Engaging Community School Partnerships

1112 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Relationship between school and community

Engaging The Community in Community School Partnerships

Public schools have played such an important role in the U.S. democratic system (Ravitch, 2013; Orr & Rogers, 2011). Today, this system includes more socially, racially, ethnically, and intellectually diverse individuals than ever before. In order to address the diverse needs of children, we must be progressive enough to address the differences, and inequities that impact learning, and shape the learning experience in educational institutions. We must consider the methods that are being used to engage low-income communities of color and how their participation impacts students. Literature suggests that there is a presumption of cultural deficit associated with individuals situated …show more content…

Partnerships are key to the realization of this ideal. Advocates of this concept suggest that public schools situated in distressed urban neighborhoods may benefit from the resources that can be gained in partnering with various organizations, in order to assist students and families situated in these environments (Anderson-Butcher, Stetler, & Midle, 2006). The community school model provides a vehicle for exploring how public school partnerships can affect students and neighborhood residents. Literature which highlight the community school concept and effective methods of supporting democratic engagement in public schools, may illuminate ways in which schools can support students in low-income …show more content…

These partnerships are intended help support students and their families (Leonard, 2011; Dryfoos, 2005). The types of partnerships community schools engage in varies. Schools may partner with agencies, universities or non-profit groups, to provide access to extracurricular activities, health care or social support for families (CCS, 2016). According to the Coalition for Community Schools (CCS, 2016), it is estimated that there are approximately 5,000 community schools in the United States (CCS, 2016). There are six nationally recognized models for community schools. The Beacons Schools-Youth Development Institute, based in New York City, New York, The Children's Aid Society Community Schools also based in New York City, New York, Communities in Schools, Inc., out of Alexandria, Virginia, Center for Mental Health in Schools: An Enabling Component to Address Barriers to Learning based in Los Angeles, California, University Assisted Community Schools, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Schools of the 21st Century, New Haven, Connecticut (CCS,

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Keepin It Real: School Success Beyond Black And White

    845 Words  | 2 Pages

    Cater, the author of the book Keepin’ It Real: School Success Beyond Black And White, became interested as of why minority students were faced with white society challenges in school systems? In her book, Keepin’ It Real: School Success Beyond Black And White, she offers an insightful look at the educational attainment in low-income urban communities. Carter suggest that these students are embraced the dominant opportunity ideology, they acknowledge the dominant cultural to obtain status and goods. However, they use their own cultural to gain status in their own communities. She conducted a research to study the importance of cultural authenticity for minority, such as African American and Latino, students. She examines how cultural authenticity influences minority students’ relationship with the values they believe are privileged in schools. Cultural authenticity reflects on the beliefs and values of everyday society. Carter questioned, why do so many African American and Latino students perform worse than their Asians and White peers in class and on exams? And why might African Americans and Latino students are less engaged in

    Read More

  • Review of Kozol's Article on Urban Public Schools

    1664 Words  | 4 Pages

    The first element of Kozol’s article is the reality of urban public schools and the isolation of their students. Jonathan Kozol illustrates a grim reality about the unequal attention given to urban and suburban schools. The article explains how Kozol specifically looks at how they reflect institutional discrimination and the failure to address the needs of minority children. The article notes that these are the inequalities of the title, seen in the way schools in predominantly white neighborhoods are more likely to have sufficient funding, while schools in poor and minority neighborhoods do not. Kozol shows everyone involved in the education system that public schools are still separate and, therefore, still unequal. Suburban schools, which are primarily made up of white students, are given a far superior better education than urban schools. These urban schools are primarily made up of Hispanics and African Americans.

    Read More

  • Courageous Conversations About Race by Glenn E. Singleton and Curtis Linton

    943 Words  | 2 Pages

    Courageous Conversations About Race: Chapter 5. Authors Glenn E. Singleton and Curtis Linton in Chapter Five of Courageous Conversations About Race broach the topic of race, by asking the reader to evaluate his or her own consciousness of race. According to the authors, in order to address the achievement gaps between African American students and White students, educators should shift their energy towards focusing on the factors that they have direct control of inside the classroom rather than on the factors that influence this achievement disparity between races outside the classroom. The first step towards addressing the racial achievement gap begins with educators addressing their individual racial attitudes for, as the authors purport, “As we become personally aware of our own racialized existence, we can more deeply understand the racial experiences of others” (Singleton, Linton, 2006). In all honesty, I think Singleton and Linton hit the bull’s eye by suggesting that the first step towards initiating culturally relevant teaching is for the teacher to really examine his or her attitudes, values, and principles.

