1. Politics of Education
1.1. The Purposes of Education
1.1.1. The Intellectual purpose is to teach basic cognitive skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics. Here you transmit specific knowledge (for example: literature, history, the sciences). This purpose also helps students acquire higher-order thinking skills such as analysis, evaluation, and synthesis.
1.1.2. The Political purpose is to instill allegiance to existing political order (patriotism). It prepares citizens who will participate in this political order and helps to assimilate diverse cultural groups into a common political order. It also teaches children the basic laws of society.
1.1.3. The Social purpose is to help solve social problems. The purpose of schools is to work as one of many institutions, such as the family, or the church, to ensure social cohesion. It also socializes children into the various roles, behaviors, and values of society. Socialization is a key ingredient to stability of any society.
1.1.4. The Economic purpose is to prepare students for their later occupational roles. Another purpose is to select, train, and allocate individuals into the division of labor.
1.2. Conservative Perspective of Education
1.2.1. The Role of School
1.2.1.1. Conservatives see the role of school as providing necessary educational training to ensure that the most talented and hard-working individuals receive the tools necessary to maximize economic and social productivity.
1.2.1.2. Schools socialize children into the adult roles necessary to maintain the social order.
1.2.1.3. Schools also transmit cultural traditions through what is taught and are essential to both economic and social stability.
1.2.2. Explanations of Unequal Performances
1.2.2.1. The Conservative perspective argues that individuals or groups of students rise and fall on their own intelligence, hard work, and initiative.
1.2.2.2. Achievements are based on hard work and sacrifice.
1.2.2.3. The school system is designed to allow individuals the opportunity to succeed. It is not a guarantee.
1.2.2.4. Conservatives argue that if students do not succeed, it's because they are deficient in some way or because they are members of a group that is deficient or lacking.
1.2.3. Definition of Educational Problems
1.2.3.1. Decline of Standards
1.2.3.1.1. The demand for greater equality in the 60s and 70s caused schools to lower academic standards and reduced educational quality.
1.2.3.2. Decline of Cultural Literacy
1.2.3.2.1. The demand for multicultural (needs of all cultural groups) caused schools to water down traditional curriculum and weakened the school's ability to pass on the heritage of American and Western civilizations to children.
1.2.3.3. Decline of Values or of Civilization
1.2.3.3.1. The demands for cultural relativism (every culture's values and ideas are equally valid) caused schools to lose their traditional role of teaching moral standards and values.
1.2.3.4. Decline of Authority
1.2.3.4.1. The demands for individuality and freedom caused schools to lose their traditional disciplinary function and often made them more chaotic.
1.2.3.5. Schools are stifled by bureaucracy and inefficiency because they are state controlled and immune from the laws of competitive free market.
2. History of U.S. Education
2.1. 17th Century
2.1.1. Informal Family Education
2.1.2. 1647 Puritans of New England passed the Old Deluder Law
2.1.3. The Puritans created the New England Primer (1687-1890)
2.2. Ben Franklin
2.2.1. Called for education for youth based on secular, utilitarian education rather than a traditional one
2.3. Thomas Jefferson
2.3.1. Proposed a bill to Virginia Legislature called "Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge"
2.3.1.1. This would provide a free education to all children for the first three years of elementary school.
2.3.2. Believed that if citizens had enough education to read newspapers and inform themselves of public issues they would make intelligent, informed decisions
2.4. 18th Century
2.4.1. Development of National interest in education
2.4.2. Growth of Secondary Education
2.4.3. 1751 - Franklin Academy opened
2.4.4. 1783 - Noah Webster's American Spelling Book published
2.4.5. 1785 &1787 - Land Ordinance Act, Northwest Ordinance
2.4.5.1. property tax introduced to pay for education
2.5. 19th Century
2.5.1. Increased role of secondary schools
2.5.2. Increased, but segregated education of women and minorities
2.5.3. More attention to teacher preparaton
2.5.4. 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson
2.5.4.1. Court case that declared "Separate but equal"
2.5.4.2. Led to continued segregation
2.6. 20th Century
2.6.1. Increased federal support for educational rights of underachieving students
2.6.2. Increased federal funding of specific education programs
2.6.2.1. 1964-1965 Head Start funded
2.6.3. 1954 Brown v. Topeka Board of Education
2.6.3.1. Ruling of "Separate is not equal"
2.6.3.2. Launching point of Civil Rights
2.6.4. 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act passed
2.7. Equality of Opportunity Reform
2.7.1. Central theme throughout U.S. history
2.7.2. GI Bill of Rights
2.7.2.1. approved after World War II
2.7.2.2. offered 16 million servicemen and women the opportunity to pursue higher education
2.7.2.3. Represented a building-block for educational expansion
2.7.3. In the 40s and 50s, relationships between race and education were at the forefront
2.7.3.1. The unequal and separate education of African Americans became a focal point of the civil rights movement
2.7.3.2. 1954 Brown v. Topeka Board of Education
2.7.3.2.1. Supreme Court ruled that state-imposed segregation of schools was unconstitutional
2.7.3.2.2. Reversal of Plessy v. Ferguson
2.7.3.2.3. Provided legal foundation for equality
2.7.4. Desegregation of Classrooms
2.7.5. 1960s
2.7.5.1. Reformers placed significant emphasis on the need to open access to postsecondary education for students traditionally underrepresented
2.7.5.2. Reformers said college is a right not a privilege
2.7.5.3. By the late 1960s, many colleges and universities adopted policy of open enrollment
2.7.5.4. Federal financial aid funds were appropriated for students from low-income families
2.7.5.5. Dramatic increase in the numbers of students participating in U.S. higher education
2.7.6. 1970s
2.7.6.1. Schools began attempting to equalize spending between high-income and low-income districts
2.7.6.2. 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act passed
2.7.7. Coeducation movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s began
2.7.7.1. In 1969, all-male Ivy League Universities began to admit women
2.7.7.2. In 1970, Vassar College became coeducational, leading to other all women's colleges to start admitting men
2.8. Democratic-Liberal Historical Interpretation
2.8.1. This school of interpretation believes that the history of U.S. education involves progressive evolution of a school system committed to providing equality of opportunity for all.
