Category: Proposals

Through the eyes of a parent: Choosing a School in Hartford

The particular story we wish to tell is about school choice from the lens of Hartford parents. “Choice” is a reoccurring word and theme we’ve seen this semester in an abundance of literature, but what does it really mean? How much choice is too much? How do Hartford parents choose a school for their child and specifically what are the steps they take? What are the benefits that the parents receive choosing between schools? If parents take an inter-district approach, they have the option of magnet schools, open-choice and charter schools. These options, particularly open-choice and magnet schools were instilled as potential remedies for racial segregation in the Hartford regional schools. However, Hartford parents can choose to keep their kids within the district but there is still an application process. Where one lives in the city of Hartford does not mean you have to attend your neighborhood school, a slightly unfamiliar concept to some of Hartford’s neighboring suburbs. With all these options, how do Hartford parents conceptualize this process?

This story deserves it’s own web page to better understand the true meaning of choice in Hartford and if parents view it as a positive thing. In addition, the web page will walk through the potential steps Hartford parents could take as they decide a school. This process may overwhelm parents so our web page would almost be a step-by-step guide. Through our web page, parents would learn more about school choice in Hartford. By putting together a web page where not only the parents are able to learn about their options, but also get a better understanding of how to make sense of the system to better their child’s opportunity, we will open up a new area in the school choice websites: a parent friendly critique and guide through school choice. The intended audience of this page is Hartford parents who are in the process of choosing schools or maybe have already chosen a school for the child. The web page will be designed to help these parents simplify the steps and resources they have available to them as they choose a school.

The web page would feature the different websites (such as Hartfordschools.org, crec.org and greatschools.org/Connecticut) that are available to parents and how to navigate them. In addition, the web page would break down the somewhat complicated process of school-choice. This web page could also include a map showing all of the schools in the Hartford district to give parents a sense of how many schools there actually are in the district and region. An interactive feature of the web page will be a survey question asking what parents think of school choice in Hartford.

In regards to supplemental sources used for the web project, we are lucky to have a plethora of different options from Jack’s class.  He has written some very eye-opening pieces such as, “School Choice in Suburbia: test scores, race, and housing markets.”  An interesting piece that will also be helpful for this web project is Christina Ramsay et al. “Shopping for Homes and Schools: A qualitative study of West Hartford, Connecticut.”  Additional sources include the Achieve Hartford, Connecticut Fair Housing, and handful of school choice websites, along with Jason Reece et al. piece, “People, Place and Opportunity: Mapping communities of opportunity in Connecticut.”  These will give insight on the positives and negatives in society that are brought about by school choice, as well as being helpful in uncovering the truth and basis of our web project question: what does school choice really mean, and how much is too much?

1) What particular story about cities, suburbs, and schools do you wish to tell, why does it deserve its own web page, and who is your intended audience? Elaborate in at least 2-3 paragraphs.

Assessments of the two major Sheff remedies (Project Choice and interdistrict magnet schools center primarily around the degree to which remedies are promoting integration. This makes sense, as the Sheff case argued that racial isolation deprived both Hartford and suburban students of their state constitutional right to an equal educational opportunity. If the problem, as Sheff states, is segregation, then the solution is naturally integration. Accordingly, we assess Sheff remedies on their ability to integrate. For example, the current goal for Sheff remedies is for 41% of Hartford students to be attending reduced isolation (25-75% non-white) schools by 2013.

While this type of assessment is tailored to evaluate the ways in which Sheff remedies remedy the constitutional problem articulated in Sheff, it is not fit to assess how Sheff remedies are affecting the quality of education of students participating in remedy programs. Knowing that a minority student from Hartford is going to a primarily white school in Simsbury does not allow us to know with certainty that that student is accessing a better education, or even that that student has been granted his state constitutional right to an equal educational opportunity. In this example, the Simsbury school may not have as good teachers, facilities, co-curricular programs, etc. as a Hartford school that student could be attending. Simply because a school is located in the suburbs does not inherently mean it is better than a school in Hartford. Additionally, the student in this example, may not have the same out of school resources that are vital to benefitting from his/her suburban education that suburban kids going to the same school have access to, simply because s/he doesn’t live in that suburb. Essentially, the measurements used to assess Project Choice and interdistrict magnet schools are too narrowly focused on integration statistics. While this narrowness is justified if the only goal of Project Choice and magnets is to integrate, it is not justified if we expect any other benefits from these programs.

