By Tizzy
Our education system is just one of many institutional powers that are controlling the way we think. Students are expected to go to school typically five days out the week to sit in a room and consume rote memorization. Rote memorization is a teaching technique that many teachers use through repetition. It’s basically like how elementary school teachers give out vocabulary homework and expect you to learn the words by writing them out multiple times. From my academic experiences at school, many students aren’t fond of classroom learning, specifically students of African-American or Latino ethnicity. I’ve heard from the students themselves reasons as to why learning is difficult for them to engage in. One reason is that teachers don’t care whether they pass their class or not. Many of these students believe that it’s a teachers’ negative attitude and stereotyped judgment that’s denying them the motivation to learn, attend class or even apply any effort into their schoolwork. It’s a fact that African-American and Latino students have a harder time graduating high school. Statistically speaking, according to the U.S. Department of Education one million students are expected to drop out this year without a G.E.D. and 10.5% of them are of Latino or African-American ethnicity. There’s no question that there’s a profound achievement gap within our educational system but who’s the blame for this and how can we narrow this gap?
What do you think is a major problem with education systems?
Why do you think that majority of the students dropping out of high school are African-American and Hispanic?
What are your thoughts on African-American and Hispanic achievement nights?
Do you think that teachers already have certain expectations aimed at specific students?
Do you think that teachers should know about the area and environment they’re teaching in for the benefits of the student?