As American As Public School 1900-1950

I really enjoyed the discussion I had with my group members during the last class. We were given the task to go around in a circle and each talk for a minute and point out things we found interesting in the education system in the 1900s-1950s. During this time there were high numbers of immigrants entering the United States, one part that stood out to me from the article was “some leaders welcomed new workers because the aid was needed  while others believed that the immigrants would degrade the American language, politics and culture”. It’s crazy how being accepted was more of a privilege rather an a right for many of them. It even got so bad to the point where there were laws set in place to ban mass immigration and groups like the KKK believed that nothing could make someone of another race American. The judgement was something they couldn’t escape.

During this time period tests were put in place to determine children's future. Based on their scores some students were put in classes that were tailored to higher professions while others were taught to be industrial and commercial workers, domestic workers and housewives. This system mostly affected immigrants who were still learning English, they would do very poor on the tests and their career were basically decided by this. Due to this testing system many children didn’t even attend school and over 80 percent preferred to work. This says a lot about the schools during this time period the conditions really must have been terrible, today it’s the opposite children are usually excited to go to school and see there teachers and friends. Work is not even on their minds.

I could just imagine how hard it must have been for a child who barely spoke English to be given a test written in English and be expected to do well. Even I someone who speaks English had a hard time grasping onto some of the ideas of these standardized tests that was used to determine my college acceptances and scholarship opportunities. Today,although, many higher institutions look for qualified candidates, sometimes other areas other than academic work can get someone great opportunities. To be judged so vigorously starting at the age of 5 was really unfair to the children during that time period especially because their careers was chosen based on their scores.

I’m happy that today there are many paths that people can take based on where they feel they want to go in life after their early education. However, it does suck that nowadays without college which is an expensive investment, there are limited career options, which draws huge financial gaps between people. Seeing what people had to go through in the earlier years it’s important to take advantage of the better systems that we do have today.

The Formation of Schools and Common Schools

  Today in class we discussed part I of “School:The Story of American Public Education” were we were introduced to the ideas of what they called “Common schools” which was the idea of how schools were regulated and run in the times that didn’t provide free public education to everyone or all races and gender. Taking a look at the conditions students and teachers had to endure and how it took a long time for things to effectively change really made me realize even more that we have been blessed with systems that have already been put in place way before our time. It’s interesting to see how many voices and opinions changed the way things were done in the educational system, today some may feel that their single voice won’t change a thing but in this section of the reading single men were out and ready to share their thoughts and ideas.

We were asked to select words that stood out to us, in my group we agreed that the word reconstruction basically summed up what was being discussed in the chapter. When something is damaged it is rebuilt in a way that is meant to enhance what was once there and destroyed. We felt this was an important word to the chapter because so many people presented ideas about the education system. They knew they would have to eventually create a system that would be more beneficial to the youth and women who were teachers. As a society they felt the responsibility of finding a system to best suit the most amount of people, whether they were poor or rich.

As time goes on, though I’m not even old lol, it seems as though education is becoming more a necessity rather than just something you want. Without education you will be isolated from society and looked down upon. What’s crazy is that even some hands on experience based jobs like babysitting require individuals to have a degree.

At the end of class we also formed a discussion circle were we discussed how the government plays a huge part in the education system, it’s as though they are creating robots and limiting the educational options. Everyone is given standardized testing and forced to take classed that they may or may not be interested in. It’s as though unless you are paying for your education, you have no say so in what you are learning.

Despite the down side to public education, American public schools has definitely came a long way and in ways evolved for the better. As time goes on it adjusts with the pace of society, and what is going on at the current time. Whether you are getting your education from inside or outside the classroom it is important especially in today’s society.

My Literacy Autobiography

           My name is Destiny Norris; I am currently a sophomore at New City University. My major is Mathematics, Early Childhood and Elementary Education; I have plans on becoming a school Principal. I’ve always had a passion for teaching and in my later years I saw my abilities to coach, lead and taking initiative, these pointed me in the direction of higher education. For as long as I can remember I was always a bright student, starting in 1^st grade I was often asked to help my classmates with their assignments because I was usually one of the first ones finished. It was my teachers, and family who really supported me through my educational years thus far. I remember when my grandmother would visit from Jamaica and we would take walks to the library and sign out over 10 books each time. Although our arms ached and bags sometimes ripped from the heaviness my grandma enjoyed being apart of my learning experience so we continued taking out enough books for the week. I feel it was her who inspired me to want to work hard in school. I saw how much she wanted me to excel, and that kept me pushing.

            When I began middle school I grew a love for writing that I never had before, I believe it was the passion that my teachers had when they taught me. Though, one thing that I disliked was the grammar portion of writing. I always hated going back to make sure that my grammar errors were corrected; I just wanted my ideas to flow onto the paper the way I thought of them. It really frustrated me when my teachers would give me a low grade based on my grammatical errors instead of grading based on content. As I became a better writer I saw the importance of grammar.

             In high school we had several open mics where students would perform anything of their choice one thing that would really stick with me was personal poems created by many students. I found listening to them so intriguing especially when the words related to my life or previous experiences.

            Now that I am a college student I see the importance of literacy even more. Everyday I have something to read an everyday I had a written assignment due for my classes. Reading and writing is key and essential in everything we do in life. Sometimes we may take our education for granted but when I take a stand back and see where it has gotten many people I understand its greatness even more. My ability to read and write has allowed me to continue to efficiently communicate with the people around me. Whenever I feel discouraged I think about my life goals and the family I hope to build in the upcoming years that I’ll have to teach. Also becoming a Principal I will have to continue building on my reading and writing skills in order to be able to guide others. This is what keeps me grounded.