chapter 4 including everyone: who sometimes gets overlooked in school?

Fraser TEACH © 2011 McGraw- Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Chapter 4 Including Everyone: Who Sometimes Gets Overlooked in School?

Fraser TEACH © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Historically Speaking: Who Was Left Out of American Schools? • Prior to the 1960s, many thought that schooling

was simply “not for everyone.” Some students received an unequal education: – Girls

– Children who do not speak English

– Students with disabilities

– Bored or disengaged students

• Following the civil rights movement, a growing consensus emerged that “no child should be left behind”


Historically Speaking: Who Was Left Out of American Schools?• High school graduation rates

– In 1870, only 2% of students graduated high school

• High school was a luxury for a privileged few

– High schools became more widespread in the 1920s

– By 1970, more than 75% of students graduated high school


What Legal Actions Made School Available for Everyone?• Key civil rights laws changed schooling in

America: – Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited racial

discrimination

– Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibited gender discrimination

– Lau v. Nichols 1974 decision made schools provide the same opportunities to English language learners

– Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 ensured disabled students a free, appropriate education which met their specific needs


Boys and Girls Together: What Does It Mean for Schools to be Gender Fair?

• Before the women’s rights movement, boys were taught skills which provided for economic opportunity while girls primarily learned domestic skills

• National Organization of Women (NOW) was founded in 1966 and has gained political clout and importance



• The impact of Title IX– Prohibited gender segregation in all school

subjects– Prohibited discriminatory guidance

counseling or discrimination against pregnant and parenting teens

– Politicians, such as Senator Laxalt, and former Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, tried to undermine the legitimacy of the WEEA and Title IX



• Gender equity – Many researchers show that teachers spend

more time focused on boys in the classroom – Other researchers are concerned about the

disadvantages now facing boys as boys are more likely to drop out and get in trouble at school

– Is this a crisis for boys or a closing of the gap between genders?


Learning the Language: What Are the

Ongoing Debates Over Bilingual Education? • America: A land of many languages

– Bilingual students have been present in American classrooms since the first schools were opened

• German language schools opened in Philadelphia as early as 1694

• After the U.S.-Mexican War ended in 1848, many students in the Southwest were taught in both Spanish and English

• Japanese language schools were introduced in California early in the 20th century


Learning the Language: What Are the Ongoing Debates Over Bilingual Education?

• America: A land of many languages– Criticism of bilingual education has been

ongoing since the nineteenth century into the present day

– For some, the English language came to define American nationality

– Bilingual schooling virtually disappeared through the 1920s and 1930s, and was even a crime in some states as late as the 1970s


Learning the Language: What Are the Ongoing Debates Over Bilingual Education?

• America: A land of many languages– Civil rights movement fueled changes and

reform to bilingual education – The Supreme Court ruled in the 1974 Lau v.

Nichols decision that effective bilingual instruction had to be provided to all students

– Some felt after the Lau decision that the newly enforced bilingual education was only another form of segregation


• Bilingual instruction versus an English-only curriculum– “English Language Learners” (ELL)

programs focus on teaching students to speak English as quickly as possible

– Bilingual education focuses on strengthening students’ reading and speaking skills in both English and their native language

Learning the Language: What Are the

Ongoing Debates Over Bilingual Education?


What About Me?

• Do students today truly have educational equality? Give reasons for your viewpoint.


Special Needs: What is the Best Education for Students with Disabilities?

• Special education aims to minimize the impact of the disability while maximizing student opportunities

• “Abelism” may explain schools’ trouble of reaching this goal – Abelism: society’s pervasive negative

attitude about disability



• The legal foundation of special education – Before Congress passed Public Law 94-142

in 1974, many disabled children were excluded from classrooms

– Law provided that all children had to be provided a free, appropriate education no matter the disability

– Also ensured that parents were to be included in student’s assessment and all decision making



• Responding to the mandate– All teachers need a foundation of special

education skills for every classroom– Many debate whether special needs students

should be actively included in inclusive classrooms or served in separate classes

– Growing concern over inappropriate placements–the tendency in some places for special education to be a “dumping ground” for “problem” students



• Inclusive classrooms – Classrooms where regular education and

special education students are mixed together in the “least restrictive environment”

– May save money and provide better socialization for all students

– Can be more demanding for teachers if the right support is not in place, such as co-teachers or aides


Reading: “With Boys and Girls in Mind”

by Michael Gurian and Kathy Stevens • New brain imaging technology shows

differences between how girls and boys think – Girls have more cortical areas devoted to verbal

functioning and sensual memory

– Boys have a better grasp for abstract and physical-spatial functions

• Gurian and Stevens claim that if teachers taught with these differences in mind, it “could profoundly improve education for all students”


Reading: “The Truth About Boys and Girls” by Sara Mead

• Disagrees with Gurian and Stevens• Recent press coverage about “boy crisis” is

drawn from faulty conclusions– Mead writes, “The real story is not bad news about

boys doing worse; it’s good new about girls doing better.”

• Overall trends point to the closing gap between girl and boy students, with boy scores staying relatively steady in recent years

• Low-achievement among minority and lower-class boy students is indicative of class and race, rather than gender, issues


Reading: “All Languages Welcomed Here” by Orhan Agirdag

• Agirdag’s research in Belgium has led him to assert:

• “Cultural discontinuity between students’ home-based and school-based experiences can have a negative effect on their academic performance, well-being, and sense of belonging at school”

• By incorporating Agirdag’s five suggested practices for promoting plurilingualism and avoiding three common mistakes, teachers can make students feel accepted in the classroom


Reading: “The Case for Structured English

Immersion” by Kevin Clark • Three main factors lead schools to implement

structured English immersion (SEI) programs– Legislation restricting bilingual education – State assessments are usually conducted in English – Subpopulation of ELL students who plateau with

their English skills after a few years • SEI programs are structured around:

– 1) teachers maximizing instruction in English – 2) teachers using and teaching English at a level

appropriate to the student’s ability • In a SEI program, days are divided into time

spent in English language lessons and academic courses taught in English


Reading: “Confronting Abelism” by Thomas Hehir

• “Abelism”: society’s pervasive negative attitude about disabilities– Many disabled people are led to believe their

disability is something only to be “overcome” • Special education is meant to minimize the

impact of the disability and maximize opportunity for students– “Minimizing impact” should not mean to “cure” the

disability, but rather to give students the tools to live a full life with the disability

– “Maximizing opportunity” means that schools must provide equal opportunities to all students—such as sports and clubs—regardless of the disability

chapter 4 including everyone: who sometimes gets overlooked in school?

Documents

mcgrawhill higher education

bilingual education

high schools

education amendments

appropriate education

unequal education

high school fraser

high school high school