Students, teachers re-create slaves' Middle Passage*** It is said that if the Atlantic Ocean were drained, its floor would be littered with the bones of those who died in the Middle Passage, the notorious journey millions of African slaves endured on the way to America. On Thursday morning, Lincoln Middle School students and teachers brought this history to life with the school's annual Black History Month performance. An amalgamation of song, dance, and poetry, the program was titled "In the Belly," an apt name for a dark, often...***
Upscale school revives a satire about race***DEDHAM, MASS. Student actors confront their fear of offending people, as they depict a 1960s Southern town that can't function when all the black folk disappear.***
Cambridge Schools Try Integration by Income *** "While there are a handful of exceptions, in general high-poverty schools don't work," said Richard D. Kahlenberg, an educational researcher at the Century Foundation who is a leading advocate for economic integration as the way to raise achievement among poor children. But critics say that the way to help low-income students make educational gains has to be more effective teaching - not moving children around. "There's something wrong with the assumption that if you've got too many low-income kids in a classroom, you can't teach them," said Abigail Thernstrom, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute who has extensively researched race and education. "My response to that is: No excuses. Start to educate the kids."
……………… Ms. Bokhari said she had tried to convince a friend to send her two children to the school. But she said the friend, a computer programmer, preferred a school with a lot of demanding upper-income parents. "She says, `I want the rich moms to help me bring up my children,' " Ms. Bokhari said. Her friend has a point. Middle- and upper-middle-income parents tend to be more aggressive about making sure their schools have everything, from top teachers to special arts programs, experts said. "Middle-class parents provide quality control," said Nancy Walser, a member of the Cambridge school committee and the author of a guide to the Cambridge public schools. "They're like canaries in a mine." ***