2.8.2. They suggest that each period of expansion involved attempts of liberal reformers to expand educational opportunities to larger segments of the population
2.8.3. They reject the conservative views of schools as elite institutions for the meritorious
2.8.4. Historians that support this view: Ellwood Cubberly, Merle Curti, and Lawrence A. Cremin
2.8.4.1. Cremin believed that history involved both expansion of opportunity and purpose
2.8.5. Democratic-Liberals tend to interpret history optimistically
2.8.6. They do not see equity and excellence as inevitably irreconcilable, but as tensions between them resulting in necessary compromises
2.8.6.1. They believe that the U.S. educational system must move closer to each, without sacrificing one or the other
2.8.7. They see the Common School Era as a victory for democratic movements and a first step to opening U.S. education to all
2.8.8. They portray the early school reformers (such as Horace Mann and Henry Barnard) as dedicated to egalitarian principles
3. Sociological Perspectives
3.1. Functionalism
3.1.1. Stresses the interdependence of the social system
3.1.2. Earliest sociologist to embrace functionalism was Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
3.1.2.1. Virtually invented the sociology of education in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
3.1.2.2. He believed that education, in virtually all societies, was of critical importance in creating the moral unity necessary for society to function together peacefully
3.1.2.3. Functionalists tend to assume that consensus is the normal state in society and that conflict represents a breakdown of shared values
3.1.2.4. He placed an emphasis on values and cohesion
3.1.2.5. He believed that moral values were the foundation of society
3.1.3. Believe that schools socialize students into the appropriate values, and sort and select students according to their abilities
3.1.4. Educational reform is supposed to create structures, programs, and curricula that are technically advanced, rational, and encourage social unity.
3.2. Conflict Theory
3.2.1. In this theory, sociologists argue that the social order is not based on a collective agreement, but on the ability of dominant groups to impose their will on subordinate groups through force and manipulation
3.2.2. In this view, the glue of society is economic, political, cultural, and military power.
3.2.3. They do not see the relation between school and society as unproblematic or straightforward
3.2.4. Conflict sociologists emphasize struggle
3.2.5. Schools are similar to a social battlefield. Students struggle against teachers, teachers against administrators, etc.
3.2.6. Intellectual founder of conflict theory is Karl Marx (1818-1883)
3.2.7. Max Weber
3.2.7.1. He was another important conflict sociologist
3.2.7.2. He examined status cultures and class position
3.2.7.3. He had an awareness of how bureaucracy was becoming the dominant authority in the modern state and how this bureaucratic thought was going to shape education reform
3.2.7.4. He made the distinction between the "specialist" and the "cultivated" man
3.2.8. Randall Collins
3.2.8.1. He maintained that educational expansion is best explained by status group struggle
3.2.8.2. He argued that educational credentials, like a college degree, are primarily status symbols rather than indicators of actual achievements
3.2.9. Cultural Reproduction Theory
3.2.9.1. This examines how knowledge and experiences related to art, music, and literature (cultural capital) and social networks and connections (social capital) are passed on by families and schools.
