Tapas Course 9 - Everyone's right to equal education
Every year without fail, there seems to be a short fall of supplies or funding for some program at the school where I teach. This is not a rarity in Chicago Public Schools or in many urban school districts, but within Illinois, all districts do not always feel this problem. Illinois has one of the highest discrepancies of education dollars of any state in the country. While some schools are running on $3000 per pupil others are running on $30,000 (Chicago Urban League). The disparity runs down many lines, but generally speaking, schools where students of color tend to attend (in urban areas in Chicago) are disadvantaged.
The Chicago Urban League, an organization that advocate's for African American's social change though education, economic progress programs, and grass roots community organizing, has led a movement for education reform in Illinois. This has taken the form of lobbying and speaking to government officials protesting and a lawsuit against the state of Illinois based on the Brown V. Board of Education case of 1954.
The economic downturn has led to a statewide pinch of many expenses including education, however cuts have not been equitable in their implementation. Most schools statewide are funded primarily by local property taxes. Though the economic losses have hurt almost every area, some schools have supplementary funds that could be cut, where as other urban schools end up cutting major programs.
The 2008 election brought a local Chicago politician to the presidency, and with him CEO of Chicago Public Schools Arne Duncan to the top education seat in the country. The hope is that the Secretary of Education might bring education reform in this country. Chicago Public Schools enacted a program called Renaissance 2010 in which over 30 schools city wide and 45 schools state wide were opened as charter schools using a competitive, community based application model. The goal of this program is to increase the number of high quality education options for students (Renaissance 2010). Analysis of this system has shown achievement gains in many areas, however many neighborhood school advocates believe that this system further perpetuates the divide amongst the have and the have-nots. Failing neighborhood schools are being closed down to make way for new competitive charter schools. Charter schools are held accountable by their ability to meet certain achievement gains each year, keeping their charter. These schools are free to choose entry requirements as they see fit, rather then take all local students. The struggle to find a way to produce the highest number of students that meet local, state and national standards has been one that Chicago Public Schools has been engaged in for some time.
Now that former Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan is leading the Department of Education, the question is: will he install similar programs on a national level? With education getting billions of dollars through the federal stimulus package, passed by both congressional houses and signed into effect by President Obama, what will Duncan use that money for?
Strategies:
Mikva Challenge is a not for profit organization devoted to creating civic leaders, activists and policy makers. Through many programs they have organized, students have been able to get involved in civic action. Last year, students were able to analyze funds from a wide variety of schools, and understand the budgetary choices each school must make. Each group was given a school budget based on a model school; each school's demographics were also listed. Some schools were able to raise more money based on higher property values, thus higher tax revenue. Those schools were able to afford nicer school facilities, lower student to teacher ratios, and funding for extra curricular programs. Students discussed the causes and effects of this system, and what can be done to create a more equitable educational system.
Students will repeat this activity using current school budgets (including our own) and analyze what cuts have been made from the previous year. After discussing the state of Illinois policy of allocating education dollars and local property tax revenue, students will look at the case brought by the Chicago Urban League against the state of Illinois that the decision of Brown v. Board of Education has not been carried out, and that segregation, by funding, still exists.
Students will write their US congressmen, state representatives, and the Secretary of Education letters about what they have learned about education funding in Illinois. Students will also address what reforms they would make to produce a more equitable educational system.
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