Central Falls, Rhode Island, is located just outside of the Providence, the capital of Rhode Island. The diversity of the Central Falls community is echoed by looking at the high schools’ 800-member student body. Within the number of students the birthplaces represented are Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Columbia, Guatemala, Cape Verde and United States. The school bodies’ aggregate ethnic breakdown is calculated as 72 percent Hispanic, 15 percent Black, and 13 percent White (Donnelly & Rochefort, 2011). The school system is the pushing force behind achieving the hopes and dreams of the students.
Educational Statistics
The academic performance at Central Falls High School (CFHS) has historically trailed behind the average school performance numbers for the state of Rhode Island. According to the article, 271 freshmen entered Central Falls High School in 2005, but only 47 percent reached graduation four years later. Other data revealed that other 33.5 percent of the students dropped out, 12.5 percent were held back, and 7 percent received a General Equivalency Diploma. Data also revealed that only 55 percent of the student body was considered to be proficient in reading and only 7 percent proficient in math. These statistics showed little improvement by 2008, where the math proficiency rose another 3 percent (Donnelly & Rochefort, 2011).
Identify the stakeholders
The article states that Central Falls High School parents eagerly want something better for their children;
The American College Testing (ACT), 2010 concluded that a large number of high school students and high school graduates do not possess the knowledge and skills for college level work or career training. With the creation and implementation of common core standards, states and school districts have a clear set of student expectations to target
When the Supreme Court ruled that nine teenagers would be chosen to integrate LIttle Rock’s Central High School, the citizens of Little Rock responded in many different ways. Most of the students at Central High School were very rude to the nine students and very few were kind to them. In the book there were many instances were the students were rude but one example was on page 72 when the nine students walked in the school most students were yelling very rude things to them.
Lincoln High School, which is located in a low-income neighborhood in San Diego, was a rebuilt after 50 years of failing to educate children. Rebuilding the high school was the answer the community had been looking for they were hopeful. Before the rebuild most students who attended Lincoln did not meet the standards for their grade-level, few graduated and even fewer went go on to college. After years of suffering and neglect there was little doubt That Lincoln High School deserved the $129 million it received from the city to rebuild. But was rebuilding the school the solution for Lincoln High School 's education problem? First we’ll examine, How the problem started, the decision making steps and if the plan was successful.
At Hazelwood High School, they do things differently than at my school. At Hazelwood, most of the people worry about themselves and nobody else. Most of the school doesn’t get good grades and the school does not do anything about it. One day in English class Andy walked out when they were reading Macbeth because it was too emotional for Andy to handle. His friends were concerned and told the school counselor. They said, “But… but… it seems like… like… he needs help or somethin’.” Then the counselor said, “Well, I probably shouldn’t tell you boys this, but he is getting some outside counseling… So you boys can relax and be assured that he is getting whatever help he needs”(100). At Harrisburg High School, if someone had an issue like that, the counselors and teachers would be concerned, even if the person was getting outside help. Another thing about education that is different than mine is the school. In Ronda’s English homework, she wrote, “Our school building must have been built about a million years ago, because it was brown and tall and raggedy-looking, but it fit right in with the rest of the day”(16). At my high school, we are very fortunate to have a very new building to learn inside of. At Hazelwood High, they were not fortunate enough to have a new high school be built. Culture and education are very important pieces of people’s
During the last couple of years, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) have gone through many difficulties; ranging from teacher strikes to low funding, which has tremendously taken a toll on the students attending these schools. The Illinois Policy Institute, which writes to inform the public of issues affecting Illinois states, “Seventy-five percent of students at the lowest-performing elementary schools failed to meet standards on state exams. More than 20 percent of these students scored in the lowest category in reading, meaning they have a difficult time determining the main idea of a persuasive essay or the plot of a short story…Students at Chicago’s lowest-performing high schools drop out at nearly 12 times the rate of average Illinois
The assessment conducted for this assignment was done for Providence County. This is the largest county in the state of Rhode Island. The cities in this county consist of Central Falls, Cranston, East Providence, Pawtucket, Providence and Woonsocket. The towns in the county are Burrillville, Cumberland, Foster, Glocester, Johnston, Lincoln, North Providence, North Smithfield, Scituate, Smithfield. Providence is the state capital and the largest city which has a vast and diverse population from multiple cultures and socio economic backgrounds. The information obtained was collected from the United States Census website. Additional
The personal stories shared in the chapter provide a more extensive explanation as to why the state should reconsider consolidating the school. On page 52, the school’s coach describes the relationship between the school and community: “The school’s kind of a focal point; anything that happens in the community is going to happen in the cafeteria, or it’s going to occur here in the gym” (Tieken 2014). Another account describes the school’s value as “That cemetery dinner is not a school event; it’s a community event, but the school is the place to have it” (Tieken 2014, 53). The narrative provides evidence on the subject of building rapport between school systems and groups of individuals of Delight.