3.3. Interactional Theory
3.3.1. These are primarily critiques and extensions of the functional and conflict perspectives
3.3.2. The critiques come from the observations that functional and conflict theories are very abstract
3.3.3. They emphasize structure and process at a very general level of analysis
3.3.3.1. This level of analysis helps in understanding education in the "big picture"
3.3.3.2. These analysis do not provide an interpretable snapshot of what school is like on an everyday level
3.3.4. These theories attempt to make the commonplace strange by turning everyday taken-for-granted behaviors on their head
3.3.5. Basil Bernstein
3.4. Effects of Schooling
3.4.1. Knowledge and Attitudes
3.4.1.1. Academic programs and policies make a difference in student learning
3.4.1.2. Research shows that academically oriented schools do produce higher rates of learning
3.4.1.3. The more education an individual receives the more likely they are to read newspapers, books, magazines and take part in politics
3.4.1.4. The more years of schooling leads to greater knowledge and social participation
3.4.2. Employment
3.4.2.1. Graduating from college will lead to greater employment opportunities
3.4.2.2. Research has shown that large organizations require high levels of education for white-collar, managerial, or administrative jobs
3.4.2.3. Schools act as gatekeepers in determining who will get employed in high-status occupations
3.4.2.4. Possession of a college degree is significantly related to higher income
3.4.2.5. Schools do not provide significant job skills for their graduates
3.4.3. Teacher Behavior
3.4.3.1. Teachers have a huge impact on student learning and behavior
3.4.3.2. Teachers are models for students. They are instructional leaders who set standards for students and influence student self-esteem
3.4.3.3. Teachers are very busy and have many jobs
3.4.3.4. Teachers' expectations play a major role in encouraging or discouraging students to work to their full potential
3.4.3.5. Research found that when teachers demanded more from their students and praised them more, students learned more and felt better about themselves
3.4.3.6. Research also indicates that teachers have lower expectations for minorities and working class students
3.4.4. Tracking
3.4.4.1. There is evidence that in-school tracking has a critical impact on student mobility
3.4.4.2. Tracking is placing students in curricular programs based on students' abilities and inclinations
3.4.4.3. Tracking decisions are often based on other criteria such as class or race
3.4.4.4. Working class students usually end up in vocational tracks and middle-class students in academic tracks
3.4.4.5. Studies have shown that students placed in "high-ability" tracks spend more time on actual teaching and learning activities and are able to use more interesting materials. They consistently receive better teachers, better laboratory facilities, and more extracurricular activities than their lower-track peers
3.4.4.6. Track placement directly affects cognitive development
3.4.4.7. Students in lower tracks experience more alienation
3.4.5. Gender
3.4.5.1. Men and women do not share equally in U.S. society
3.4.5.2. Men are paid more than women for the same work
3.4.5.3. Women have fewer occupational opportunities than men
3.4.5.4. Girls usually start school cognitively and socially ahead of boys. By the end of high school, girls have lower self-esteem and lower aspirations than boys do
3.4.5.5. Traditionally, textbooks have been biased against women, ignoring their accomplishments and social contributions
3.4.5.6. Over the past two decades, female students outperform males in language arts and social studies
4. Philosophy of Education
4.1. Pragmatism
4.1.1. Comes from the Greek word "pragma" meaning work
4.1.2. It is a philosophy that promotes finding a learning process that works for you that will allow you to achieve your desired goals
4.1.3. Pragmatists are action oriented
4.1.4. Founders of this philosophy are George Sanders Peirce (1839-1914), William James (1842-1910), and John Dewey (1859-1952)
4.1.5. John Locke believed the mind was a tabula rasa, or a blank slate, and you acquire knowledge through your senses
4.1.6. Dewey's philosophy was that you attained a better society through education
4.1.7. Generic Notes
4.1.7.1. Schools were places where children could learn skills, experientially and traditionally, that would help them work in a democratic society
4.1.7.2. Dewey proposed that educators should start with the needs and interests of the students
4.1.7.3. Pragmatism allows the student to participate in his or her course of study, employs group learning, and depends heavily on experiential learning
4.1.7.4. Dewey advocated freedom and responsibility for students
4.1.8. Key Researchers
4.1.8.1. George Sanders Peirce and William James are credited with describing pragmatism through the biblical phrase "By their fruits ye shall know them"
4.1.8.2. Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
4.1.8.2.1. English philosopher and scientist
4.1.8.2.2. Emphasized an inductive method of reasoning that became the foundation of the observational method in educational research
4.1.8.3. John Locke (1632-1704)
4.1.8.3.1. Modern realist and political philosopher
4.1.8.3.2. Interested in the ways people came to know things
4.1.8.3.3. Believed the mind was a tabula rasa, or blank slate
4.1.8.4. Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)
4.1.8.4.1. French philosopher
4.1.8.4.2. Believed that individuals in their primitive state were good and that society corrupted them
4.1.8.4.3. Placed important emphasis on environment and experience
4.1.8.4.4. Known for his book Emile
4.1.8.5. John Dewey (1859-1952)
4.1.8.5.1. Most important influence on progressive education
4.1.8.5.2. Formulated his own philosophy introducing the terms instrumentalism and experimentalism
4.1.8.5.3. He opened the Laboratory School with his wife at the University of Chicago that applied his ideas about education
4.1.9. Goal of Education
4.1.9.1. Dewey's goal was to provide students the knowledge of how to improve the social order
