3.26 Readings

1. 3.26 Readings Important Terms and Questions

2. Teachers who are aware of these issues are often better at making sure their classrooms are places where all students have a chance to succeed.

3. Gardner – “Confronting the Achievement Gap • Main point of this is that he supposedly is focusing on race. • Funding – not just equalizing the system, but funding to especially help poor children. He rejects racial differences in intelligence as a cause. • Key Terms: • Modest Gains • Parental schooling (history of bad schooling) • Locus of control – p. 157 • Solutions? • eliminate (ameliorate effects of) poverty • political will • belief in learning ability of kids • make learning fun

4. Rothstein-”Class and the Classroom” • The main point here is that social class effects may be more powerful influences on achievement in schooling than school effects, even than race or income effects – on average – this is what the statistics tell us. Moral is – SES has more to do with achievement than race/ethnicity.

5. Rothstein-”Class and the Classroom” Key terms/concepts: • Think about - Rothstein vs. Haycock argument about improving social supports vs. improving schooling is not an either/or proposition; as a society, we have to do both. • Reading gap – p. 284 – key idea to embrace or reject is that Americans like to pretend that we are a classless society. How do social class, race, occupation, and/or education affect how parents read to their kids? Reading differences? • Conversation gap – p. 284 – What are the differences he lists? • Role model gap – cultural underachievement – p. 286 – lack of reward for hard work and TWCT, p62 – “acting white” • Health and housing gaps – p. 287 – why wealth rather than income, is a better predictor of school achievement. • Narrowing the gaps – Are school reforms enough? (better teachers, leaders, climates, standards, etc…) Schooling gets extended to preschool, after school, and summer experiences similar to those for middle-class children – not just drilling on basic skills. What does health care have to do with this?

6. Rothstein • Does this information, if correct, relieve us teachers of responsibility? Does it discourage us from trying?

7. Haycock • Key terms • Ethnic differences – What about SES? Think about this – Why is RACE always a major concern in discussions of educational policy? • Has the gap narrowed? If so, should teachers get rewarded? How? • How do we explain a worsening of the gap for Hispanic males? • Problems vs. Solutions • Problem - Poor students are taught less – Tate says, “I agree…bad teachers.” • Solution – Standards – Tate says, “We have weak standards, little money, in US states. • Solution – Challenging Curriculum - Tate says, “I agree—but does it have to be standardized to be good?” • Solution – Extra help - Tate says, “yes, but more of the same? Enrichment like the rich kids get at home? Training in how to think like rich kids?” • Solution – Better teachers – Tate says, “yes, but are more content and alternative licensure the only answers?

8. AERA • Key terms/concepts: • Pygmalion effect – teacher expectations and “self-fulfilling” prophecies • How is the achievement gap measured? • minority students may be slowly making up the difference • What are the time requirements/commitments by everyone involved (teachers, students, parents, administrators, community) to scale up the reforms? Pretty significant right? •  What could one teacher, one department or grade, one school do to make one difference that would help eliminate the gap? • DEMANDING CURRICULUM and STRONG SOCIAL SUPPORT SYSTEM that values and promotes academic achievement.

9. “Academic performance improves when all students have the opportunity to learn the same challenging curriculum Marked by high standards and expectations.”

10. Possible Final Exam Topics • 3/26 The Achievement Gap • achievement gap • factors considered in determining SES (also in 3/19) • human needs (Maslow) • race / ethnicity (also in 3/5) • reasons why schools in the U.S. are different from those in other countries • ways educators can reduce the achievement gap (in schools) • ways society can reduce the achievement gap (outside schools)