1. Chapter 7: Curriculum & Pedagogy
1.1. I would advocate for the developmentalist curriculum. The developmentalist curriculum correlates the needs of students rather than the needs of society. This method was student-centered and concerned with linking the curriculum to the needs of each child at an appropriate developmental stage; it also emphasized on the development of each student's individual content. The developmental curriculum stresses the importance of connecting schooling to the life skills of each student in a style that would make learning come alive in a significant manner.
1.2. The two dominant traditions of teaching are memetic and transformative.
1.2.1. Transformative tradition relies on a different set of theories about the teaching and learning method. Advocates believe that the goal of education is to transform the student in some significant way, including intellectually, creatively, spiritually, and emotionally.
1.2.2. Memetic tradition is based on the position that the goal of education is to convey specific information to students. It accentuates the value of logical sequencing in the teaching method and evaluation of the learning process. Assessable goals and aspiration have become a central component of many teacher education programs.
2. Chapter 6: Schools as Organizations
2.1. Federal Alabama Senators and House of Representative
2.1.1. Senior Senator Richard Shelby, Junior Senator Doug Jones, and Representative Robert Aderholt
2.2. State Senator and House of Representative
2.2.1. Senator Clay Scofield and Representative Becky Nordgren
2.3. State Superintendent and Representative on State School Board
2.3.1. Superintendent Ed Richardson and Representative Mary Scott Hunter
2.4. Local Superintendent and Local School Board
2.4.1. Superintendent Jason Barnett; Local School Board members are Jeff Williams, Randy Peppers, Matt Sharp, Mark Richards, and Robert Elliott.
2.5. 1. School processes are distinguishing the powerful social features of schools that make them so compelling in term of emotional recall, if not regarding the cognitive outcome. 2. School culture is a combination of interacting characters that met in the school, thus, making the school a social organism. It is also remarkably exposed to, and the use of authority maintains that preparation.
3. Chapter 8: Equality of Opportunity
3.1. Class- Students in different social levels have a different kind of educational experiences. For example, education is costly, and families in the middle to upper class are more likely to support their children through school financially. It leads to labeling children according to the social level, not their abilities. The more elite a school is, the more likely the school is to enroll upper-middle to upper-class students. Race- Although it is indisputable that race is linked to educational outcomes, it is notably difficult to classify race from class. Minorities do not have equal educational possibilities like the majority, and the rewards for educational achievement are dramatically less. Gender- Historically, gender was instantly linked to educational accomplishment, but in the last 20 years, gender inequalities between men and women have been significantly reduced. Today, there is little suspicion that society discriminates against women occupationally and socially.
3.2. Coleman Study 1982
3.2.1. Response 1- Studies that have analyzed public and private schools observed private schools seem to "do it better" especially for low-income students. Catholic schools seem to favor low-income minority students, particularly in urban areas. However, Catholic schools are also becoming more elite and like suburban public schools.
3.2.2. Response 2- Where a person goes to school is usually associated to the race, and socioeconomic background of that person, the racial and socioeconomic structure of a school has a more notable effect on student success than an individual race and class. Borman and Dowling's study gathers that education reform needs to focus on reducing the tremendous level of segregation in the US education system and that schools must put a stop to tracking systems and biases that prefer white and middle-class students.
4. Chapter 9: Educational Inequality
4.1. In one theory John Ogbu demonstrates that African American children do not do as well in school because they adjust to the status of the class and caste structure. Ogbu later proposes that school achievement requires that African American student reject their cultural personalities and accept the dominant perception of the school. In a second theory, students reject the white middle-class culture of academic achievement and adopt an anti-school culture. Denying schooling and opposing academic success results in failing school and landing into the workforce. Smaller groups frequently see no reason to welcome the culture of the school because they do not believe it is significant for them.
4.2. School-Center Explanations
4.2.1. School Financing- Public schools are funded through a mixture of revenues from local, state, and federal sources. However, the bulk of funds come from state and local taxes. Since property values are higher in more wealthy communities, they can raise more money for schools through taxation. The more prosperous communities can contribute more per-student than more deprived communities. This unfairly funding is discriminatory under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and that it contradicts equal opportunity.
4.2.2. Effective School Research- If schools' outcomes are not meaningful, then schools and teachers can do little to make a difference. If scholars from the same racial settings attend separate schools within the same community at significantly different standards, then something within the school itself must be forming the student performance.
4.2.3. Within-School Differences The ability grouping and curriculum grouping is an essential organizational element of the U.S. schooling. There is significant debate among educators and researchers about the requirement, results, and efficacy of tracking. For functionalist, the important thing is to guarantee that track placement is appropriate and based on ability and hard work rather than ascriptive variable.
