn… It’s when you see them in Senior High, slumped down in their chairs, making fun of the teacher, totally disinterested in what is being said……it becomes obvious… Somewhere along the way we (parents, teachers, and planners), lost them…
If we can improve their graduation rates of this segment,and their college acceptances, we will have created a world class educational environment for the whole of Delaware’s students…
November 16, 2008 at 6:54 pm
pandora
Kilroy nails this issue. Red Clay, through rampant Choice and Neighborhood Schools, has created high-poverty, racially identifiable schools that don’t receive equitable funding. Go visit Warner and Shortlidge. Compare what they offer to other Red Clay elementary schools. Technology and Talented and Gifted programs have been replaced with disciplinary programs. Everything is based on the equal division of teaching units, not equitable. And that’s the problem.
You can’t create high needs schools and then treat them the same as every other school. They need more.
Anne and Kim (Fix Red Clay) do a good job of asking hard questions, but take a look at the comments section. The bigotry posted (referring to these kids as trash, etc.) is quite breathtaking. Perhaps focusing on that mindset would yield more results.
The real problem is that no one in power (read school board) makes exceptions for these schools. They are included in the class size waiver, rather than being given smaller class sizes. They aren’t receiving the additional teaching units desperately needed to make them competitive. And I don’t see this situation changing since improving these schools requires taking money from other schools.
November 16, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Nancy Willing
Rodel’s Vison 2015 has been in the news in the last week with a Newark Post editorial and a blerb on their taking a group of Delawarean educators/administrators to a top-performing Canadian school district.
The editorial included most of what Kavips discusses but adds that the funding formula for success is in not only rewarding the achievers with bonuses/etc. but that spending for both the top and bottom rungs must rise.
The ‘field trip’ looked interesting but will be for naught unless they bring back with them accompanying information on the funding mechanisms that bouy a world class school district (Canadians being known for their ‘socialistic ways and all).
I like the idea of a benchmark for DE achievement in education to rest on inner city success (news flash Kavips, hispanics make up a huge part of Wilmington’s minority community – might want to change your format to talking about Brown-skinned kids not Blacks).
November 16, 2008 at 9:27 pm
Nancy Willing
You can’t create high needs schools and then treat them the same as every other school. They need more.
*
Good point. The funding necessary to bridge the gap in needs is paramount for the bigger picture. Funding of public education must change.
Charter schools in the city proove how successfully minority children will thrive when given a chance.
The obvious problems with much of the public school kids are those not blessed with families making the best choices for themselves much less for their kids. Special needs kids are often really emotionally-based problems that can’t be solved without some level of professional psychiatric intervention that no teacher could be expected to provide.
November 17, 2008 at 11:15 pm
Duffy
You forgot one: reintroduce “tracking”. Group children by ability. The idea that the smart kids will somehow bring up the stragglers with them as the class moves on is absurd.
Also: Number of days in a school year in the US 180 (avg)
Number of school days in China? 221. Japan? 223. Korea? 225.
Oddly we seem to have higher than average hours of instruction annually with fewer days.
in re: Special needs kids: A great many of them are exempt from any state mandated testing. You have to do all sorts of paperwork to track them to show improvement of some sort. It’s a PITA but their stats are not counted toward school averages. (this of course, varies by level of disability)
November 19, 2008 at 12:47 pm
kavips
Unfortunately many of those days are spent watching PG movies so teachers can catch up on all the other work that has been thrust upon them….
December 5, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Griff
The Problem with this argument or discussion is that it is Entitled: “Teaching Black Kids.”
What does that mean? Why isn’t it: Teaching All Public School Kids.
Teaching Black Kids insinuates that Black Kids are the “problem” You can walk into any public elementary or high school and see all races “slumped down in their chairs, making fun of the teacher, totally disinterested in what is being said……”
Heck, you can walk down any street or mall and get this disrespect from the younger class today.
