I just came back from the river, nice night, cool, dark getaway, and believe it or not my sister-in-law and I talked about this class, the readings, the assignments, etc. She is a teacher too, by the way, of 15 years. I was talking to her about the statistics stating that 7000 teens drop out of school every day. My brother was sitting there too, and they both were pretty blown away. Anyway, I told her that I got frustrated responding to the readings because I feel that so much attention is given to what teachers and the educational system can do to improve the gaps and reduce the number of dropouts. My frustrations lie in the area of research. I am a dropout. I didn't drop out of school because of failing grades. I didn't drop out because school was necessarily boring. I dropped out because of what was going on in my life at the time. I dropped out because of stuff I couldn't control. I dropped out of 11th grade and I was supposed to graduate from 11th grade. I wasn't dumb, I wasn't behind, I didn't lack confidence, I didn't blame my teachers. I was a kid with what seemed to be unsurmountable problems. I dropped out because I couldn't deal with the pressures from both sides. I had teachers who showed special interest toward me and in keeping me in school. I had a counselor who actually encouraged me to stay away from home because my schoolwork and attendance improved when I ran away.
I am not so arrogant as to believe that this is why most students drop out of school, but at the same time are we putting too much emphasis on defective pedagogy as the root of this dilemma? One reason I didn't write about this after first reading the chapter was because I couldn't find any educational research (on the internet) on students dropping out of school due to circumstances at home. I realize that those put in a position to do research that is designed to improve the educational system feel motivated to focus on topics of which they have some control. Afterall, there is little teachers can do to improve a student's home situation, but there are a whole lot of changes they can make in the classroom. I just worry that the system is placing too much emphasis in the wrong place. I feel that in the long run, at times we are doing more harm than good by constantly revising the curriculum and over-analyzing methods and strategies. I just think we need to be careful about creating whole classrooms based on this narrow research. I had students last year that ended up at Caritas. One student watched his mother die at the hands of her boyfriend's bullet. Another student transferred to our school after being bullied and beaten badly at his previous school, and then ended up at Caritas. Everyone has a story. This chapter is correct in stating that we must get to know our students as individuals, but don't think for one moment that creating exclusive lessons for groups of students will close the gaps or keep them safe and in school.
By the way, I am not a cynic. I do believe that there is hope for each and every student that walks in that school door. We just have to give them our ears, our encouragement and our best, and, above all, hope that every big or little thing we do is enough.
I am not so arrogant as to believe that this is why most students drop out of school, but at the same time are we putting too much emphasis on defective pedagogy as the root of this dilemma? One reason I didn't write about this after first reading the chapter was because I couldn't find any educational research (on the internet) on students dropping out of school due to circumstances at home. I realize that those put in a position to do research that is designed to improve the educational system feel motivated to focus on topics of which they have some control. Afterall, there is little teachers can do to improve a student's home situation, but there are a whole lot of changes they can make in the classroom. I just worry that the system is placing too much emphasis in the wrong place. I feel that in the long run, at times we are doing more harm than good by constantly revising the curriculum and over-analyzing methods and strategies. I just think we need to be careful about creating whole classrooms based on this narrow research. I had students last year that ended up at Caritas. One student watched his mother die at the hands of her boyfriend's bullet. Another student transferred to our school after being bullied and beaten badly at his previous school, and then ended up at Caritas. Everyone has a story. This chapter is correct in stating that we must get to know our students as individuals, but don't think for one moment that creating exclusive lessons for groups of students will close the gaps or keep them safe and in school.
By the way, I am not a cynic. I do believe that there is hope for each and every student that walks in that school door. We just have to give them our ears, our encouragement and our best, and, above all, hope that every big or little thing we do is enough.
