I agree with Adrians comment about parents doing anything to get their children ahead. They feel that their child's success is based on their grades in the class compared to other students. If their child is the best, then they will go farther in their careers and life most likely. This mindset is dangerous because the pressure that is put on children could end up hindered their progress potentially.

I thought the article was very interesting. One quote that stood out to me stated ""I think the system is as fair as you can make it," Ernie Frazier, a 65-year-old real estate investor in Houston, said in an interview after participating in the poll. "I don't think life is necessarily fair. But if you persevere, you can overcome adversity. It has to do with a person's willingness to work hard, and I think it's always been that way."

I agree with Ernie Frazier. I think that if someone works hard enough, no matter their social class, they will be given opportunities. There is always a chance to move around from class to class, and a lot of that in my opinion has to do with how much effort the person puts into it. Also, I feel that teachers in the classroom should pay attention to students with talents in a specific area, not necessarily just math and science, and give them opportunities to grow in that subject and become presented with opportunities that will further them in their life.

I am commenting in response to Nadia:
I agree with you that a standardized curricula is exactly what this country needs to give every student an equal learning opportunity no matter what. I feel that it would be more on the difficult side to be able to enforce this quality with all teachers because every teacher is different and has different motivational levels to really make sure the student is absorbing the information they are receiving. However, the government would need to set even more standards so that this would not even be a problem and the quality was continuous throughout the country. Also, the funding is also an important part of this change. The poorer areas would could really use the funding and make their students eligible for opportunities they might otherwise not get. This would be such a good thing for this country and hopefully something like this could happen in the future.

Hi everyone! This is a resource I am using discussing the prejudice in a classroom regarding black and white students. It talks about a study done using a "jigsaw" method that actually does a good job of integrating the students together to eliminate prejudice between students and create a successful working environment for all students! Feel free to use it if your paper is needing a source with this information! :)

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=rhBFnQJUwn8C&oi=fnd&pg=PA423&dq=racial+prejudice+in+classrooms&ots=NQTsPzGzqF&sig=l5WcI8wawwYlJ7F5VhKtnxSaMcA#v=onepage&q=racial%20prejudice%20in%20classrooms&f=false

I found an article that discusses a teachers questions regarding two languages used in the same classroom. She uses English and Spanish with her students depending on the language that the student speaks. There is a current debate on whether or not this is beneficial for the kids and also if it is right to mix the two languages in one setting. In the book "The Making of Americans", Hirsch would seem to agree that one dominant language is the key to education. He says in the book "the standard language is one of the firmest and most stable realities of American life." (p.99) This article presents the issues with bilingual classrooms and really goes in depth at explaining why it is beneficial and not.

Here is the link to the article:
www.coursecrafters.com/ELL-Outlook/2004/jul_aug/ELLOutlookITIArticle1.htm