“Shame of the Nation, The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America”
Per Eric Alterman's suggestion, I nominate this book by Kozol for the February meeting of the minds. Here are a couple snippets.
p.8 In Chicago, by the academic year 2000-01, 87 percent of public school enrollment was black or Hispanic, less than 10 percent of children in the schools were white. In Washington D.C., 94 percent of children were black or Hispanic; less than 5 percent were white. In St. Luis, 82 percent of children were black or Hispanic; in Philadelphia and Cleveland, 78 percent, in L.A., 84 percent, in Detroit, 95 percent, in Baltimore, 88 percent, In NYC, nearly three-quarters of children were black or Hispanic in 2001.
p.9 A teacher at PS 65 in the Bronx says, “I’ve been at this school for 18 years. This is the first white student I have ever taught.” In that district there were 11,000 children of which only 26 where white meaning a rate of 99.8 percent non-white. Two-tenths of one percent. That’s it.
Thoughts?
p.8 In Chicago, by the academic year 2000-01, 87 percent of public school enrollment was black or Hispanic, less than 10 percent of children in the schools were white. In Washington D.C., 94 percent of children were black or Hispanic; less than 5 percent were white. In St. Luis, 82 percent of children were black or Hispanic; in Philadelphia and Cleveland, 78 percent, in L.A., 84 percent, in Detroit, 95 percent, in Baltimore, 88 percent, In NYC, nearly three-quarters of children were black or Hispanic in 2001.
p.9 A teacher at PS 65 in the Bronx says, “I’ve been at this school for 18 years. This is the first white student I have ever taught.” In that district there were 11,000 children of which only 26 where white meaning a rate of 99.8 percent non-white. Two-tenths of one percent. That’s it.
Thoughts?
posted by George W. Bush at 2:48 PM
3 Comments:
I read a piece by Kozol in Harpers a few months ago - likely a shortened, executive summary version of the book. It was brilliant and devastating. I read it twice, it was so good. The guy is a total professional, is eloquent and even-handed. I would be very interested in reading the book, and I think it would be a good fit for us - it would generate discussion and opinions, while leaivng out the rancor of petty partisan politics (though Kozol has no love for No Child Left Behind).
Many of the public schools in this country suck; they pretty much have to, given the financing scheme we use to fund them. But a huge part of the reason doesn't have much to do with the schools, teachers, or the teachers' union, in my opinion. The reason is that lots of parents suck (in terms of parenting skills), particularly in urban areas. There's only so much parenting a teacher can do to a class of 35-40 kids with poor social skills, and parents at home who don't give a shit about them or how they do. It would be great if they could go to safe schools with good facilities, but I'm skeptical of how much better most of them would do on basic skills when education is not valued at home.
MyShould those few white kids qualify as minorities for affirmative action purposes?
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