Ethical Schools

We speak with Dr. LaToya Baldwin Clark, assistant professor at UCLA School of Law. Dr. Baldwin Clark explains how school boundaries are used for racial exclusion. In many cases, schools don’t just reflect, but cause, segregated neighborhoods. Dr. Baldwin Clark argues that closing the education gap isn’t just about bringing up the bottom, but bringing down the top as well. Parents, teachers, and administrators need to work together to prevent children from benefiting from unearned privilege. Inequality is intrinsically detrimental.

Overview

00:00-00:57 Intros

00:57-03:12 Schools are not preparing all students to be lifelong learners

03:12-13:16 Education as property; cultural and social capital

13:16-15:28 Schools as community enterprises

15:28-18:20 “Schooling in Capitalist America;” caste; legacies of slavery

18:20-21:32 Enforcement of school district boundaries

21:32-25:28  School segregation and housing segregation

25:28-28:20 “Bringing up the bottom and bringing down the top”; reducing the relative distance between the bottom and the top

28:20-31:30 Making the gap less consequential

31:30-35:10 What Culver City (CA) is doing to address inequality in a relative way

35:10-37:44 Implications for Black students when “good schools” look like “White schools”

37:44-40:50 Aggressions and microaggressions in predominantly White schools

40:50-42:15 Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcript of this episode. 

References

We speak with Dr. Julie Sugarman of the Migration Policy Institute about meeting the needs of English Learners. We discuss the meaning and implications of ELs “falling behind” during virtual instruction and difficulties administering upcoming English language proficiency tests. Dr. Sugarman talks about a model for incorporating ELs into planning. She also talks about what is lost (and gained) through technology, given the importance of personal relationships to teaching and learning.

Overview

00:00-00:40 Intros

00:40-02:32 English Language Learners (ELs) and how they receive instruction

02:32-03:31 What research shows about language acquisition

03:31-11:46 Legal and ethical aspects of English language instruction; status around the country

11:46-15:00 Challenges facing ELs and ENL teachers during the pandemic and efforts to overcome them

15:00-17:05 Involvement of parents during the pandemic

17:05-17:50 Varying terms/ synonyms for ESL/ESOL/ENL teachers

17:50-18:22 Nashville as an example of a district centering ELs in planning

18:22-21:30 Issues with taking the English language proficiency test during the pandemic

21:30-23:20 English language proficiency tests’ quality

23:20-25:04 Experience with Betsy DeVos’s  Education Department

25:04-26:56 Recommendations to Biden Administration

26:56-30:20 Technology and ELs post-pandemic

30:20-31:45 Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode. 

Credits

Soundtrack by Podington Bear

We speak with Dr. Judith King-Calnek, United Nations International School’s first Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Since UNIS faculty and students come from all over the world, they draw on one another’s backgrounds and lived experience in presenting and analyzing social issues. Faculty, parents, alumni, and, especially, students are involved in new DEI initiatives. Students are actually writing curriculum, providing feedback, and delivering DEI modules to other students.

Overview 

00:00-00:52 Intros

00:52-01:41 UNIS

01:41-03:25 Anthropological viewpoint

03:25-08:05 Teaching history: Decentering Europe; globalization

08:05-09:26 Priorities as Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)

09:26-13:33 Restorative mindset and practices

13:33-15:56 Student DEI committee

15:56-19:40 Students writing curriculum

19:40-23:39 Approaching controversial issues

23:39-27:41 Faculty conversations on curriculum and pedagogy

27:41-30:29 Handling microaggressions

30:29-34:04 Students as ethnographers

34:04-37:51 An ethical environment

37:51-39:30 Outro

Transcription 

Click here to see the full transcript of this episode. 

Credits

Soundtrack by Podington Bear

Photo facebook.com/UNISNY

We speak with Samuel E. Abrams of Teachers College, Columbia University. The root problems in K12 education — including poverty-related stress and underpaid and underprepared teachers — are pervasive and expensive to fix. So instead, the U.S. has  adopted a “commercial mindset,” measuring success through standardized test scores and increasingly outsourcing school management to for-profit and nonprofit corporations. Dr. Abrams explains what we can learn from Finland’s education system.

Overview

00:00-00:42 Intros

00:42-03:01 What “education and the commercial mindset” means

03:01-05:26 Examples of for-profit and non-profit privatization 

05:26-13:57 Effects of privatization

13:57-20:01 What can be done to enable public education to better meet student needs

20:01-21:45 Separation of church and state

21:45-28:37 Potential positive lessons from business; W. Edwards Deming; rejecting value-added measurement

28:37-32:13 Comparison of U.S. and Finnish education systems

32:13-35:27 Key changes that can be made in U.S. education system

35:27-36:50 Outro 

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcript of this episode. 

References

Credits

Soundtrack by Podington Bear

We speak with middle school teachers, Debbie Holecko and Claudia Bestor, and their former student, Rafel Alshakergi, about a student-led research project that led to ethical civic engagement. Rafel explains how the experience emboldened her to ask questions and “speak [her] mind.” The project, which got national attention, cut against Ohio’s high-stakes test orientation; many teachers are afraid to do project-based learning because Ohio doesn’t have tenure and bases 40% of teacher evaluation on student test scores. The teachers discuss how to meet standards through project-based learning. This interview is just a joy to listen to!

Overview

00:00-00:42 Intro

00:42-02:23 Assignment

02:23-07:01 Projects

07:01-08:08 Student reactions to doing original research

08:08-13:47 “Colored graves” cemetery project

13:47-17:44 Project’s impact on students

17:44-19:50 Effect on understanding North Olmstead and its history

19:50-21:18 Students’ realization of their ability to make change

21:18-23:01 George Floyd’s death and BLM demonstrations

23:01-25:14 Relationships among teachers/students

25:14-27:47 Teachers and students learning together

27:47-29:35 Integrating language arts and social studies in practice

29:35-32:06 Meeting the ELA standards

32:06-36:04 Smooth and effective collaborative teaching 

36:04-42:12 Inquiry learning and Ohio’s test-driven system

42:12-43:45 Students’ identifying as readers

43:45-50:27 Dewey on schools’ role in preparing students for democratic citizenship

50:27-55:31 Professional networking: Facing History and Ourselves; Landmark workshops/seminars

55:31-55:49 Rafel as immigrant student

55:49-56:47 Outro

Transcription

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode. 

References

Credits

Soundtrack by Podington Bear

Photo news5cleveland.com