I was really interested in Dr. Pope's talk about the documentary "Corridor of Shame." I found a portion of it on YouTube and have linked it for those who would like to view it. Pat Conroy provides an intro and it is about 6 minutes of documentary. Conroy taught middle school in SC, and talks about the stats of his various classes. Among some, he says that four students (middle schoolers) could not add 2 + 2. Not all of them knew the alphabet. Some could not spell their names; others could not write their names. How did we let this happen in South Carolina? The part I saw was shocking, but very informational. The school districts continually talk about the problem they have with retaining teachers because of lack of resources and less competitive pay. The words and pictures really reinforce my desire to teach in a lower income and lower achieving area.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjY69hO0fxk
I have also attached a link from a news report where Obama visited Dillon, S.C., in January 2008 and addressedthe underfunding issue. It explains the tax issues that contribute to underfunding, and illustrates the hope that Obama brought to Dillon when he visited. Students are underachieving on standardized tests, and schools are spending 1/4 of the amount that richer school districts are able to spend on students. Let's hope that in the next four years there can be serious reform in these poorer areas.
Part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb3uvJy_sZw&feature=related
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While I was reading for today's class, I thought about this same documentary. Tyack and Cuban mention that reform used to include restructuring facilities such as appropriate restrooms being available and so fourth. They say that we no longer think of needing to improve the restrooms as reform. We now think of inside restrooms for girls, boys, and faculty as a necessity. It amazed me that there are still schools that do not have adequate facilities, sewer is found in the hallways, and out of date books fill the libraries. I hope that a solution is found so that each child in the United States is able to have the opportunities and facilities we have in our area.
it is shocking and appalling to see the achievement gap between the haves and the have nots. Hopefully our generation will be able to do something to address this issue instead of ignoring problems which reside outside what directly affects us and our families.
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