4.1.9.2. Dewey believed that schools' function should be to prepare the students for a life in a democratic society
4.1.9.3. Dewey believed that schools should balance the needs of society with the needs of the individual
4.1.9.4. Primary goal of education is growth
4.1.9.5. Schools were to be a "lever of social reform"
4.1.10. Role of the Teacher
4.1.10.1. The teacher is to encourage
4.1.10.2. They are to offer suggestions and questions
4.1.10.3. They are to help plan and implement plans of study
4.1.10.4. Must have a command of several disciplines
4.1.11. Methods of Instruction
4.1.11.1. Dewey proposed that children learn both individually and in groups
4.1.11.2. Today we use the method of problem-solving or inquiry method
4.1.11.3. Instead of the old traditional methods of memorization, blocks of time for specific subjects, and formal instruction, they were replaced with individual study, problem solving, and project method
4.1.12. Curriculum
4.1.12.1. Generally follow Dewey's core curriculum
4.1.12.2. Curriculum changes as the social order changes; not fixed
4.1.12.3. Howard Gardner believed that Dewey attempted a balance between the traditional disciplines and the needs and interests of the student
5. Schools as Organizations
5.1. Major Stakeholders
5.1.1. State Senator: Greg Reed (District 5)
5.1.2. State Representative: Connie Cooner Rowe (District 13)
5.1.3. State Superintendent of Education: Thomas Bice
5.1.4. Representative on State School Board: Jeffery Newman
5.1.5. County Superintendent: Dr. Jason Adkins
5.1.6. School Board
5.1.6.1. Brad Ingle (Chairman of the Board)
5.1.6.2. Jamie Rigsby (District 1)
5.1.6.3. Dale Reeves (District 2)
5.1.6.4. Bill Edd Gilbert (District 3) Valley Jr. High
5.1.6.5. Sonia Waid (District 4)
5.2. Elements of Change within School Processes & School Cultures
5.2.1. School Processes
5.2.1.1. identifying the powerful cultural qualities of schools that make them so potent in terms of emotional recall, if not in terms of cognitive outcomes
5.2.2. Schools are separate social organizations, according to Willard Waller
5.2.2.1. 1. They have definite population
5.2.2.2. 2. They have a clearly defined political structure
5.2.2.3. 3. They represent the nexus of a compact network of social relationships
5.2.2.4. 4. They are pervaded by a "we feeling"
5.2.2.5. 5. They have a culture that is definitely their won
5.2.3. School cultures are extremely vulnerable to disruption and continuity is often maintained by use of authority
5.2.4. Culture is the product of the political compromises that have been created in order for the school to be viable
5.2.5. The principal establishes the goals for the school, the level of social and academic expectations, and the effectiveness of the discipline
5.2.6. Because they are so political, effecting change within schools is very difficult
5.2.7. Many conflicts are resolved through negotiations
5.2.8. Changing culture of schools requires patience, skill and goodwill
5.2.9. ''Schools of Tomorrow...Today"
5.2.9.1. Project run by NY City Teachers Center Consortium of the United Federation of Teachers
5.2.9.2. Purpose: to create schools that were "more centered on the learner's needs for active, experiential, cooperative, and culturally-connected learning opportunities supportive of individual talents and learning styles"
5.2.9.3. Despite best efforts, reform was difficult to achieve
5.2.9.4. Each school participating had strikingly different approaches to change and experienced significantly different outcomes in terms of achieving the stated objectives
5.2.10. 4 Elements of Change
5.2.10.1. Conflict is a necessary part of change
5.2.10.1.1. Staff involvement in school restructuring must be prepared to elicit, manage, and resolve conflict
5.2.10.2. New Behaviors must be learned
5.2.10.2.1. Change requires new relationships and behaviors
5.2.10.2.2. Change in process must include building communication and trust, enabling leadership and initiative to emerge, and learning techniques of communication, collaboration, and conflict resolution
5.2.10.3. Team Building must extend to entire school
5.2.10.3.1. Shared decision making must consciously work out and give on-going attention to relationships within the rest of the school's staff. If not, issues of exclusiveness and imagined elitism my appear and perceived "resistance to change" will persist
5.2.10.4. Process and Content are interrelated
5.2.10.4.1. Process a team uses in going about it's work is as important as the content of educational changes it attempts
5.2.10.5. Changing the culture of a school in order to make the school more learner-centered requires time, effort, intelligence, and goodwill
5.2.10.6. School processes are elusive and difficult to define, but all powerful nonetheless
5.2.10.7. Planned change requires new ways of thinking
5.2.10.8. Teachers must be at the forefront of educational change
5.2.10.9. In 2008, 75.2% of all public school teachers in the U.S. were women
5.2.10.10. There are few minority teachers
5.2.10.11. No Child Left Behind mandates that all states require teachers to be highly qualified
5.2.10.11.1. To be highly qualified you must meet 3 conditions
5.2.10.12. Teachers must be skilled in many areas
5.2.10.12.1. Have many roles such as colleague, friend, nurturer of learner, facilitator of learning, researcher, program developer, administrator, decision maker, professional leader, community activist
5.3. Out of field teaching
5.3.1. teachers being assigned to teach subjects that do not meet their training or qualifications
5.4. Organization of U.S. schools is complex
5.4.1. Have public and private school systems
5.4.2. U.S. system so decentralized and dedicated to the concept of equal educational opportunity
5.5. Constitution makes no claims on authority of education
5.5.1. States retained authority and responsibility for education
5.5.2. 50 separate state school systems
5.5.3. U.S. public schools paid for by revenue raised by local property taxes
5.5.4. State may mandate curriculum, qualifications for teaching, and safety codes, but these are usually carried out by citizens of school districts