4.2.4. Gender and School- Boys and girls are socialized differently through a mixture of school processes. The curriculum represents men and women roles in a stereotypical belief, traditional curriculum dropped important features of women's history, hidden curriculum strengthened gender roles and expectations in classroom structure, and schools frequently reinforce gender roles and gender inequality.
5. Chapter 10: Educational Reform
5.1. School bases reforms
5.1.1. School-to-work program aimed to extend the vocational importance to non-college driven students concerning skills for thriving employment and to emphasize the value of work-based learning. The program had to contain three core elements: (1) school-based learning, (2) work-based learning, and (3) connecting activities.
5.1.2. The voucher program gave low-income parents the same options as middle-class parents and led to growing parental satisfaction with the schools. Voucher schools produced better learning conditions for low-income students. Due to the competence market impacts of engagement from voucher school, public school will be pushed to improve or close; resulting in higher student performance. These vouchers went straight to families rather than to the school and they could be used in either religious or private school.
5.2. Societal, Community, Economic, and Political Reform
5.2.1. Societal Reform: Researchers found a combination of school, community, and societal level reforms are necessary to reduce the achievement gap. Successful school reform was based on leadership, parent-community ties, professional capacity, student-centered learning climate, and instructional guidance. However, supporters are needed and difficult to implement in high poverty schools.
5.2.2. School Finance Reforms: Supplemental programs include social services, increased security, technology alternative education, school-to-work, after-school, and summer-school programs. All of these education reforms have proved the potential to better schools for low income and minority children, particularly in urban areas, by themselves they are cultivated to decrease achievement gaps.
6. Chapter 2: Politics of Education
6.1. The 4 purposes of education.
6.1.1. 1. Intellectual- Teach basic skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics.
6.1.2. 2. Political- Prepare citizens who will participate in the political order.
6.1.3. 3. Social- Work as one of many institutions, such as they family and the church to ensure cohesion.
6.1.4. 4. Economic- Prepare students for their later occupational roles and to select, train, and allocate individuals into the division of labor.
6.2. 1. In the role of the school, the liberal perspective stresses the necessary education to ensure all students have an equal opportunity to succeed.
6.3. 2. In explanations of unequal performance, the conservatives argue that students rise and fall on their own initiative, and achievement is based on hard work and sacrifice.
6.4. 3. For radicals the definition of educational problems are the educational system has failed the poor, the minorities, and women. They view a traditional curriculum as classist, racist, sexist, and homophobic.
7. Chapter 3: History of U.S. Education
7.1. I believe education for women and African-Americans had a big influence on education. In 1821, Emma Hart Willard opened an all female school and in subsequent years , other female reforms dedicated to education for women. In 1833, Oberlin Collegiate Institute opened its doors to African-Americans.
7.2. The democratic-liberals believed that education involves progressive evolution of a school system providing equality of opportunity. Lawrence A. Cremin portrays the evolution os U.S. education in terms of popularization and multitudinousness. Democratic-liberals believe that the education system must move closer to each, without sacrificing one or the other.
8. Chapter 4: Sociological Perspectives
8.1. Functional Theories view society as a machine, where one part articulates with another to produce the dynamic energy required to make society work.
8.2. Conflict Theories are based on the ability of dominant groups to impose their will on subordinate groups though force, cooptation, and manipulation.
8.3. Interactional Theories attempt to make the commonplace stance by turning on their heads everyday taken-for-granted behaviors and interactions between students, and between students and teachers.
8.4. Effects of Schooling on Individuals
8.4.1. 1. Inadequate Schools- This is one of the most obvious ways that schools reproduce inequalities. Students that attend a private school gets a better education than a student in an urban school.
8.4.2. 2. Tracking- This refers to the placement of students in a curricular program based on the student's abilities and inclinations. However, many studies have found that tracking decision are often based on other criteria, such as class or race.
8.4.3. 3. Gender- By the end of high school girls will have lower self-esteem and lower aspirations than boys. In the workforce men get paid more than women do for the same job.
8.4.4. 4. Employment- Most research has shown education is only weakly related to job performance. It seems that schools act as gatekeepers in determining who will get employed in high-status occupation, but school do not provide significant job skills for their graduates.
8.4.5. 5. Teacher Behavior- Teachers must become things, such as an instructor and disciplinarian. in a study by Rosenthal and Jacobson (1968) teachers' expectations of students were found to directly influence student achievement.