Kunjufu gives many examples of making little changes that can make big differences in African American students, “if only we had teachers that would be willing to make these minor adjustments (99).” Some of these examples include allowing teachers to read the questions on state achievement tests, using visual pedagogy, creating collaborative environment, and many more.
In broader context, Kunjufu distinguishes the differences in how right-brained people and left-brained people think and learn. Along with this, he gives specific strategies to better instruct each of them (ex: quiet environment with only one activity vs. multiple stimuli and more noise).
It is a fact that testing doesn’t go away after graduation. Even when you are applying for a job, grad school, licensure, or even a driver’s license, you are expected to perform well on written tests under the same conditions as everyone else. On these test, no one is going to read you the question or provide you a tape record. Instead, you are expected to answer the questions the same way everyone else is. Then, what would be the long-term effects of these adjustments and modifications in students?
If more and more parents begin to remove their children from public schools in order to home-school them, how will that effect our education system? Will it have an effect at all? Will it make things better, worse or will things pretty much remain the same? How will these parents, the majority of which are working full time or more, be able to provide their children the same education and opportunities they are afforded at school? I can understand to an extent why parents would choose this route, especially considering the benefits to the child's self-esteem, approach to learning, etc. but I am not sure it is the best decision once we consider what it will take, more importantly - if these parents are going to be able to fill the role of teacher on top of their other responsibilities. I think the added stress may have negative consequences for parent-child relationships.
Also, although I enjoyed reading the chapters by Kunjufu, who makes a lot of good points, the sometimes sweeping generalizations that are made (I feel) detract from her message. At one point, there was a line that had absolutely nothing to do with single vs two-parent households, she referred to the black children as "fatherless". Also, the whole left vs right brained references. I think it would have been better to just attribute the differences between students as cultural rather than hard-wired into their brains. The majority of people I believe use a mixture of the two and we learn best when both sides of our brains are fully involved in whatever processes are taking place. Teachers should try their best and use a "whole-brained" approach to curriculum.
Although I agree that home schooling has its benefits, especially if a parent has to decide between sending his/her child to a dangerous public school or educating them at home, I would still think of this option as a last resort. It may be a very obvious question but are these students getting enough time to socialize, be around people their own age and people of different cultures, if they are getting educated at home? Are parents just perpetuating desegregation by keeping their children at home, when they could be in school, interacting with children and teachers of varied cultures? Although I too would take my child out of a school that I found to be unsafe, I still think that we need to make more of an effort to change how dangerous many urban schools are so that we can make schooling more integrated than it already is. We need to change the way public schools educate children and protect them in order to prevent parents from taking their children out of these schools.
What interests me is the article on African Americans choosing to homeschool their children. I wonder, as Sarah has above, what makes homeschooling the better choice for children. Sonya Copeland talks about how she felt her son was losing interest in learning and that was why she took him out of public schools. Why does this help her son like school better when he is learning from a computer and a busy mom? The article talks about how African Americans traditionally followed public schools because they were the answer to desegregation. It also talks about how traditionally, White Christians were the main practicers of home-schooling, but what made them go to homeschooling and how did they feel that the education they were providing was better for their children, both then and now? I know the article listed some legitimate reasons such as studying history prior to slavery, but why wouldn't this be something that could be done in addition to school? I would like to hear other's opinions.
Kunjufu gives many examples of making little changes that can make big differences in African American students, “if only we had teachers that would be willing to make these minor adjustments (99).” Some of these examples include allowing teachers to read the questions on state achievement tests, using visual pedagogy, creating collaborative environment, and many more.
ReplyDeleteIn broader context, Kunjufu distinguishes the differences in how right-brained people and left-brained people think and learn. Along with this, he gives specific strategies to better instruct each of them (ex: quiet environment with only one activity vs. multiple stimuli and more noise).
It is a fact that testing doesn’t go away after graduation. Even when you are applying for a job, grad school, licensure, or even a driver’s license, you are expected to perform well on written tests under the same conditions as everyone else. On these test, no one is going to read you the question or provide you a tape record. Instead, you are expected to answer the questions the same way everyone else is. Then, what would be the long-term effects of these adjustments and modifications in students?
If more and more parents begin to remove their children from public schools in order to home-school them, how will that effect our education system? Will it have an effect at all? Will it make things better, worse or will things pretty much remain the same? How will these parents, the majority of which are working full time or more, be able to provide their children the same education and opportunities they are afforded at school? I can understand to an extent why parents would choose this route, especially considering the benefits to the child's self-esteem, approach to learning, etc. but I am not sure it is the best decision once we consider what it will take, more importantly - if these parents are going to be able to fill the role of teacher on top of their other responsibilities. I think the added stress may have negative consequences for parent-child relationships.
ReplyDeleteAlso, although I enjoyed reading the chapters by Kunjufu, who makes a lot of good points, the sometimes sweeping generalizations that are made (I feel) detract from her message. At one point, there was a line that had absolutely nothing to do with single vs two-parent households, she referred to the black children as "fatherless". Also, the whole left vs right brained references. I think it would have been better to just attribute the differences between students as cultural rather than hard-wired into their brains. The majority of people I believe use a mixture of the two and we learn best when both sides of our brains are fully involved in whatever processes are taking place. Teachers should try their best and use a "whole-brained" approach to curriculum.
Although I agree that home schooling has its benefits, especially if a parent has to decide between sending his/her child to a dangerous public school or educating them at home, I would still think of this option as a last resort. It may be a very obvious question but are these students getting enough time to socialize, be around people their own age and people of different cultures, if they are getting educated at home? Are parents just perpetuating desegregation by keeping their children at home, when they could be in school, interacting with children and teachers of varied cultures? Although I too would take my child out of a school that I found to be unsafe, I still think that we need to make more of an effort to change how dangerous many urban schools are so that we can make schooling more integrated than it already is. We need to change the way public schools educate children and protect them in order to prevent parents from taking their children out of these schools.
ReplyDeleteWhat interests me is the article on African Americans choosing to homeschool their children. I wonder, as Sarah has above, what makes homeschooling the better choice for children. Sonya Copeland talks about how she felt her son was losing interest in learning and that was why she took him out of public schools. Why does this help her son like school better when he is learning from a computer and a busy mom? The article talks about how African Americans traditionally followed public schools because they were the answer to desegregation. It also talks about how traditionally, White Christians were the main practicers of home-schooling, but what made them go to homeschooling and how did they feel that the education they were providing was better for their children, both then and now? I know the article listed some legitimate reasons such as studying history prior to slavery, but why wouldn't this be something that could be done in addition to school? I would like to hear other's opinions.
ReplyDelete