Or leave, or “drop out.” This arena of tail wagging dog is the subject of a number of ethnographic examinations of life in school. Notable among them from Buroway’s anthology is “Mr. Henry makes a deal.” Another two are McLeod’s Ain’t No Makin’ it and Grant’s World we created at Hamilton High. I could go on and on, having written about this extensively, but will say here, that the purpose of secondary schooling reflects competing interests, varies immensely based upon income and culture and religion (public/private/secular) and geography (political and social). Even the so called standards of common core permeate (or don’t) unevenly. And over the whole thing—or under it as Terry points out, are the original American sins of native genocide and African enslavement the echos of which we experience in and out of schools, especially younger people who are BI-POC, Native, LGBTQI, and students who are sometimes identified as ADHD, on the spectrum, or otherwise in need of or eligible for so called special services or accommodations. All means all is largely invisible in an undergrad curriculum that is supposedly set up to prepare people for anything beyond replicating what is an anachronistic, racist, sexist, and classist system favoring teacher pleasers. Just sayin’
The system of units and A-G and A-E and AP and all the rest—the snake is eating itself. Young people like Justin here in Sacto and my two subscribers from ivy like league graduate programs in literacy have to take the lead and turn this ship around. You know, even among affluent kids, the star spangled contest for grades to serve university admissions needs has to do something uncool to their approach to learning. The ear-oles in Paul Willis’s study Learning to Labor like those for whom there ain’t no making’ it in a lot of ways have more spine than their compatriots across the tracks. Reminds me also of Labov’s book on the rich language on inner city streets schools want no part of and can’t even see.
Or leave, or “drop out.” This arena of tail wagging dog is the subject of a number of ethnographic examinations of life in school. Notable among them from Buroway’s anthology is “Mr. Henry makes a deal.” Another two are McLeod’s Ain’t No Makin’ it and Grant’s World we created at Hamilton High. I could go on and on, having written about this extensively, but will say here, that the purpose of secondary schooling reflects competing interests, varies immensely based upon income and culture and religion (public/private/secular) and geography (political and social). Even the so called standards of common core permeate (or don’t) unevenly. And over the whole thing—or under it as Terry points out, are the original American sins of native genocide and African enslavement the echos of which we experience in and out of schools, especially younger people who are BI-POC, Native, LGBTQI, and students who are sometimes identified as ADHD, on the spectrum, or otherwise in need of or eligible for so called special services or accommodations. All means all is largely invisible in an undergrad curriculum that is supposedly set up to prepare people for anything beyond replicating what is an anachronistic, racist, sexist, and classist system favoring teacher pleasers. Just sayin’
The system of units and A-G and A-E and AP and all the rest—the snake is eating itself. Young people like Justin here in Sacto and my two subscribers from ivy like league graduate programs in literacy have to take the lead and turn this ship around. You know, even among affluent kids, the star spangled contest for grades to serve university admissions needs has to do something uncool to their approach to learning. The ear-oles in Paul Willis’s study Learning to Labor like those for whom there ain’t no making’ it in a lot of ways have more spine than their compatriots across the tracks. Reminds me also of Labov’s book on the rich language on inner city streets schools want no part of and can’t even see.