5.5.5. Federal government entered educational policy field since Civil Rights movement of 1960s.
5.5.5.1. U.S. Department of Education founded 1970s
5.5.6. Private Schools
5.5.6.1. Attract students from families that are relatively affluent & have commitment to education
5.5.6.2. Most are located on the East and West coasts
6. Curriculum & Pedagogy
6.1. Developmental Curriculum Theory
6.1.1. related to the needs and interests of the student rather than the needs of society
6.1.2. emanated from aspects of Dewey's writings
6.1.3. progressive approach to teaching is student-centered and concerned with relating the curriculum to the needs and interests of each child at particular developmental stages
6.1.4. Stresses importance of relating schooling to the life experiences of each child in a way that would make education come alive in a meaningful manner
6.1.5. Teacher is the facilitator or student growth
6.2. 3 Other Types of Curriculum Theory
6.2.1. Humanist Curriculum
6.2.1.1. reflects idealist philosophy that knowledge of traditional liberal arts is the cornerstone of an educated citizenry and that the purpose of education is to present to students the best of what has been thought and written
6.2.1.2. Traditionally focused on Western heritage as basis for intellectual development
6.2.1.3. Curriculum model dominated nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century U.S. education
6.2.1.4. Some have proposed that schools should return to a traditional liberal arts curriculum and should focus on Western tradition
6.2.1.5. Problem with curriculum is it assumed a common culture
6.2.2. Social Efficiency Curriculum Theory
6.2.2.1. philosophically pragmatist approach
6.2.2.2. developed in early twentieth century
6.2.2.3. Democratic response to development of mass public secondary education
6.2.2.4. Rooted in belief that different groups of students with different sets of needs and aspirations, should receive different types of schooling
6.2.3. Social Meliorist Curriculum Theroy
6.2.3.1. social reconstructionist
6.2.3.2. Developed in 1930s out of Dewey's writings
6.2.3.3. Concerned with role of schools in reforming society as well as a response to growing dominance of the social efficiency curriculum
6.2.3.4. 2 of the most influential social meliorists are George Counts and Harold Rugg
6.2.3.5. School curriculum should teach students to think and help solve societal problems, if not to change the society itself
6.3. Schools teach specific curriculum
6.4. Formal curriculum
6.4.1. Formally included subject matter to be learned
6.5. Hidden Curriculum
6.5.1. includes what is taught to students through implicit rules and messages as well as through what is left out of the formal curriculum
6.6. Role of Curriculum
6.6.1. to give students knowledge, language, and values to ensure social stability
6.7. Mimetic Tradition
6.7.1. based on view point that the purpose of education is to transmit specific knowledge to students
6.7.2. Didactic Method
6.7.2.1. method that commonly relies on the lecture or presentation as the main form of communication
6.8. Transformative Tradition
6.8.1. believe that the purpose of education is to change the student in some meaningful way, including intellectually, creatively, spiritually, and emotionally
6.8.2. Do not see the transmission of knowledge as only component of education and thus they provide a more multidimensional theory of teaching
7. Equality of Opportunity
7.1. Class
7.1.1. Education is expensive which favors wealthy families
7.1.2. Families from the upper class and middle class are more likely to expect their children to finish school
7.1.3. Working class and lower class families often have lower levels of expectations
7.1.4. Middle and Upper class children are more likely to speak "standard" English
7.1.4.1. Teachers have been found to think more highly of middle and upper lass students than they do of working class and underclass students because the working and underclass students do not speak "standard" English
7.1.4.2. Can lead to labeling by class instead of by ability
7.1.5. Class is directly related to achievement and to educational attainment
7.1.6. Children from working class and underclass families are more likely to underachieve, drop out, and resist the curriculum of the school
7.1.7. The higher an individual's social class, the more likely he or she is to enroll in college and to receive a degree
7.1.8. The more elite the college, the more likely the college is to enroll upper class and upper-middle class students
7.2. Race
7.2.1. An individual's race has a direct impact on how much education he or she is likely to achieve
7.2.2. Among 16-24 year olds, 5.2% of white students drop out of school, 9.3% of African Americans & 17.6% of Hispanic-Americans
7.2.3. Among 17 year olds, 89% of white students will be able to read at the intermediate level, 66% of African American students have reached that level of reading proficiency & 70% of Hispanic-Americans are reading at an intermediate level
7.2.4. Minorities have, on average, lower SAT scores then white students
7.2.5. Direct link between SAT scores and admission to college and being awarded scholarships for study
7.2.6. It is extremely difficult to separate race from class
7.2.7. Minority students receive fewer and inferior educational opportunities than white students
7.2.8. Minorities rewards for educational attainment are significantly less
7.2.9. White students outperform all other students, with the exception of Asian-American students, on SAT
7.3. Gender
7.3.1. Females are less likely to drop out of school than males
7.3.2. Females are more likely to have a higher level of reading proficiency than males. The same for writing
7.3.3. Males outperform females in mathematics proficiency
7.3.3.1. Explanation: Behavior of classroom teachers who tend to assume that females will not do as well as males in mathematics
7.3.4. Males more likely to score higher on the SATs than females
7.3.5. More women are now attending post-secondary institutions than men, but many of these institutions are less academically & socially prestigious than those men attend
7.3.6. Girls have caught up with boys in almost all measures of academic achievement
7.3.7. The "Boy problem"
7.3.7.1. Liberals argue these increases demonstrate the success of educational reforms aimed at improving achievement