It’s a SOCIETAL issue, not a black issue or a white issue. Kids Period have no respect as a whole. Of course there are some exceptions who do have respect and those respectful kids do come in all racial shades.
This conversation makes it seem that all the White, Asian, Indian, Latino kids in the Red Clay District are all sweet and innocent and achieving above and beyond the requirements. Not true, its silly.
It all starts at home. I am a PTA officer at our school and a very active participant in our school. We tackle the same problem each month that ALL schools across the country encounter, getting Parents involved.
It is proven over and over and over again that the children whose parents show some iota of interest in their children’s education are always the kids who excel.
The parents who don’t show the interest are always the ones left behind.
Start there.. the Parents. White, Black, Asian, Latino and Indian parents alike HAVE to get involved if this is to change.
When you come up with a Societal Solution whereas people are teaching respect to their kids, and when we are encouraging kids that to be a Geek is cooler than being a celebrity or athlete, then things will start to change..
This labeling is old and worn out.
December 6, 2008 at 7:03 am
kavips
I was wondering if anyone would get hung up on the title.. Thanks for reading and providing your input…
You were probably unaware that my title of teaching black kids, does not mean abstaining from teaching all other types of children…
My point is this: The singular issue of focusing on how to get a black kid to succeed in school, will benefit all types of kids in that same school.
Spreading the focus as you say to that of all public school students, is where we are today. That’s what our school system does, and by popular consensus…. that philosophy does not work..
If we want our schools to work, we have got to figure out how to teach black kids. If you teach Poles and Italians, but not blacks, we are never going to make a difference.. The only way to make a difference in Delaware’s school system, is to figure out how to get black kids to study, learn, and graduate…Everything else, falls short of what we need to do.
February 14, 2009 at 5:36 pm
dkzody
Tracking is a terrible idea. We did that this year when we put all the low end freshmen together in classes. They drag each other even lower and the behavior is abysmal. The freshmen academy teachers are ready to quit. You’ve got to have a mix of students so that the top ones challenge the low-end kids. I’ve seen this work both ways.
February 15, 2009 at 12:55 pm
kavips
very interesting.
Do the lower end students even care what the top student’s think of them? Or could they be better served through a military type of environment, which may be what they need to teach them the basics of “structure”, which few of them have ever received?
November 12, 2010 at 6:54 am
Ted
Interesting ideas but they don’t go far enough. I’ve taught on the high school level for over 11 years and most ideas are rooted in hammering knowledge into the heads of a generation, several generations, that carry Anti-education and anti-intellectual mindsets. My solution…invest in academy or magnet programs that provide experiences beyond the norm starting in kindergarten through high school. These experiences should be provided every year & each would be unique. Example, imagine 8th graders experiencing scuba diving. In the fall they train, and the curriculum shows how this experience connects to aquatic science, physics, chemistry and math. Then in the spring, that grade level actually travels to the Caribbean to actually dive! Image 5th graders having a mountain bike experience where the learn to develop and design their own bike, then actually have it created and they ride it and sell it on eBay or amazon.com as a fundraiser! For blacks and others to adopt learning and intelligence and respect it, a paradigm shift must occur in dramatic fashion. Teachers must become lab techs and creating a product must be merged into the curriculum. And when implemented at tw ripe age of 4, they grow with it. It becomes a normal routine. Most blacks don’t have
These unique experiences an if we did there wouldn’t be the 50% and above dropout rate and backwards ideas such as,”reading is for whites,@ and quite possibly horrible classroom behavior & gang activity.
November 21, 2010 at 11:16 am
kavips
I think you are saying we need to put the wonder back into learning. and you propose a couple of methods to do just that.
There are prohibitive costs involved in the two example you make, but your idea of making children see learning as beneficial, I think gets to the core of the problem.
Basically you advocate doing away with the hammer method, and focus instead on a nurturing method of teaching. One with tangible results at the end of the session.