Good afternoon ladies and gentleman I am Carmen Farinha the newly appointed chancellor for schools in New York City. It is my pleasure for the first time to be standing here .This is a new journey for both you and I . I know that you are as anxious as I am to discuss the educational needs of New York City schools. One educational issue that I have witness throughout New York City schools is segregation. I know you are thinking we are in 2014 there is no longer segregation .Thinking of segregation you automatically think about the Jim crow laws, lynching and separation. Even though segregation no longer exists today in those forms it does however exist. In this speech we will analyze the different ways that African American students are segregated from other students physically and psychologically. We will also discuss as a city some solutions. African American students have always been places in the bottom of the barrel. When schooling was first introduced Tyack states "Bureaucrats did not consider ethnic, religious and cultural differences in school" (pg.80). Also many of the schools were owned by town’s people or religious groups. African Americans had no representation because they were not viewed as citizens. While the other ethnicity began to prosper Tyack states “ blacks had to fight for crumbs” (110 ). During the nineteenth century no other ethnicity fought for equalization and public education more than African Americans. Tyack states “practically every black voluntary groups, almost all black politicians rated the improvement of educational opportunities”(110). Free blacks sought to obtain an education because it was the only mean of freeing themselves from the “chains of slavery”. Woodson states “ free blacks sought education and invested much income and effort in establishing” (111)However African Americans soon learned that the educational system was not built for them. When trying to obtain education as the whites there was prejudice views within the classroom and laws. In 1876 a magazine stated “that white teachers in blacks schools take no real intrest in their work nor in the scholars, but teach and tolerate them only in order to draw money” (110). I am looking into my African American audience and even minorities and I bet today we can still relate to this quote. We state though that segregation is over is it really? The issues of over 100 years ago still present itself today in many classrooms. Before the emancipation African Americans were not allowed to read, but many of them learned. When they went to school they were taught the importance of understanding schooling. African American teacher also pushed these students to accomplish more. When schools were no longer segregated African American students were pushed into the schools with the whites. When entering these schools the African American children were dismissed by the teacher. The support systems that the African teachers gave the children were no longer existent. In the article Black teachers on teaching: a collection of black Historie the African teachers stated some important issues that teachers observed in schools. Ruby Middleton observed that African Americans who would try hard in the schools could not reach the standards of the whites. When the children stated this fact, they were suspended. This is often in schools that many African American children often do not see the point of trying because they know the system is against them. Also when the students are not able to meet the standards of the whites they are placed in special education classes. The teachers do not take into consideration the students outside life. This is also common in school African American students that are falling behind might be due to family issues, responsibilities and more. The system does not take this into consideration and places these students into special education. African American students are psychologically beaten to believe that they are the underdogs. One of the biggest issues that parents have expressed is zoned schools. For those parents that are not familiar with the term zones schools; here in New York based on your neighborhoods that is the school your child will be placed in. For families that are in the lower income neighborhoods their children must attend that zone schools. Often times these schools are low level schools. Now of course not every child that enters a zones school will become a statistic. However the probabilities are high. Different school zone teach the children into the role of the perfect worker. Let’s take a look at schools in the suburbs compared to the inner city. I think we can all agree it is very different teaching methods. In Upstate New York there science labs consist of animals, science tools, dissecting and exploration. In the inner city school majority of science lab consist of textbooks. In today’s day and age with math and science being two fields that continue to prosper wouldn’t the city fund these programs more? If the inner city children are never exposed to a field of work how can they gain an interest or even a door into that field? Bownes states “these differences in the social relationship among school and within schools in part reflect both the social backgrounds of the student’s body and their likely future economic positions” (5). We can say that at times schooling in the city creates mediocre job placements. This is also evident in the article Still Separate, Still Unequal: America’s Educational Apartheid Kozol (2005)stated “Chicago, by the academic year 2002-2003, 87 percent of public-school enrollment was black or Hispanic; less than 10 percent of children in the schools were white. In Washington, D.C., 94 percent of children were black or Hispanic; less than 5 percent were white. In St. Louis, 82 percent of the student population were black or Hispanic; in Philadelphia and Cleveland, 79 percent; in Los Angeles, 84 percent, in Detroit, 96 percent; in Baltimore, 89 percent. “(1).These cities and statistics represent inner city schools throughout the United States. Kozol(2005) goes on to state that “statistics, as stark as they are, cannot begin to convey how deeply isolated children in the poorest and most segregated sections of these cities have become” (1). Students are also aware of this segregation an eight year old from the Bronx. Ny wrote to Kozol stating “Dear Mr. Kozol," wrote the eight-year-old, "we do not have the things you have. You have Clean things. “We do not have. You have a clean bathroom. We do not have that. You have Parks and we do not have Parks.You have all the thing and we do not have all the thing. Can you help us?". It is evident that not only are students segregated psychologically, but physically.
What is the solution how can we help these students? Back in 2005 a novel was written called And still we rise by corwin. The novel followed the lives of 12 high school students living in the inner city of Los Angeles. In the novel the author highlighted Anita Moultrie and English teacher that helped the students. Anita Moultrie was an African American teacher that believed that the students should be taught about their own culture. She believed that the English curriculum should focus more on African American writers. She also believed strongly that the AP English test was culturally biased similar to other English test (Corwin ,341). Corwin’s states that an educational philosophy for teachers should be the importance of educators staying focus on their job and students.). Moultrie saw the students as her own and wanted them to succeed. They referred to her as mama Moultrie. In the article Black Teacher on teaching One interview that stood out to me was Ethel Tanner who became the president of a Samaritan house. Unlike other schools who set the expectations, but no support. She expected high expectations from all her African American students and presented them the support in order to reach it. Also she didn’t only focus one culture, but reached the Latino students. Her teaching philosophy changed the view points of the faculty, parents and students. I just want to quote her teaching philosophy which I believe should be the philosophy that many teachers follow a “My philosophy of education is that you have to treat the whole child. I didn't get that from any of my teacher education or administrative credential courses, and that's where schools of education need to undergo some fundamental changes. I don't believe kids are really bad. If they become bad it's because of some thing that society has done wrong” (185). I believe that teachers should use this philosophy in the classroom to meet the needs of their students. Even within their environment the teachers were able to meet the needs of the students. Also teachers should become culturally diverse in the classrooms. There needs to be more of an understanding of the children In the urban cities and what they go though. Also if you realize that in the Samaritan house school that the neighborhood worked as a community. It takes a village to raise a child, let’s start building that village here today.
Reference
Tyack. David B. (1974) The One Best System. A History of American Urban Education, Havard
University Press Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London, England
Corwin,M.(20001) and still they rise;the trials and triumphs of twelve gifted inner city students. NEW yORK, NY,Harper Collins
Kozol, J. (2005) .Still Seperate , Still Unequal: Americas Educational Apartheid.Harpers Magzines. V.311.Sep 2005