7.3.7.2. Conservatives argue that the decline in male achievement & attainment is a result of the "feminizing" of the classroom
7.3.8. Still significant advantages for men when competing for the most prestigious academic prizes
7.3.9. Male students continue to outperform females
7.3.10. Reading proficiency is both highly correlated with race, ethnicity, and parental level of education, with higher level of education predicting higher reading proficiency
7.3.11. Low income and minority students are more likely to have less challenging curricula, less likely to be in advanced placement classes, more likely to have underqualified and less experienced teachers, more likely to be in larger classes, more likely to change schools, and less likely to have their parents participate in school activities
7.4. Coleman Study 1982
7.4.1. Said differences among schools do make a difference
7.4.2. Private schools were more effective learning environments than public schools because they place more emphasis on academic activities and because private schools enforce discipline in a way that is consistent with student achievement
7.4.3. Private schools demand more from their students than do public schools
7.4.4. Some found findings insignificant
7.4.4.1. Jencks (1985) looked at findings and estimated yearly average achievement gain by public and Catholic school students
7.4.4.2. Differences that do exist between public & Catholic schools are statistically significant but in terms of significant differences in learning, results are negligible
7.4.4.3. Some studies have found that private schools seem to do it better, particularly for low income students
7.4.4.4. Catholic schools seem to advantage low-income minority students, especially in urban areas. They are also becoming more elite and like suburban public schools
8. Educational Inequality
8.1. Functionalist believe role of school is to provide fair and meritocratic selection process for sorting out the best and the brightest individuals regardless of family background
8.1.1. Expect that schooling process will produce unequal results, but results ought to be based on individual differences between students, not on group differences
8.1.2. Believe that unequal educational outcomes are the result, in part, of unequal educational opportunities
8.1.3. It is imperative to understand the sources of educational inequality to ensure the elimination of structural barriers to educational success & to provide groups a fair chance to compete in educational marketplace
8.2. Conflict theorists are concerned with both equality of opportunity and results
8.2.1. Do not believe that equality of opportunity is a sufficient goal
8.2.2. Don't deny the deleterious impact of extra-school factors such as poverty, believe that schools play an important role in reproducing the problems
8.3. Interactionist Theory
8.3.1. suggests that one must understand how people within institutions such as families and schools interact on a daily basis in order to comprehend the factors explaining academic success and failure
8.3.2. One must also look into the lives and worlds of families and schools in order to understand why it happens
8.4. Social class background has the most powerful effect on educational achievement and attainment
8.5. Cultural Deprivation Theories
8.5.1. Suggests that working class and nonwhite families often lack the cultural resources such as books and other educational stimuli and arrive at school at a significant disadvantage
8.5.2. Assert that poor have deprived culture, one that lacks the value system of middle class culture
8.5.3. Middle class culture values hard work and initiative, the delay of immediate gratification for reward, and the importance of schooling as a means to future success
8.5.4. Culture of poverty eschews delayed gratification for immediate reward, rejects hard work and initiative as a means to success, and does not view schooling as the means to social mobility
8.5.5. This deprivation results in educationally disadvantaged students who achieve poorly because they have not been raised to acquire the skills and dispositions required for satisfactory academic achievement
8.6. School Centered Explanations
8.6.1. These suggest that school processes are central to understanding unequal educational performance
8.6.2. School Financing
8.6.2.1. Vast differences in funding between affluent and poor districts
8.6.2.2. Public schools are financed through combination of revenues from state, local, and federal sources but the majority of funds come from state and local taxes
8.6.2.2.1. Significant source: local property taxes which are based on the value of property in local communities and are a proportional tax
8.6.2.2.2. Property values are higher in affluent communities and they are able to raise significantly more money for schools than poorer communities with lower property values
8.6.2.2.3. More affluent communities are able to provide more per-pupil spending than poorer districts
8.6.2.2.4. Children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds do not receive equality of opportunity, at least in terms of funding
8.6.3. Effective School Research
8.6.3.1. Found within-school differences are as or more significant than between-school differences raised questions about arguments that students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds do poorly simply because they attend inferior schools
8.6.3.2. Ronald Edmonds suggested that comparing schools in different socioeconomic communities was only part of puzzle. Argued researchers needed to compare schools within lower socioeconomic communities as well
8.6.3.3. Said if all schools in such neighborhoods produce low educational outcomes and these outcomes couldn't be explained in terms of school differences in comparison to schools in higher socioeconomic communities, then student-centered findings could be supported
8.6.3.4. If significant differences in student performance between schools within lower socioeconomic neighborhoods, then there are school effects
8.6.3.5. Effective school research suggests that these are school-centered processes that help to explain unequal educational achievement by different groups of students
