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Shame of the Nation presents many examples of the sad fact that many New York schools are segregated by race and class, and how students are negatively affected by this. While this Pennsylvania study is ridiculous, it might be interesting to spotlight student achievement if emphasis was placed on segregating genders, rather than focusing on racial differences. The following quote presents an interesting idea about single-gender classrooms: "A national study from UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies claims to show that girls from single-sex schools have an edge over their co-ed peers. 'Single-sex education appears to produce favorable outcomes for female students, especially in terms of their confidence, engagement and aspirations, most notably in areas related to math and science,' the 2008 study said." However, segregating seems ineffective all together, because society is not segregated by gender once students reach the real world in adulthood. Moreover, it is important for the development of males to grow and mature with the presence of female peers.

This article was extremely interesting and I could see how segregation could really benefit the students, as long as it is done in a minimal way. A huge issue in the education system is the clash of cultures between teachers and students. Many teachers are white; middle-class women while the students come from all sorts of backgrounds. Therefore, I can see how, "Educators immediately noticed strong bonds being formed between all students and mentor teachers." It is much easier for students to relate to a teacher/mentor that is a lot like them. Our schools today center around a very white, "Christian" curriculum and this may not be the best learning style for minority students. With this said, I think "rolling the clock back to the time before Brown vs. the Board of Education," is not the answer. Segregating students for, "six minutes each day and 20 minutes twice a month," though could help solve the clash of cultures crisis. It is interesting to note the national study from the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information studies, which claims that, "girls from single-sex schools have an edge over their co-ed peers." It is especially interesting that the girls became more confident in areas related to math and science. In a typical co-ed classroom girls may get discouraged since boys usually pick up math and science with more ease. The same could be true with minority groups; sometimes they might be discouraged with the "whiteness" of the curriculum. I think this idea of "segregation" as long as it is minimal could produce results.

I found the idea behind the article quite surprising. At the end of the article it states that this school might be on the right track because of the single-sex research that is mentioned in the two previous posts. I do not think this is a remotely similar comparison. Single sex schools actually exist. Multiple races can be in the same sex school. The idea of segregating by race is not acceptable. This can have so many negative repercussions that it is not worth the risk. There are many things I think the article should have elaborated on because the program was not described that well. This was one of them: "They plan to replace the policy with a 'neighborhood schools system' that critics say will establish real segregation." I wanted to see more information on this because it was wondering how it would be done. Separating by zones (which are primarily determined by SES) would be interesting and not necessarily race discrimination. Poor white people and poor black people would live in the same area so it would not be completely separated by race. However, even this form of separation may make poor students feel inferior and like they will never go anywhere in life because of their SES. I do not think that separation is a good idea; however, I am interested to know the outcome of this experiment.

The article states that, "Educators immediately noticed strong bonds being formed between all students and mentor teachers." This initially sounds positive, however, it also sounds that as the individual groups grow closer, the bonds of the class as a whole may grow weaker as their differences are focused on, instead of their similarities. I understand that the administrators of the school are experimenting with the implementation of recently supported research, but as briefly mentioned in the article, I think they are playing with the fine line that separates individuals who can handle segregation for academic purposes and individuals who will take this application of segregating students to an inappropriate level.

This article was shocking to me. I think it's always good to look for ways to help students achieve more in school but I don't think it should be separated by race. It might be a good idea to separate students according to gender, or interests, but separating children by race is taking a step in the wrong direction. I think that education should be color blind, I don't think race should be considered in any decisions and I think everyone should have the same opportunities. I know that the intentions behind this experiment are good, but I don't think this will help the students in the long run. I think that this might encourage unconscious prejudice.

This article experiments with segregating high school students by gender, race, and language to see if this separation improves academic success. I feel that this article is absurd and experiments like this should not even be considered for they are unconstitutional. I agree that studies comparing the academic success of single-sex education verses co-ed education can be conducted, for single-sex schools exist. However, separating students based on race is wrong. In the real world, a person will always be exposed to others of differing races, so they need to learn to coexist and work together.

While reading this article I could definitely see how separation could be beneficial to students, for it could create a comfort in schools that previously was not there. The quote "single-sex education appears to produce favorable outcomes for female students, especially in terms of their confidence, engagement and aspirations, most notably in areas related to math and science" made me think about how race could also be like that. If certain races are feeling inferior to another, separation could allow the students to work better. However, the problem I see with it is that if races are separated into another school, then most likely problems of achievement will still occur and there will be a gap of achievement in the school whether it is all black or white or gender specific. I do not really think that this should be done formally, a lot of times cliques are formed in schools, and I think that is quite enough separation. I think that if the gaps were filled, not dwelt upon, and there was no emphasis on race or gender mattering in school, there would be no one even talking about how one race is different, let alone how they can achieve better.