    Read More

  • Unequal Education in America: Urban vs Suburban Education

    2470 Words  | 5 Pages

    Money will not solve or make this problem go away, no matter how many social workers are hired. Schools will succeed despite their financial circumstances if they have the basic components of motivated students, parent support, caring teachings, and strong central leadership. While this is the typical model of a suburban school system, Wilson High School proves that it can work anywhere. When ones thinks of urban public schools, overcrowded classes, underpaid teachers, and a lack of resources often come to mind. The fact is these problems can happen anywhere. While the environment at Kennedy could never be compared to the worst DC high school, the assumptions made against these schools are the same. By erasing these notions and confronting the problems one by one, we will be one step closer to reaching equal education for all.

    Read More

  • Desegregating The Obsolete Busing System at Rio Bueno High School

    1088 Words  | 3 Pages

    Richards, H., V., Brown, A., F., Forde, T., B. (2006). Addressing diversity in schools: culturally responsive pedagogy. Retreived March 30th 2014from http://www.nccrest.org/Briefs/Diversity_Brief.pdf

    Read More

  • Lisa Delpit's Theory Of Social Reproduction

    971 Words  | 2 Pages

    The problems currently arising are “not really in the debate over instructional methodology, but rather in communicating across cultures and in addressing the more fundamental issue of power, of whose voice gets to be heard in determining what is best for poor children and children of color” (Delpit 19). Administration must be able to respectfully gather information about a student in and out of school to help understand where they need the most structure and guidance and when to let them work independely. The current educational system in place has a mold that students need to fit, and for students of lower income familys, that mold is often expects less of them so naturally, the type of schooling provided for racial minorities is [they] one that prepares them for their respective place in the job market.” (Ogbu 83). Social reproducation is not a reality that society must accept and best try to break without a complete solution, but instead one that can be broken by a refocusing and recommittment to the students that often need the most guideance and resources for them to succeed and break social

    Read More

  • Identity and Inner City Kids

    1357 Words  | 3 Pages

    Through programs that directly fuel desegregation in schools, our educational systems have become a melting pot of different races, languages, economic status, and abilities. Programs have been in place for the past fifty years to bring students that live in school districts that lack quality educational choices, to schools that are capable of providing quality education to all who attend. Typically the trend appears to show that the schools of higher quality are located in suburban areas, leaving children who live in “black” inner-city areas to abandon the failing school systems of their neighborhoods for transportation to these suburban, “white” schools. (Angrist & Lang, 2004). This mix of inner-city and suburban cultures creates new challenges for students and teachers alike.

    Read More

  • Race and Social Class: Education and Criminal Justice System

    1379 Words  | 3 Pages

    America demands that all youth receive an education and that its educational system is free and open to all—regardless of class, race, ethnicity, age, and gender. However, the system is failing. There is still inequality in the educational system, and minorities’ experience with education is shaped by discrimination and limited access, while white people’s experience with education is shaped by privilege and access. The educational experience for minorities is still segregated and unequal. This is because the number of white children that are withdrawn from school by their parents is higher than the number of people of color enrolling. White parents are unconsciously practicing the idea of “blockbusting,” where minorities begin to fill up a school; whites transfer their children to a school that has a small or no minority population. They unconsciously feel like once their child is in a school full of minorities that school would not get the proper funding from the federal government. Bonilla-Silvia (2001) states that “[i]nner-city minority schools, in sharp contrast to white suburban schools, lack decent buildings, are over-crowded, [and] have outdated equipment…” (97). The “No Child Left Behind” Act, which holds schools accountable for the progress of their students, measures students’ performance on standardized tests. Most white children that are in suburban schools are given the opportunity to experience education in a beneficial way; they have more access to technology, better teachers, and a safe environment for learning. Hence, white students’ experience with the education system is a positive one that provides knowledge and a path to success. Also, if their standardized testing is low, the government would give the school...

