1. School as Organizations
1.1. Major Stakeholders
1.1.1. Federal Level
1.1.1.1. The federal level senators are Doug Jones and Richard Shelby. The federal level House of Representative is Robert Aderholt.
1.1.2. Local Level
1.1.2.1. The local level senator is Larry Stutts and the House of Representatives are Johnny Mack Morrow and Marcel Black.
1.1.3. State Superintendent
1.1.3.1. The most recent superintendent was Michael Sentence but he resigned in September of 2017. After his resignation, former superintendent Dr. Ed Richardson was named interim superintendent.
1.1.4. Representative on State School Board
1.1.4.1. The Representative on State School Board for District 4 is Yvette Richardson. She has been in this position since 2011.
1.1.5. Local Superintendent
1.1.5.1. The local superintendent at Muscle Shoals High School is Dr. Brian Lindsey.
1.1.6. Members on Local School Board
1.1.6.1. The members of the local school board are: Dr. Celia Rudolph (President), Willis Thompson (Vice President), Farrell Southern, Dr. Jamie Stoddard, Clayton Wood
1.2. Elements of Change in School Processes and School Cultures.
1.2.1. Changes in school processes is the same as change in the powerful cultural characteristics that makes them so dominant when discussing emotional remembrance. Schools are defined by a series of intrinsic contradictions that can form cultures that are conflictual and dormant. Schools are very political, therefore; trying to effect them with change is very difficult. Trying to change the culture of a school in order to make the school more student centered requires time, intelligent, good will, and extreme effort. This does not restrict planned change but it does mean that planned change will require different ways of thinking.
2. Curriculum & Pedagogy
2.1. A curriculum theory that I advocate is the Developmentalist curriculum.
2.1.1. I support the developmentalist curriculum because it is based on the interests and needs of the students. The approach is student centered and relates the curriculum to the needs and interests of every student at specific developmental stages.
2.2. 2 dominant traditions of teaching:
2.2.1. Mimetic Tradition
2.2.1.1. The mimetic tradition is believes that the purpose of education is to transfer specific knowledge to students. This tradition focuses on the main form of communication to be lectures or presentations and this is refereed to as the didactic method. This tradition is heavily based on a strong student and teacher relationship.
2.2.2. Transformative Tradition
2.2.2.1. The transformative tradition is the opposite of the mimetic tradition in multiple ways. For instance, the transformative method believes that the purpose of education is not to transfer knowledge but that it is supposed to change the student in a significant way. This method also does not believe in the relationship between the student and teacher. The transformative tradition also uses dialectical method for communication although lectures can be used.
3. Equality of Oppurtunity
3.1. Impact on Educational Outcomes
3.1.1. Race
3.1.1.1. Race has a large impact on a students educational achievement. White students have higher percentage success rates. Minority students, such as African American and Hispanic students, have higher drop out rates and lower percentages in reading at the intermediate level as well as lower SAT scores. Also, because of their numbers being lower than white students, minority students are not offered the same educational opportunities and they are rewarded for education achievements far less.
3.1.2. Gender
3.1.2.1. Gender does impact the outcome of students education. Females are more likely to attain a higher score in reading and writing compared to men and they are also less likely to drop out. On the other hand, men outperform females in mathematics and they are also more likely to score higher on the SAT's as females. Lastly females are more likely to attend college. Over the years, studies have shown that females have actually caught up to the males in almost every academic measure.
3.1.3. Class
3.1.3.1. Class has a major impact on the educational outcome for students. The main reason is because the further a student goes in education the more expensive it is. High class families will have no issue paying for a child's education but that is not the case for students that come from lower class families. Studies have shown that students that come from working class and lower class families are far more likely to drop out of school and not continue their education.
3.2. Responses to Coleman Study of 1982
3.2.1. The first response to Coleman's study of 1982 was that although private schools were statistically significant, these significance were not true pertaining the actual learning aspect from both schools.
3.2.2. The second response seemed to agree that private schools actually seem to "do it better", especially for low income students. Also, private schools have some certain organizational aspects that are actually related to the outcome of the students.
4. Educational Inequality
4.1. 2 Types of Cultural Differences Theory
4.1.1. One cultural difference theory is that the reason that African American children do no do as well in school is because they conform to their suppressed position in society. John Ogbu argues that the families of African American children push them to deal with the lifestyle they are costumed to rather than encourage them to attribute their skills and values necessary for positions that will not be available to them. The result of this is lower educational success and performance.
4.1.2. Another cultural difference theory is that working-class and nonwhite students are refraining from the dominant culture of the school. This leads to the rejection of white middle-class culture of academic success and often leads to anti-school cultures which opposes the current culture of school as it already is. The resistance often results in dropping out of school and joining the world of work.