This article describes a school in Pennsylvania that tried to decrease the separation of students by race, gender, and language, so the administrators decided to create a purpose and goal in the classroom to target only African-American students. This experiment started problems with parents, NAACP members, and educators. I believe this is completely biased to the entire school because if the administrators wanted to truly close the separation of race, gender, and language at the school, the administrators should had focus on all races and cultures. I chose a quote from our readings that correlates with this article "Educators often failed to see that many problems children faced in school were sociological and economic in character and were, in C. Wright Mills's term, "public issues" rather than "personal troubles." from The One Best System: A History of American Urban Education by David B. Tyack (page 181).

After reading this article, I can see how segregation could improve student performance. The article stated that students were place in the classroom with a strong academic role model. I believe that this can improve student performance because students may find this academic role model more relatable or someone who's level of success they would like to reach. Students me also so that the role model understands them better than their teachers and can give them guidance for educational success. A quote in the article that supports this is, "Single-sex education appears to produce favorable outcomes for female students, especially in terms of their confidence, engagement and aspirations, most notably in areas related to math and science."

The junior class at McCaskey East is voluntarily segregated by the students, who organize themselves "by gender, race and/or language," said school spokeswoman Kelly Burkholder. Segregating students will not solve problems with low test scores. Research shows that students from different races, ethnicities, and genders actually score better on tests when they are integrated in the same classroom. Regardless of what level students are on it is best for them to learn in the same classroom as their peers. Research says that if you pair a student who makes good grades with one that makes poor grades both students will do well. The student with higher grades will have practice recalling information and the student with lower grades will have the benefit of working with someone who is doing well in class.

As great as this article likes to make this "segregation" sound, there is NO ethical way of practicing this separation. I do believe that all races need to see someone that looks like them doing well in life, but this may be a bit overboard. If they can find a way to make this work then kudos, but this is a touchy subject. There needs to be more proof that it is effective, if not then these studies should stop before it gets carried away.

This idea of modern segregation is appalling. Schools need to focus of the fact that race is a social construct in which we created and can diminish. The article talks about statistics and outcomes but forget that our social lens that is creating these outcomes. Maybe we should be looking at ways to improve testing and teaching methods that will help bridge the gap between races and gender instead of ways to reinforce them. I wonder if any civil right groups have jumped on this since last year.

I really thought this article was powerful in the face that many people would not believe in this. I thought it was interesting when they stated that they believe "that shows grouping black students by gender with a strong role model can help boost their academic achievement and self esteem." I agree with Cassandra in the fact that they are not focusing on what is really important. I personally do not agree with this article or this idea.

When reading this article, I honestly felt like I was going back in time. The fact that the high school was going to be segregated shocked me. I think that the means of this experiment originally meant well, but not everyone saw it that way. When it stated that "the principal defended it", I felt like the school would continue to conduct their experiment as long as possible.

"A national study from UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies claims to show that girls from single-sex schools have an edge over their co-ed peers. Single-sex education appears to produce favorable outcomes for female students, especially in terms of their confidence, engagement and aspirations, most notably in areas related to math and science," the 2008 study said. I believe this statement can possibly be truer as it relates to college level education. Just based on my experiences in public school there were always boys that were smarter than girls but felt as though they couldn't perform to their highest achievement because they were concerned with how they might be perceived by their peers. Also in inner city schools it is evident that the drop-out rates of males are extremely high, leaving room for more female competitiveness.

"For the African-American community there was a huge amount of pressure against it, because in America, the grandparents of today's home-schooled children fought for desegregation of schools.They thought, 'The public schools are going to save us.'" This really made me think about what the public school system has become, and how far removed it seems from the original public schools. The article also mentions teachers teaching to the test and constantly trying to medicate children, which is leading so far away from school being an environment where children want to be. I think that the article does a nice job of leaving the underlying message that home schooling is somewhat an alternative to public school because it puts desire and dedication back into education, which to me is extremely sad. Unfortunately, I think that until Public Schools begin to realize that education needs to leave room for growth, not just a syllabus designed for good test scores, the rate of homeschooling will keep rising.

In some cases, I believe home schooling takes away from a student's overall education experience. In a home school setting, students lose the sort of implicit curriculum that is learned in the classroom. Additionally, students lose the interaction with others on a daily basis in the classroom setting when they are home schooled. This family even recognizes that their student "misses the 'madness' of the classroom." Although, in the case of this family, home schooling still seems to be the perfect fit. Because of no other options for a better quality school than the one her son was at, and the fact that he was "losing his love for learning," home schooling was the obvious choice. The standing of today's public schools is unfortunate. NHERI director Dr Brian Ray claimed the following: "The failings of public schools have caused all of us, whether we are white or black, to come up with creative ideas about how we can educate children." It is sad to think that some school systems are so bad that parents believe they or online coursework from home is a better learning option for their developing student.