8.6.3.5.1. Supports later work of Coleman that argues that Catholic schools produce significantly better levels of academic achievement because of more rigorous academic curriculum and higher academic expectations
8.6.3.5.2. Schools make a significant difference independent of the students who attend
8.6.3.6. Effective school researchers do not provide clear findings on implementation, nor do they provide answers to how effective schools are created
8.6.3.7. Some critics argue that the definition of effective schools is based on narrow and traditional measures of academic achievement and that such perspectives define educational success from a traditional back-to-basics perspective
8.6.3.8. This view may result in school reform that emphasizes success on standardized tests and overlooks other nontraditional and progressive measures of school success, which may emphasize artistic, creative, and non-cognitive goals as well
8.6.4. Between-School Differences: Curriculum & Pedagogic Practices
8.6.4.1. Bernstein suggested that schools in working-class neighborhoods are more likely to have authoritarian & teacher-directed pedagogic practices, & to have a vocationally or socially efficiency curriculum at secondary level
8.6.4.2. Middle class schools more likely to have less authoritarian and more student-centered pedagogic practices and have a humanistic liberal arts college prepatory curriculum at secondary level
8.6.4.3. Upper class students more likely to attend elite private schools with authoritarian pedagogic practices and a classical-humanistic college prep curriculum at secondary level
8.6.4.4. Research on the relationship between schooling and life expectations suggest that schooling can elevate or limit student aspirations about the future
8.6.5. Within-School Differences: Curriculum & Ability Grouping
8.6.5.1. The fact that different groups of students in the same schools perform very differently suggests that there may be school characteristics affecting these outcomes
8.6.5.2. At elementary levels, students are divided into reading groups and separate classes based on teacher recommendations, standardized test scores, and sometimes ascriptive characteristics such as race, gender, or class
8.6.5.3. For the most part, these students receive a similar curriculum in these different groups but it may be taught at a different pace, or teachers in the various groups may have different expectations for the different students
8.6.5.4. At secondary, students are divided both by ability and curriculum, with different groups of students often receiving considerably different types of education within the same school
8.6.5.5. Functionalist perspective
8.6.5.5.1. Tracking is viewed as an important mechanism by which students are separated based on ability and to ensure that the "best and brightest" receive the type of education required to prepare them for society's most essential positions
8.6.5.5.2. The important thing is to ensure that track placement is fair and meritocratic-based on ability and hard work rather than ascriptive variables
8.6.5.6. Conflict theorists suggest that tracking is a mechanism for separating groups, often based on ascriptive characteristics, and that it is an important mechanism in reproducing inequalities
8.6.5.7. Oakes suggested that the lower tracks are far more likely to have didactic, teacher-directed practices, with rote learning & fact-based evaluation. Higher tracks are more likely to have more dialectical, student-centered practices, with discussion & thinking-based evaluation
8.6.5.8. Differences hold even when the tracks are based on ability rather than curriculum
8.6.5.9. Effects of tracking & track placement, tracking has a significant effect on educational attainment at both elementary & secondary levels
8.6.5.10. Research on the self-fulfilling prophecy of teacher expectations & of elementary school ability groups and reading groups point to the impact of teacher expectations and ability grouping on student aspirations & achievement at elementary school level
8.6.5.11. Research indicates that differences in tracks help to explain the variation in academic achievement of students in different tracks
8.6.6. Gender & Schooling
8.6.6.1. Gilligan's work pointed to the differences and their relation to gender socialization and how society rewards men for "male" behavior and negatively affects women for "female" behavior
8.6.6.2. Many feminists argue that schools should revise their curricula & pedagogic practices to emphasize caring and connectedness
8.6.6.3. Feminists agree that schooling often limits the educational opportunities and life chances of women in a number of ways
8.6.6.4. Curriculum materials portray men's and women's roles often in stereotypical & traditional ways
8.6.6.5. Feminists call for a more gender-fair curriculum
8.6.6.6. Hidden curriculum reinforces traditional gender roles & expectations through classroom organization, instructional practices, and classroom interactions
8.6.6.7. Organization of schools reinforces gender roles and gender inequality
9. Educational Reform
9.1. If teachers expect all students to learn and excel, they can and do
9.2. After the 1983 report A Nation at Risk, government leaders, educational reformers, teacher organizations, administrators, and various other interest groups attempted to improve the quality of U.S. schools
9.3. In the 1990s and 2000s, reforms placed the federal government back at the forefront of educational policy
9.4. The reforms of the 1980s to today consisted of two waves of reform
9.4.1. The first wave was concerned primarily with the issues of accountability and achievement
9.4.2. Responding to the call for increased academic achievement, many states increased graduation requirements, toughened curriculum mandates, and increased the use of standardized test scores to measure student achievement
9.4.3. The second wave was targeted at the structure and processes of the schools themselves, placing far more control in the hands of local schools, teachers, and communities
9.4.4. Despite the second wave's insistence that locally based reforms were central to success, many critics argued that the reforms were highly bureaucratic and aimed primarily at assessment procedures
9.4.4.1. Significant reforms had to emphasize both changes within the schools, and changes that involved teachers, students, and parents as part of the reform process
