Another Kind of Prejudice :: Education Tracking Schooling Essays

Another Kind of Prejudice A high school education is not only the mastery of the three R's but also a foundation for life. High school is the finishing point of many individuals for the educational system, and for the rest, it should be a strong foundation for a higher education. High school curriculum should be broad in the sense that this will be the last formal education for some, and it should expose all students to various elements they may never encounter again. All students should leave high school with a base knowledge of what Mike rose in his book "Lives on the Boundary" calls the "cannonical orientation." Cannonical orientation is the belief that all children should have the foundation of reading the great classics. This foundation of the classics is what we will be judged by in the future. In reading the classics we become more knowledgeable about viewpoints on different situations, and these various views influence how we perceive obstacles in our life. Rose focuses on literature, however this exp ansion of different views transfers even further, not just for literature, but for mathematics, science and history. Mike Rose raised the issue of cannonical orientation and prejudice against those who cannot speak English well. I have come across another kind of prejudice in the educational system. It starts out early in our education process and may prevent your children from reaching their full potential. When children start junior high school they are entering a new world. Many schools have a system in their junior high school called "tracks." Tracking is a system where students are grouped together with other students throughout their academic courses. The foundation for this system is grouping the students together based on their academic performance. According to administrators and teachers who favor this method, tracking makes an easier environment for the teachers. The teachers will be able to stay focused on the entire group, instead of having some students bored with concepts they have already mastered. The reverse is also true, where students are being taught at a level above their capability. We see this philosophy of teaching in elementary school where the students are put into small reading groups based on their reading level. Tracking leads to the possibility that many students may be misjudged because the school administrators and teachers are basing the childrens' academic future solely on their academic achievement in grammar school.