The article “Use the Common Core. Use It Widely. Use It Well” by William E. (Brit) Kirwan, Timothy P. White, and Nancy Zimpher states that many high school graduates lack the skills needed to enter and succeed at college level courses. Though the writers list much support of Common Core State Standards there is also political resistance and assessment difficulties. Colleges and students are using many unnecessary dollars to bring high school graduates up to college entry level standards. This national problem affects all areas of the country and the cost of not finding a solution to improving student success in college and vocational training could be detrimental to society.
The Common Core has been developed as a nationwide measurement for student progress. Officially launched in 2009 as a federal funding bill, the standards identify skills that every student residing in the United States should master in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics from kindergarten through 12th grade (Gewertz, 2015). The Common Core itself is not a curriculum, however, it identifies rigorous objectives that must be met by a school’s curriculum. The purpose is to initiate a deeper focus on developmental learning by using interdisciplinary instruction. This redefines the way that students learn because their progress is no longer assessed on the outcome of their performance, but by the process that has allowed them to reach the
While standards and assessments tell us whether students are gaining the skills and knowledge they need, accountability systems say that if they aren’t, schools and districts have to take steps to improve. This expectation of action is critical if we want all students to graduate high school ready for whatever they wish to do next – be it attend college, train for a job that will allow them to support a
It also showed us that value in education comes in different forms. For example, students like DeAndre valued education but didn’t think the education he was receiving was the best approach for him. It may appear the DeAndre was uninterested in learning but in reality he was interested in learning things that could help and resonated with his cultural history. I was enlightened by the way this article helped to highlight different types of students in a positive light. I resonate with this article because I went to a high school where students were labeled as noncompliant or “acting white”. I fell that more educators should read this article to get a well-rounded view of all their students especially those in the minority community. Furthermore, after reading this article I began to brainstorm alternatives to making school more appealing to all categories of students. According to the Boston Globe a new idea called community schools are entering discussions about better school models. The Boston Globe defines community schools as “both a place and a set of partnerships between the school and other community resources. Its integrated focus on academics, health and social services, youth and community development, and community engagement leads to improved student learning, stronger families, and healthier communities”. This idea sounds great to me because not only does it address the needs of the student
The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) was first implemented in 2010, nine years after I graduated from high school. Although I wasn’t personally affected by the new academic standards, it has a direct impact on the current and future generation of leaders, innovators, and world changers including my future children. The initial purpose of the Common Core Standards is to set high-quality learning goals designed to prepare students to be college and career ready. Given the current controversies surrounding CCSS, studies have shown that although the intent was to benefit students in the long-run it may actually be hindering their mathematical and reading skills. To further explore the arguments behind the Common Core initiative, I will
In the article “Fremont high school”, Jonathan Kozol describes how the inability to provide the needed funding and address the necessities of minority children is preventing students from functioning properly at school. He talks to Meriya, a student who expresses her disgust on the unequal consideration given to urban and suburban schools. She and her classmates undergo physical and personal embarrassments. Kozol states that the average ninth grade student reads at fourth or fifth grade level while a third read at third grade level or below. Although academic problems are the main factor for low grades, students deal with other factors every day. For example, School bathrooms are unsanitary, air condition does not work, classrooms have limited
The events that took place at Washington High Schools have caused a division between the students, teachers and administration. While some support the decision the principal has made to suspend the students for their untasteful talent show performance, others question its effectiveness. Shortly after the suspension, the students began segregating themselves and exchanging racial comments. The situation has escalated out of control and it has become a political one; leaders of the African American community want to discuss the talent show protest and are demanding a meeting with the principal.
Secondary education is a highly debated subject. Many critics of secondary education say that inner-city high schools and students are not receiving the same attention as students from non inner-city high schools. Two of the biggest concerns are the lack of school funding that inner-city high schools are receive and the low success rate in sending inner-city high schools graduates to college. Critics say that while inner-city high schools struggle to pay its teachers and educate its student’s non inner-city high schools don’t have to deal with the lack of school funding. Also students from non inner-city high school are not being given the opportunity to attend colleges once the