9.5. Federal Involvement
9.5.1. In 1990, President George H. W. Bush announced six national goals for U.S. education
9.5.1.1. Goal 1: By the year 2000, all children will start school ready to learn
9.5.1.2. Goal 2: By the year 2000, the high school graduation rate will increase to at least 90%
9.5.1.3. Goal 3: By the year 2000, American students will leave grades 4, 8, 12 having demonstrated competency in challenging subject matter, and every school in America will ensure that all students learn to use their minds well, so they may be prepared for responsible citizenship, further learning, and productive employment in our modern economy
9.5.1.4. Goal 4: By the year 2000, U.S. students will be first in the world in mathematics and science achievement
9.5.1.5. Goal 5: By the year 2000, every adult American will be literate and will possess the skills necessary to compete in a global economy and exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizenship
9.5.1.6. Goal 6: By the year 2000, every school in America will be free of drugs and violence and will offer a disciplined environment conductive to learning
9.5.2. President Bush's reform proposal was America 2000
9.5.2.1. create a better and more accountable schools for today's students
9.5.2.2. create a New Generation of American schools for tomorrow's students
9.5.2.3. transform America into a nation of students
9.5.2.4. make our communities places where learning will happen
9.5.3. President Clinton's bill Goals 2000
9.5.3.1. recognized the national goals and provided a framework for what is referred to as "systemic" reform
9.5.3.1.1. Systemic reform is the coordination of reform efforts at the local, state, and federal levels
9.5.3.1.2. An important component is the creation of national standards
9.5.3.2. Elementary and Secondary Education Act
9.5.3.2.1. provided an opportunity for the Clinton administration to fulfill its promise for greater education equity because the ESEA is the federal government's largest compensatory education program
9.5.3.3. Was a direct outgrowth of the state-led education reform agenda o the 1980s
9.5.4. No Child Left Behind
9.5.4.1. a landmark and controversial piece of legislation
9.5.4.2. centerpiece of President George W. Bush's educational policy
9.5.4.3. Most comprehensive federal legislation governing state and local educational policies in U.S. history
9.5.4.4. mandates uniform standards for all students in order to reduce and eventually eliminate the social class and race achievement gap by 2014
9.5.5. Race to the Top
9.5.5.1. President Obama established after taking office
9.5.5.2. primary goal was to aid states in meeting the various components on NCLB
9.5.6. Diane Ravitch argues that NCLB and Race to the Top rely too heavily on standardized testing and the expansion of school choice through charter schools and that these reforms have not demonstrated any significant degree of success in improving achievement
9.5.7. School based reforms
9.5.7.1. Charter schools
9.5.7.1.1. public schools that are free from many of the regulations applied to traditional schools and in return are held accountable for student performance
9.5.7.1.2. charter is a performance contract that details a the school's mission, program, goals, students served, methods of assessment, and ways to measure success
9.5.7.1.3. are self-governing institutions with wide control over their own curriculum, instruction, budget, internal organization, calendar, etc
9.5.7.1.4. is paid for with tax dollars and must be open to all students in the school district
9.5.7.1.5. charter schools can be started by virtually anyone and are supposed to demonstrate results to the public agencies that review and approve their charter
9.5.7.1.6. Accountability is critical component
9.5.7.1.7. proponents argue that they provide a more effective and efficient alternative for low-income children
9.5.7.2. Teacher Quality
9.5.7.2.1. NCLB required all schools have highly qualified teachers in every classroom
9.5.7.2.2. Ingersoll found that problems in staffing urban schools have less to do with teacher shortages and more with organizational issues inside schools
9.5.7.2.3. Rates of teacher attrition and misassignment are more prevalent in urban and high poverty schools
9.5.7.2.4. School improvement reformers have stressed the existence of teacher tenure and seniority based transfers and layoff provisions in union contracts as a primary factor in preventing an improvement of teacher quality
9.5.7.2.5. A number of provisions in Race to the Top funding has addressed some of these issues
9.5.8. Reforms
9.5.8.1. Full Service and Community Schools
9.5.8.1.1. Another way to attack education inequity is to examine and plan to educate not only the whole child but the whole community
9.5.8.1.2. Full service schools focus on meeting students' and their families educational, physical, psychological, and social needs in a coordinated and collaborative fashion between school and community services
9.5.8.1.3. Schools service as community centers within neighborhoods that are open extended hours to provide a multitude of services such as adult education, health clinics, recreation facilities, after-school programs, mental health services, drug and alcohol programs, job placement and training programs, and tutoring services
9.5.8.1.4. Designed to target and improve at-risk neighborhoods
9.5.8.1.5. Aim to prevent problems, as well as to support them
9.5.8.1.6. No evidence that full-service schools affect student achievement
9.5.8.2. School Finance Reforms
9.5.8.2.1. Supreme Court's 1973 decision in Rodriguez v. San Antonio
9.5.8.2.2. The court ruled in 1990 that more funding was needed to serve children in the poorer school districts
9.5.8.2.3. Funding was equalized between urban and suburban school districts
9.5.8.2.4. Determined that extra funding was to be distributed to provide additional programs in order to eliminate disadvantages within poorer school districts
9.5.8.2.5. In 1998, the state was required to implement a package of supplemental programs
9.5.8.2.6. Although all of these educational reforms have demonstrated the potential to improve schools for low-income and minorities, by themselves they are limited in reducing the achievement gap