    Read More

  • Community Cultural Wealth Theory Examples

    1140 Words  | 3 Pages

    “An array of knowledges, skills, abilities and contacts possessed and used by Communities of Color to survive and resist racism and other forms of oppression” encompasses the main idea of Community Cultural Wealth. It is vital to understand that students will step foot into the classroom with a variety of cultures zipped up in their backpacks, and it is our job as educators to make sure that equality is instilled/taught in our classrooms. The second a student feels a sense of discrimination, whether from ourselves or their fellow classmate(s), is when the safe and comforting environment of the classroom begins to diminish. Here I will discuss just how important it is to see the differences amongst students as an advantage

    Read More

  • The Segregation of America's School System

    1026 Words  | 3 Pages

    Even when low-income schools manage to find adequate funding, the money doesn’t solve all the school’s problems. Most importantly, money cannot influence student, parent, teacher, and administrator perceptions of class and race. Nor can money improve test scores and make education relevant and practical in the lives of minority students. School funding is systemically unequal, partially because the majority of school funding comes from the school district’s local property taxes, positioning the poorest communities at the bottom rung of the education playing field. A student’s socioeconomic status often defines her success in a classroom for a number of reasons.

    Read More

  • Problems in the Inner City Schools

    2038 Words  | 5 Pages

    For decades now, there have been educational problems in the inner city schools in the United States. The schools inability to teach some students relates to the poor conditions in the public schools. Some of the conditions are the lack of funds that give students with the proper supplies, inexperienced teachers, inadequate resources, low testing scores and the crime-infested neighborhoods. These conditions have been an issue for centuries, but there is nothing being done about it. Yet, state and local governments focus on other priorities, including schools with better academics. It is fair to say that some schools need more attention than other does. However, when schools have no academic problems then the attention should be focused elsewhere, particularly in the inner city schools.

    Read More

  • Education Reform: The Color Of School Reform?

    908 Words  | 2 Pages

    Despite the current demographics in education reform, creating diversity is possible. There is no other way to solve our current educational crisis. It begins here. With an understanding of the essentialism that exists in education reform. Stakeholders in the education reform movement, must make it a priority to begin to integrate the conversation. We must build deliberate collaborations and coalitions with black and brown communities and educators to engage in this dialogue. Education transformation will materialize as we get closer to the people we are trying to help.

    Read More

  • Diversity and Multicultural Education in the Classroom

    1574 Words  | 4 Pages

    There are many factors that play a role in the learning process for every human being. Race, religion, language, socioeconomics, gender, family structure, and disabilities can all affect the ways in which we learn. Educators must take special measures in the delivery of classroom instruction to celebrate the learning and cultural differences of each of their students. As communities and schools continue to grow in diversity, teachers are searching for effective educational programs to accommodate the various learning styles of each student while promoting acceptance of cultural differences throughout the classroom. It no longer suffices to plan educational experiences only for middle-or upper class white learners and then expect students of other social classes and cultures to change perspectives on motivation and competition, learning styles, and attitudes and values that their homes and families have instilled in them (Manning & Baruth, 2009).

    Read More

  • School And Community Partnerships Are Vital

    753 Words  | 2 Pages

    I interviewed both a teacher and a parent regarding school and community partnerships. School and community partnerships are vital because taxpayers have a vested interest in what their dollars are being used for, effective communication contributes to public confidence in schools, and students benefit when all stakeholders play a role in education. The teacher I interviewed is a Kindergarten teacher in a school that is very diverse and works with many students and families that live in poverty. The parent I interviewed is the mother of five children, but I asked her to focus on her youngest son who is in fourth grade when answering the questions. The school he attends is a small private school.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Community Relationship In School

    900 Words  | 2 Pages

    School community relationship helps to improve the quality of education for all children. It helps parents and other citizens recognize their responsibility for the quality

    Read More

More about Engaging Community School Partnerships

Open Document