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Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Shame of the Nation
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Did you get a chance to read Sunday’s Q & A with Jonathan Kozol, passionate advocate for integrated schools and author of the new book, “The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America”?
I adore Jonathan Kozol, but this book has been a challenge for me. While he makes some excellent points, his central theme that schools with 100 percent minority students fail because no one cares about them, funds them or believes in them … well, it just doesn’t match my observations over eight years of education reporting in Georgia and metro Atlanta.
He rips on schools that use boring, scripted, “teacher-proof” curriculums, especially reading programs. He says students in the inner city are subjected to such programs that would never be tolerated in the suburbs. Well, I’ve seen those programs in the suburbs, and they’re no fun for those kids either.
He visits high schools in urban areas where minority kids are taught sewing, and even those who want to take AP courses are brushed aside. Again, this does not match what I have seen. I see kids put in AP classes in urban schools even if they don’t have the background to do well in them. I see teachers afraid to mention auto mechanics or other “trade” courses to their students, for fear it will appear that they have low expectations for the kid.
Finally, Kozol believes so passionately that integrated schools succeed where segregated schools fail. I see his point. Really, I do. But integrated schools - and, yes, we have some in metro Atlanta - have their downfalls. They can ride on the success of their motivated (and often non-minority) kids. They too lose too many kids between ninth and twelfth grade. They fail to reach the kids who need the most help and then get praised for their high SAT average. Involved parents at such schools lobby successfully for their own kids, but that doesn’t necessarily improve the prospects for the underserved.
I wish more schools were integrated, especially those in Atlanta’s urban core. I know the benefits of programs like M-to-M, because I’ve interviewed many, many kids and adults who are a product of them. But I don’t think this is the central issue in American public education today. I think it’s way more complicated. That said, Jonathan Kozol is still a hero to me for his unwavering passion and dedication to his cause. And even though his latest book wasn’t my favorite of his, I’m glad I read it.
I’m hanging onto my tattered review copy, but I also have a nice hardcover if anyone would like it. Just shoot me an e-mail to pghezzi@ajc.com. First come, first served. (Though I’m home sick today so I won’t be able to respond to you until later.)
