Talking Points #8

This week's reading was an article by Jean Anyon. The article focuses primarily on the different economic classes, and how the children in each level are taught and dealt with in elementary schools. The four groupings are the working class schools, middle-class schools, affluent professional schools, and executive elite schools.

"There are no minority children in the school. Almost all the family incomes are over $100,000 with some in the $500,000 range. The incomes in this school represent less than 1 percent of the families in the United States."

This is a great quote to show how few children get to attend the executive elite schools, where they have access to more materials and are encouraged to work hard and be responsible for themselves.

"In social studies--but also in reading, science, and health--the teachers initiate classroom discussions of current social issues and problems. These discussions occurred on every one of the investigator's visits, and a teacher told me, "These children's opinions are important - it's important that they learn to reason things through."

This is an example from the executive elite schooling section. The children are expected to contribute with their thoughts and opinions - not just answer close-ended questions to get a good grade on a test. I feel that this type of education is more beneficial than doing worksheets or spelling tests every day.

"On the card the teacher has written the question to he answered, the books to use, and how much to write. Explaining the cards to the observer, the teacher said, "It tells them exactly what to do, or they couldn't do it."

This quote made me so angry. This teacher is essentially inhibiting their students' learning by assuming that they aren't smart enough or capable of completing their schoolwork without having all the answers handed to them. This was an example I took from the working class school section.