Shame of the Nation Cover

          This cover illustrates an African-American boy who is receiving his paper back from a disappointed teacher. Just like any other kid he has big dreams; dreams to become a doctor, lawyer or even a businessman. However, he doubts any of these goals are achievable, since his school lacks the resources to offer a real education. Just by the gesture of his arms over his head, is a clear indication of the frustration he is feeling. He feels that there is no hope and that he doesn’t have the capability of learning. He feels helpless and weak because no matter how hard he tries, he just doesn’t get it.  He figures there is no point in pursuing a further education because he doesn’t believe he is smart enough. He sees the unequal gap between his school and that of one in an affluent community. Yet he doesn’t see the false promises told by government officials that he won’t be “left behind” (No Child Left Behind Act). He also doesn’t see that he is one of many minority children that are locked in a failing school. Though more importantly, he doesn’t see his own ability to learn.

          In this book, Jonathan Kozol describes the harsh reality of our nation’s education system and how these poor, innocent children are being sabotaged, isolated and deprived by an unethical education system. He iterates if we as citizens were to join in and fight, we could make children like this boy feel like they have the ability to obtain a good education and see their dreams turn into reality. This boy is a representation of one in many minority children that are locked in these failing schools and unable to break free.  

Blurb

Jonathan Kozol, a renowned educator, author, and activist who began his teaching career in 1964, will open your eyes to the realities of an education crisis that few people know about and even fewer like to acknowledge. Kozol invites his readers into the segregated classrooms, testing focused curriculums, and “morbid looking buildings” of today’s Apartheid schools. Through his meticulous incorporation of research and personal experience in working with students and faculty from approximately 60 schools in 30 different districts, Kozol is able to shed light on the dark secrets and disturbing truths of our nation's inner city schools that the government and school officials do not want us to know. The Shame of the Nation raises a question that most shudder at the thought of: is another civil right's movement necessary to, once again, desegregate United States schools?

Vocabulary Builder- The book as a whole

Since we've already gone over the chapters in search of vocab words, I decided to use an article instead. The article I found is titled "School Desegregation Battle: A Thing of the Past . . . and the Present." Click here to read it.

Curtis, Mary C. “School Desegregation Battle: A Thing of the Past . . . and the Present.” AOL.com: Politics Daily Feb. 2011. Web. 15 May 2011.

I really like how this article discusses the Brown v. Board of Education decision and links it to American school systems today. Curtis writes that segregation in today's inner city schools has as much to do with economics as it does with race and that conflicts of segregation that existed over fifty years ago can still be witnessed today.

Article: “Diversity, integration, segregation in Minneapolis Public Schools

This article discusses measures that are being taken in order to desegregate public schools in Minneapolis. Click here to see it.

Peterson-de la Cueva, Lisa. “Diversity, integration, segregation in Minneapolis Public Schools.” TC Daily Planet 29 May 2009. Web. 15 May 2011.

Article: “Reviving the Goal of an Integrated Society: A 21st Century Challenge”

This article discusses the negative consequences of segregation in today's public school systems. Click here to view it.

Orfield, Gary. “Reviving the Goal of an Integrated Society: A 21st Century Challenge.” The Civil Rights Project. January 2009. Web. 15 May 2011.

Journal # 4

Although I (Amanda Houle) thought this book became somewhat redundant by the end, I really enjoyed reading it. I thought he did a really good job of combining facts and statistics with real life situations and people that he has encountered. It was nice when he said names (such as Pineapple) and I was able to recognize the character from previous chapters. Though I knew what to expect coming into the book because I have read Kozol before, I still found myself shocked at almost every turn of the page. He moved from one topic to another at a steady pace, which was nice. I don’t think he spent too much time discussing one specific issue, and he thoroughly touched on all of the points that he brought up. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about going into a field with anything to do with education.

             While reading this book, I (Brittany Greenawald) felt like I needed to do many things. I felt Kozol was calling on his audience to take action, and help the children to gain equal education. One thing that I feel all individuals who read this book are capable of is to write letters to government officials. Within the letters to the government officials (like senators, congressmen and governors) there should be specific statistics and horrible conditions cited directly out of the book. This way the government will know that the secret is getting out, and they will feel pressured to fix the broken system. I also think that Kozol wants all of the readers to talk about the book to their friends and family, so they as well will uncover the major dilemmas. Finally as a future teacher, I (Brittany) feel outraged by all that is happening in the schools. I feel as if my eyes have been opened wide and I have been informed about what to expect in the coming years. In some way this book has made me want to teach at a lower income school. I want to help these children, and be someone who assures the students that they are more than their test scores and that I believe in them. I feel that everyone that is a teacher and that will be a future teacher needs to read this book!

