The Wrong Question

In a recent phone interview, I was asked if I thought all students should be held to the same standard regardless of race or class background. This is a loaded question. My immediate response was "no." In the same classroom I may have one student who comes from an upper-middle class family, whose parent is a college professor. The student has a computer in their room, receives support from their parent whenever necessary, has a car so they can stay afterschool and get help. Another student comes to class most days hungry. After school goes to work for 4-6 hours. Maybe the student's family just received an eviction notice. when she gets home she helps take care of a sick parent, makes dinner and tries to stay on top of house cleaning. The family has an old computer that doesn't get internet and frequently shuts down. How can I possibly hold these two students to the same standard? At the same time, how can we let students graduate from high school who can not read. Obviously I am talking in extremes here, but they are still a part of reality.

The question that should be asked instead is "How can schools make it possible for all students to reach the same standard?" There are some things, like universal health care, that schools may not have to take care of themselves although they can advocate for it. There are many things that schools can do better. They can work more to ensure that every student has a full stomach in a way that does not make obvious which students are receiving free or reduced lunch, and does not ostracize students. Schools can provide resource rooms both during and after school where students can get extra help. Computer labs could stay open late, with late buses running to take students home. These are all manageable steps that the last school i worked at failed to take. The results were painfully obvious. When students were held to the NCLB standard of a standardized test, lower income students failed while higher income students excelled. If schools are going to create equality and opportunity in this country, they must start thinking outside of the classroom. they must become radically restructured, and also radical in the demands they make on the government and society to provide services beyond the scope of school. Only then can we truly say that we are striving to bring all students to excellence.

Of course another important question in this debate is that of whose standards one is held to. We will save that for another blog...