4.2. School-Centered Explanations
4.2.1. School Financing
4.2.1.1. The financing of schools plays a role in the inequality of education. Public schools receive finances through multiple revenues from local, state, and federal sources. Therefore the majority of finances come from property taxes, which means the the value of the property is significantly higher in more wealthy communities. Schools are able to raise more money from their community this way but unfortunately that is unfair to the schools located in poorer communities.
4.2.2. Between School Differences
4.2.2.1. Differences in what is referred to as "school climates" has an affect on academic performance. Most of the research focused on the differences between inner-city schools and lower-socioeconomic communities and how schools can make a difference in these neighborhoods. Research shows that the socioeconomic status of the school plays a role in the success of the student's that attend it.
4.2.3. Within-School Differences
4.2.3.1. There is also a major difference in academic achievement between schools but also within schools. This is because student's that attend the same school perform different in their academics. This means that characteristics within the school affect the academic results of students. Schools believes that students that are in lower academic classes are not offered challenging curriculum, this is proven when these students do not perform well on their tests that measure their academic knowledge.
4.2.4. Gender and Schooling
4.2.4.1. Feminist movements have been happening for many years. Many researchers have studied the ways that women have been treated unfair in many aspects. Despite many studies, women agree that schooling often places limits on their educational opportunities. One way that gender pays a role in school inequalities is that materials in the curriculum often portray men's and women's roles in the traditional and stereotypical ways. Another way is that researches believe the traditional curriculum "silences women" by not allowing significant details of women's history and lives.
5. Politics of Education
5.1. Role of the School
5.1.1. Conservative Perspective
5.1.1.1. Believes that school should ensure that all students should be given the same opportunity to compete for themselves and be rewarded for their efforts.
5.1.2. Liberal Perspective
5.1.2.1. Believes that all schools should ensure that equality of opportunity exists and that inequality of results be minimized
5.1.3. Radical Perspective
5.1.3.1. Believes that school should actually minimize inequality of educational results and provide upwards social mobility.
5.2. Explanations of unequal performance
5.2.1. Students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds usually preform worse in school
5.2.2. Also students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds start out a disadvantage and radical believe that it is caused by the economic system and not the school system.
5.2.2.1. Certain policies and programs are provided to equalize the circumstances so that students that come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have a better chance
5.3. Definition of educational problems
5.3.1. The inequality of students that come from low and high socioeconomic backgrounds
5.3.2. School systems have made the traditional curriculum easier and that has weakened the systems ability to pass on certain civilizations to kids.
5.3.2.1. Conservatives describe this problem as cultural literacy
5.3.3. Traditional curriculum is classist, racist, and sexist. It also does not involve cultures, histories, and voices of the oppressed
5.4. Purposes of Schooling
5.4.1. Intellectual purposes of schooling
5.4.1.1. help students achieve higher thinking skills that include: analysis, evaluation, and synthesis
5.4.2. Political purposes of schooling
5.4.2.1. teach loyalty to the existing political order
5.4.2.2. to make sure the citizens who will participate in this political order are prepared
5.4.2.3. teach children the basic laws of society
5.4.2.4. to teach students the basic cognitive skills. These skills include: reading, writing and mathematics to pass on specific knowledge
5.4.2.5. to help accumulate different cultural groups into a similar political order
5.4.3. Social purposes of schooling
5.4.3.1. to help children become socially involved into the different roles of society
5.4.3.2. help solve social problems
5.4.3.3. the key to a stable society is stabelizatoin
5.5. Economic purposes of schooling
5.5.1. help students better prepare for their future
5.5.2. majority of school systems have an indirect way to help students prepare for their future occupation, although some school systems have a direct system to prepare their students for work
6. History of U.S Education
6.1. Historical Interpretation of U.S Education
6.1.1. One historical interpretation of U.S education is the "Conservative Perspective". This is string of criticism that went around in the 1980's that bashed school systems for being mediocre. Certain critics believed that social objectives damaged the traditional curriculum and goals of education. They stated that society was using education as a problem solver but it was actually causing a bigger problem. Although graduation rates were at an incline, U.S education systems were being mocked for "watering down" the curriculum to get these results. All of the critics had different views on this topic but the one thing they all could agree on was that the changing of education in the U.S resulted in the "dilution of academic excellence."
6.2. Reform Movement
6.2.1. During the years of 1820-1860, a reform movement occurred that helped establish a free public education. Horace Mann led a movement that resulted in the first "normal school" being established in Lexington, Massachusetts. This school was established in 1839. During the 19th century, Mann was a popular education reformer and he promoted public education or "common school." The establishment of public elementary school happened during this time. In 1862, congress passed an act that allowed the the use of public money to go towards public land grant universities which resulted in Universities being established. This reform movement also resulted in more women attending public schools although school was originally seen as "harmful or too stressful."
7. Sociological Perspectives
7.1. Theoretical Perspectives
7.1.1. Functionalism
7.1.1.1. Emile Durkheim believed education played a crucial role in creating social unity and balance.
7.1.1.2. Functionalists believe that school and education get students ready to become a part of society because it teaches them certain values and skills they will need.