          I (Caitlin Hennes) really enjoyed the book; it was an eye-opener for me. I knew that inner-city schools needed help, but I did not know that the schools were this bad. I found it shocking and a little ironic that most of the schools named after Martin Luther King Jr. are the most segregated schools with almost 99 percent African-American and Hispanic students. After reading the book it makes me want to do something to help these children. I think Kozol wrote The Shame of the Nation to make people see the reality that so many of us try to push under the rug and pretend that it is not there. Something that I feel I can do, that is very simple, is spread the word. Let other people know what is going on in inner-city schools and hopefully they will want to jump in and help. My hopes is that soon there will be enough people who are aware of what is going on in these schools, that the government will have to do something to fix it. If we do not fix the education gap between inner-city schools and the middle class and upper class white schools we will no longer be able to mend the gap since it will be too far apart.

           I (Matt Braun) thought this book was a huge eye-opener and helped me to see what a segregated school is like from a teacher’s (Jonathon Kozol’s) perspective. In The Shame of the Nation, Kozol is angry about these educational inequalities and encourages us as a society to overcome these barriers. As I was reading the book I felt like he was trying to call his audience to take action, and help these poor children. I personally believe what is needed, are leaders who recognize that we have a common goal in an America: to provide educational tools that prepares our children for a successful future. Every child deserves the right to a good education and as of right now the quality of an education an individual receives is based on: what the color of your skin is, where you live, and how much money you have. As a society it is our responsibility to break down these walls and strive to make our world a better place. In order to achieve this we need to set high standards and establish measurable goals that will improve individual outcomes in education.

Discussion leader for the book in review

1. On Pages 155-156 Kozol talked about visiting a school and how he saw the students making pillows. How do you think the schools could get around this rule or incorporate other educational values while the students are making their pillows?

I think that the schools need to rewrite their curriculum, if the majority of their children are struggling in school. They can leave the sewing and wood working classes as optional for the students to take if they wish, but not make it mandatory. If the classes continue to be mandatory the teacher could incorporate math into the pillow making. For instance she could make story like math problems that the students need to solve in order to figure out how much fabric or thread they need to make their pillows. If the school district incorporatates reading and math into these classes, the students will still be receiving instructional time in another class.

2. On pages 90-92 Kozol mentions how a school viewed their students as employees and their school as a business. What are the benefits and disadvantages of doing this?

One advantage that I think the students got out of this was learning how to fill out an application and go through an interview process. Some of these students because of their lower income level might not have adults at home that can teach the children about how to do this. In the school children can learn in a non-high stakes environment and be better prepared for the future. However, there are many disadvantages I see with this process. Students are not at school to be seen as machines or business people. They are students! Children need to feel that they can be valued for who they are, and with the business process they are being formed into one size fits all. Finally students need to be creative and this process is taking away their creativity.

3. On page 172 Kozol mentions the dangerous conditions many students are exposed to in low income situations. There is a mention of rates and asbestos and lead paint. How do you think this can be changed?

I think that first of all this situation needs to be broadly publicized on national news. All of the lower income schools that suffer these conditions should be listed when the report is done. The news crew should interview clips of students and clips of the unsafe environment inside the schools. Next, people should write to their government officials and the white house representative for education. By gaining publicity and writing to officials, hopefully the government would feel pressure to fix these dangerous situations.

4. On pages 202-203 Kozol mentions the many different education goals that Presidents have proposed. Why do you think none of them have been successful?

I think that none of these proposals have been successful because the Presidents are not well informed on everything that is occurring in the schools. Second of all, the Presidents goals are too high and often take away from schools if goals are not met. Schools that have a lower income level cannot afford to lose more money from the government. I think the best way for a President to be able to set accurate goals is to read this book, look at reports from low income schools and visit a lot of the lower income schools. This way he is fully exposed to the situation and has a better expectation of what is good to expect.