Teacher: I see the difference in educational privilege every day. I live it. I am disgusted by it.

The Washington Post's Answer Sheet Blog ^ | January 29, 2015 | Valerie Strauss

[2ndDivisionVet]

Here is a post by a Colorado teacher who vividly explains the difference in the lives of fortunate students and the less fortunate students whom she teaches. Her last post on this blog was a nuanced look into the psyche of some students of color who live in poverty, which you can read here. This public school teacher often blogs anonymously under the name Shakespeare’s Sister at Daily Kos. She teaches 11th grade AP Language and Composition in the Denver area.

Here is Shakespeare’s Sister newest post for this blog:

Recently, events in Ferguson and New York have reminded us there are still two very different Americas. What I wish more people were talking about is that there are two American educations: One for the affluent, and one for students living in poverty.

Many of the reports focus on numbers for free and reduced lunches, which is, some say, a “rough proxy for poverty,” but those labeling it in such a way have probably never set foot in a classroom.

Almost every day, I slip food to one of my students. Both of his parents are in prison. Or, one of his parents is in prison and the other is dead. We can’t quite get the full story from him. He lives with his older sister, whom he refers to as his mother because he doesn’t want to explain anything. Or he doesn’t live with her. He won’t say where he’s staying. We’ve attempted home visits but can never get anyone to answer the door....

[2ndDivisionVet]

[The_Media_never_lie]

Exactly why we need school choice!

[A CA Guy]

The big issue is a child with parental priveledge, which is where the parents give a shit.

[Moonman62]

It’s not about privilege, it’s about morality.

[Mears]

You are right——it all comes down to the parents.

Money makes everything easier but it still can be done without money.

.

[petitfour]

The blogger teaches AP English? I guess they quit failing students for excessive comma splicing? Her grammar is less than stellar and indicative of a lowering of standards. If it feels good, insert a comma.

[ThunderSleeps]

I taught my kids to value and work for their education. They’ve had google and bad teachers, good and bad fellow students. They are in college now.

[Zeppo]

This public school teacher often blogs anonymously under the name Shakespeare’s Sister at Daily Kos.

So the teacher is a Communist extremist and an idiot.

Well, isn't that special...

[Teacher317]

This is racist garbage, from my experience. I taught in a HIGHLY diverse district, and in the cafeteria, the lines were VERY clearly evident. Black, white, Hispanic, Asian... didn't matter... but north of 49th st and south of 49th St, each had their own side of the lunchroom, and there was VERY little cross-over. The poorer kids on one side, the middle-class and the elite kids on the other. Race had NOTHING to do with it.

Effort, desire, help from home, encouragement from home, expectations from home... those are the main predictors for 98 percent of the results in the classroom.

(I'm less than 10 years removed from public school teaching, so I'm not THAT antiquated quite yet.)

[ConorMacNessa]

I was greatly privileged as a child - I was brought into the world and nurtured into adulthood by two loving parents whose consciences were formed by traditional Christian doctrine and morals. That was an incalculable advantage I had.


"Dia shábháil ar fad anseo!"

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[Teacher317]

(But it wasn’t the white parents that came to parent-teacher night to tell me that school didn’t matter, and that the kids were only there because the law said they had to be.)

[Cicero]

Shakespeare’s Sister? Did she get Shakespeare’s approval to call herself that?

Somehow I doubt it. That alone is enough to turn me off.

[MNDude]

Often about $20k or more is spent on each student per year in these poor minority schools.

[oldbrowser]

This teacher is drawing a comparison between highly gifted students and basically homeless teens. Of course there is a huge disparity. She should compare the poor teens to average students in an average socioeconomic situation.

[digger48]

#Whiteys Fault

[UCANSEE2]

She should compare the poor teens to average students in an average socioeconomic situation.

Why would she do something that would prove she is wrong (or at least mixing apples and oranges)?

[Secret Agent Man]

What he’s seeing is the results of personal choices made a long time ago, affecting those people’s kids, the choices now being made by those kids, and the fact that life isn’t fair and never has been.

Either take it up with those people who made sucky decisions that now affect their kids, take it up with the kids themselves if they are slacking off, or take it up with God.

We used to live in the most free and opportune country, and relatively speaking we still do for the large part. We have foreigners who legally become citizens that in a few years are doing far better than natural born citizens who have made sh1tty life choices.

[UCANSEE2]

“Almost every day, I slip food to one of my students. “

Does Michelle Obama know about this ?

[Secret Agent Man]

HOW FAR ARE YOU GOING TO GO WHEN STUDYING IS “ACTING WHITE”?

Deal with reality you “teacher”/indoctrinator.

[Ditto]

The blogger teaches AP English?

My thoughts as well. I'm defiantly not the grammar police, but an AP English teacher struggling through 10 paragraphs just to beg for more money, for more bureaucracy, for a failed education system?

At some point, people have to understand that "public education" can't fix a totally failed society model. All it can do is make education bureaucrats more comfortable in their retirement.