I agree with Amanda. There are definitely aspects of homeschooling that I believe are not beneficial. These negative aspects are in the implicit curriculum. Socialization is an important part of growing up and learning. Many job require you to be able to work well with others. The article mentions home-schooling co-operatives. These "[help] break the social isolation critics of home schooling often warn about." These co-operatives can minimize some of the lost social interaction, but not all. However, "about two million, or 4%, of American children are home-schooled." This is really a limited number so the socialization concern is not too great. Overall, I think it is wonderful that homeschooling is not just a "white" thing anymore. If the parents can make it work, I see no reason why the children should not at least be exposed to this option. I would rather see improvements in the school but since that it not going to happen overnight, I think this is a decent alternative in the mean time, especially it the option is not discriminatory by race.

This article is somewhat depressing. For instance, the statement, "Joyce Burges believes the day could soon be approaching when the local home-schooling co-operative, run by a group of committed parents, could be a real alternative to the public school, for children of all ages and ethnicities" is completely unethical. I do not agree with the homeschooling idea. I agree with Amanda that homeschooling takes away from students overall education. Students need to be with other students, learning in that setting. I think it is very upsetting to think that students could get a better education at home. For this particular family, it is sad there is no other option. I think that our society needs to work on school system, the overall education and the teachers in order to help our students in the long run.

To be honest, I am not a proponent of home schools. I mean absolutely no disrespect to anyone who has been or appreciates the institution, I just see it as unnatural and stifling for a child. I believe that children should constantly be around other children and that schools provide this for them. I think that classical schooling can help to increase awareness of those around you, appreciate diversity of race, gender, appearance, and abilities, and it can increase improvement in the individual as they are in a setting with there peers and trying to perform better to keep up. My opinions aside, I found the article specifically interesting when it discussed the differences in reasoning that white families home school and that black families do. White families apparently try to avoid the topics of sex education and darwinism being presented to their children in a method which they do not agree with. Blacks, on the other hand, seem to be aiming to support the "love of learning" and maintain cultural pride and roots.

According to the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI), "about two million or 4% of American children are home-schooled." Home-schooling has been traditionally dominated by white Christian families in the rural south, but recently more black families have started home-schooling their children. "For the African-American community there was a huge amount of pressure against it, because in America, the grandparents of today's home-schooled children fought for desegregation of schools. They thought, 'The public schools are going to save us,'" says Dr. Brian Ray. According to a 2008 study by the Schott Foundation, "Over the last 25 years, the social, educational and economic outcomes for black males have been more systematically devastating than the outcomes for any other racial or ethnic group or gender." More African American families have started home-schooling in hopes of increasing their child's love for learning. Families also believe that classrooms are more favorable for girls. Another reason is to emphasis more focus on African American culture. Home-schooling does not work for all children and parents. "Many children who are home-schooled in their early years return to the class room when they reach secondary school age." I personally am not a fan of home-schooling, for I feel that children need to be able to develop relationships with other students and teachers. Also, through classroom education, students receive both the explicit and implicit curriculum.

I personally didn't have a male teacher until I reached high school, but I honestly don't have a problem with having a male teacher as an elementary teacher. If a male teacher wants to teach at the elementary/middle school level, then they should have the right to.

I think that this is such an interesting topic. I only had two male teachers before reaching high school, and neither of them were my home room teachers. One was my music teacher, and the other was a higher level math teacher. I really liked them both. But it actually wasn't until this topic was brought up in our conversation at our table this morning during class, that I realized how few male teachers I have. I can confidently say that I have really enjoyed and learned a lot from all of the male teachers that I've had. I think men can absolutely be passionate about teaching. I understand the reasoning for skepticism that is brought up in the article, but I also think that the reasons are kind of silly. if a man wants to teach, he should teach. If a woman wants to be an engineer, she should be one. Oy vay, gender bias.

"What's a young single dude doing teaching fourth grade anyway?!" Oh man...obviously, there must be something wrong with him. The young single girl though? She's in the right place.

"I really think it has a lot to do with the personality of the teacher," said Dr. Caryl Oris, a consulting psychiatrist for the Sewanhaka Central High School District on Long Island, N.Y. "What matters more than anything is that it's a good teacher and the teacher loves to teach." ^Amen, to the above. My elementary school had about four or five teachers assigned to teach the third grade. I distinctly remember one of them being a young male. He was not my teacher. My teacher was a young female, fresh out of college, with a degree but little experience in actually handling small children. She was mean, bitter, and obviously in over her head. She and my parents would constantly be on the phone with one another about something or other (for a child who had been considered a stellar example of good behavior, this was considered odd). I only bring this up because the other teacher, the young male teacher, taught the class that shared a recess with my own. The kids in both classes would play together and talk together and I remember, even now, how jealous I was of the kids in his class. They seemed to enjoy going to school, and their teacher always had some great game or movie to show about whatever the topic of the day was. When our classes played structured games together, he seemed more than willing to do what the kids were doing and had fun doing it. My teacher stood off to the side--a very sharp contrast. PS: My teacher was gone before I had finished the fifth grade. And the male teacher, last time I checked (a few years ago) was still at the elementary school, married and happily teaching.