Final Paper Proposal

My thoughts for the final paper will focus on COVID-19 and its effects on the inner cities educational systems. I have read, written and discussed many social issues this semester, many of which bring me out of my comfort zone. I will address racism, politics and policies and their effects and impact on the inner cities school systems, mainly on people of color. There are many issues connected to COVID and the inner city schools. Including, but not limited to the digital divide and the overall majority of students qualifying for free lunch are  just two issues that came to mind quickly. According to Jean Anyon, "the power of economic access to influence educational outcomes, strategies to support economic opportunity and development for urban residents and neighborhoods should be among the policies we consider in our attempts to improve urban schools and districts." There has to be some reachable policy makers that can see the trend/pattern and help rally for a change.

This is not a new topic on the table. These same issues have been recurring in America for hundreds of years.  The shockingly sad truth is that COVID-19's forced recession will be strong in the poor districts. They will bear the brunt of the forced cuts because of their reliance on sate aid.(Brunette, D.) Many of these poor inner city school districts were already feeling the weight of financial budget cuts.  I will look at these reprising issues affecting the inner cities and try to come up with possible suggestions for change. The oppression and inequities are still so prevalent. The future for public schools of America is looking pretty dismal, as is the future of Providence Public Schools. They rely mainly on state and federal funding, as opposed to property taxes. Here is one issue that needs to be readdressed. There are other reasons for this continued inequity that I will look into as well.

I will address these issues with the help from a few of these articles we read during our class:


Comments

  1. MadameDuffautDecember 4, 2020 at 6:04 PM

    Hi Susan- As a life-long educator in the Providence district, I would have to say that you are correct in stating that in order to address the bigger issues like racism and disparity in education, we have to first address the financial inequities in our country as well. Therefore, it shouldn't come as any surprise that our students would get hit the hardest with COVID.
    It is to be expected: sad to say because majority of our students come from low-income neighborhoods and communities. So, for some people to truly believe that racism ended with Slavery or that it doesn't exist and that Black and Brown people are just not trying hard enough, is absolutely ludicrous. Having grit is NOT the answer to the problem as Bettina Love makes clear in "WWTDMTS". Also, having GRIT does not end the systemic racism that is still alive and functioning well today because of the inequitable school policies, politics, and laws that continue to harm children of color and keep them behind their white counterparts and increase rather than decrease the educational gap. So, yes, until significant structural changes are made in education, Black and Brown students' futures look dismal.

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    Replies
    1. Sue Connole's Digital Literacy JourneyDecember 5, 2020 at 2:05 PM

      Hi Renee, It is sad to say, but to be expected that our students will be hit the hardest. Yes, racism and disparity in education are very much prevalent in our system as well as those large urban districts around the country. We know what needs to happen in order to improve educational opportunities in urban districts...policy changes. The policy changes that need to happen should start with poverty-wage work and housing segregation, as we know the community in which the schools sit are a big part of improving schools and districts alike. In 2013, RI academics (all colleges) partnered with College & University Research Collaborative to better inform policy makers in Rhode Island. There is research being done to help improve our state...but that was seven years ago...doesn't look very promising right now! We need change to happen NOW in order to help solve these systemic problems in urban education. Thanks for your feedback and input, much appreciated!

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