7.1.2. Conflict Theory
7.1.2.1. Founded by Karl Marx
7.1.2.2. Began in England and France in the 1960's
7.1.2.3. Says that conflict in society is inevitable because of the competition in society for "dominance and power".
7.1.2.4. Gives critical perception on the connection between school and society.
7.1.3. Interactionalism
7.1.3.1. Mainly an addition and a few changes to the functional and conflict theories. Goes into a deeper analysis than the other two.
7.1.3.2. Gives a better understanding of what happens in schools on an everyday level.
7.1.3.3. Focuses on how students act to those around them and how teachers can learn about their students during these interactions.
7.1.4. One of the biggest impacts on students is their teacher. Persell found that a student will acquire more knowledge when a teacher demands more out of them.
7.2. 5 Effects of schooling
7.2.1. Employment
7.2.1.1. Employment is one of the biggest motivators to students. Students believe that they have a better chance at employment if they graduate college and this is true. Although education does not always control the amount of income they will make, research does show that a higher level of education is related to a higher paying job.
7.2.2. Teacher Behavior
7.2.3. Student Peer Groups and Alienation
7.2.3.1. Students that are placed in career education programs, that were heading to lower paying jobs are more likely to join delinquent groups and stay in trouble.
7.2.4. De Facto Segregation
7.2.4.1. Segregation has an enormous effect on schooling. A study showed that African-American students who attended a multicultural school system was more likely to graduate high school and less likely to get arrested compared to African-American students who attend a segregated school.
7.2.5. Knowledge and Attitudes
7.2.5.1. Students who come from a higher social background are more likely to have significant results from school. studies also showed that the amount of time a student spends in the classroom is closely related to how much they learn. The more school they go through the more knowledge and social participation the have.
8. Philosophy of Education
8.1. Existentialism
8.1.1. Generic Notation
8.1.1.1. The belief that everyone must make sense out of the experiences they encounter. Individuals are in charge of creating themselves and creating their own meaning. Existentialists believe that individuals create themselves through the choices they make during their life.
8.1.2. Goal of Education
8.1.2.1. The goal of education is to focus on the needs of of the individual. They believe that it should emphasize originality.
8.1.3. Role of the Teacher
8.1.3.1. They believe that teachers will be more beneficial to their students if the have better understanding of their lives. Existentialists want the teachers to challenge themselves and take risks so that they can help their students become, as Greene describes as, "wide awake".
8.1.4. Methods of Instruction
8.1.4.1. They do not agree with methods of instruction. They believe this because every child is different therefore the teacher will not use the same method on every student. They expect the teacher to help their students get a better understanding of the world through interaction, produce activities, and posing questions.
8.1.5. Curriculum
8.1.5.1. Existentialists choose curriculum based on subjects that support personal cooperation. They want to expose students at a young age so they get an early start on acknowledging the capabilities of the human race. They also focus on literature because it is a subject that allows them to express themselves.
9. Educational Reform
9.1. School Based Reforms
9.1.1. Privatization
9.1.1.1. This reform is about private education companies progressively becoming included in public education. The Educational Management Organizations (EMO) operate schools for profit. For-profit companies took over the administration of schools and districts that were failing. For instance, the Philadelphia Public Schools were taken over by the state in 2003 because of the student's low achievements. It is plain to see that businesses see the multi-billion-dollar education production as a profitable market.
9.1.2. School-Business Partnership
9.1.2.1. During the 1980's, several school-business partnerships were formed due to business leaders becoming very concerned that schools were not generating graduates that were necessary for a revitalization of the U.S economy. The most significant school-business partnerships was the Boston Compact began in 1982. School-business partnerships often offer scholarships for poor students to go to college and programs where business "adopt" a school. The support for public schools has drastically fallen since the 1970's. There is not any persuasive evidence that shows that school-business partnerships have remarkably improved schools.
9.2. Describe 2 Reforms
9.2.1. Community Based Reforms
9.2.1.1. One of the main ways to conquer inequity in education is to plan out a way to educate the community as a whole instead of just one child. Full service schools focus on meeting the needs of the students and their families. This includes offering educational, physical, psychological, and social support. Schools are used as community centers in neighborhoods and they stay open for extended hours in order to meet the need of the people in the community. The main goal of this reform is to prevent problems from happening as well as offer support them. There is no evidence that support that this reform affect student achievement.
9.2.2. Societal Based Reforms
9.2.2.1. The Harlem's Children's Zone is an example of this reform. It was created in order to provide free support by helping parents that live in poverty educate their children before they begin school so that they will not start off school behind. White students are more likely to start off ahead of African American students because white parents are more likely to read to their children. Also, African American kids spend more time in front of a TV. This program was designed to provide quality educational help in the stages of early childhood. This program was formed so that it could help minority and low-income children to become successful, rather than falling behind before they even begin schooling.