To get a better idea of how Sheff remedies are affecting the lives of the children who participate in them, new measurements of success must be brought into the discussion. These measurements fall into two categories: school quality and long-term outcomes. First, we need to get a better idea of the type of education the various schools participating in Sheff remedy programs are providing for students. Discussions of Sheff remedies should include data regarding a) teacher quality, such as teacher experience, racial breakdown of teachers, and teacher salaries, b) teacher to student ratio, c) class offerings, such as AP and honors classes, and their availability, d) overall resources available to the school, such as per-pupil spending, e) quality and availability of co-curricular activities, and f) and the quality of academic resources the school offers, such as libraries/ans, computers, counseling services. Second, we need to get a better idea of how students that participate in Project Choice and Magnets fare in the long-term, using typical markers of “success.” Specifically, an assessment of Sheff remedies should include data similar to data based on Project Concern, a past program similar to Project Choice, regarding a) the attrition rate of students participating in the programs, b) college attendance and graduation rates, c) behavioral tendencies, such as comfort with other individuals of different ethnicities, and likelihood to live in proximity with multiethnic people, d) standards of living, such as poverty rates, income measurements, unemployment rates, and homeownership rates, and e) incarceration and teen pregnancy rates. (Frankenburg, 25) If we bring data from these two categories into the conversation on the success of Sheff remedies, we create a more comprehensive assessment of the benefits and shortcomings of these programs.

Access to this data would benefit multiple audiences. Specifically, families considering enrolling their young people in Project Choice or magnets would be able to compare the differences between different magnet schools, and different schools participating in Project Choice, as well as the overall differences between the magnet programs, Project Choice programs, and neighborhood schools. Additionally, various government and non-government entities would benefit from this data because they would be able to better assess the extent to which Sheff remedies are providing a better education and better long-term outcomes for participants. Knowing this, policy makers and advocates would be able to continue or alter the existing Sheff remedies.

2) What additional reading and/or research do you plan to do to enhance your background knowledge on this story? Be specific and include full citations when appropriate.

Frankenburg, Erica. Project Choice Campaign: Improving and Expanding             Hartford’s Project Choice Program. Poverty & Race Research Action             Council. Washington, DC: September 2007.

The Connecticut Education Data and Research website of the CT State Dept. of             Edu. http://sdeportal.ct.gov/Cedar/WEB/ct_report/CedarHome.aspx

Dougherty, Jack. “Conflicting Questions: Why Historians and Policymakers             Miscommunicate on Urban Education.” In Clio at the Table: Using History             to Inform and Improve Education Policy, edited by Kenneth Wong and             Robert Rothman, 251-62. New York: Peter Lang, 2009. Available from the             Trinity College Digital Repository, Hartford, Connecticut             (http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu)

3) Each web project must integrate narrative text (at least 1,500 words) and digital elements (such as freely accessible online source materials, photographs, videos, maps, quizzes, etc.) What kinds of items do you plan to integrate and how do they fit into the story you wish to tell? Does copyright law allow you to include these items? Be specific and include web links when appropriate.

I plan on creating and integrating a map of the Hartford area with markers for each school participating in Sheff remedies. When a school is clicked on, the map will display a data set including statistics related to educational quality and long-term outomes, as well as integration statistics. Yes, copyright law allows the use of these items.

I plan to investigate the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and its effect on the schools of the state of Connecticut. This piece of legislation has had a long and turbulent history from its enactment up to the present date, and it has produced both impressive effects and troubling problems. I hope to gather data in an unbiased manner so as to paint the picture in the most accurate view possible. It helps that I attended a private school far from New England, thus I started out oblivious to the NCLB Act’s repercussions. However, I have observed from some brief research into the subject that there has been a trending towards the stance that the Act accomplished more in the hindering of education than its improvement. This is the point of view around which I will likely wrap my thesis.

I will address core issues and concepts of the No Child Left Behind Act, including, but not limited to:

1. A simplified, clear-cut definition of the Act, its goals, and its accomplishments backed by statistical fact. Some of the data I collect will involved the pooled numbers from the entire results of U.S. schools, but I will try to focus on Connecticut.

2. An investigation of the NCLB Act’s primary elements, including standardization, necessitating the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) parameter, and emphasis on a narrow testing curriculum of mathematics, reading, and writing.

3. The effects of the aforementioned elements, including: increased accountability and responsibility of school staff to meet testing standards as well as the effects of standardization itself, the effects on exceptional students such as the gifted, minorities, and the disabled, and major reform calls to flawed aspects of the law.

I will be dealing with a statistics involving test scores, minority concentration, and other areas of data unforeseen at this time. These numbers will be organized using Excel and likely use graphs and charts to express these findings in a clear and straightforward manner. I will look for videos or clips of adversaries and advocates (with the advocates probably presented as counter-evidence or paired with a refutal) of the bill. As of now, my primary source of information will be the TOR database with a focus on the Education page, but with possibly with some material from sociology or history. Citation and copyright laws will be appropriately researched.

Some possible sources:

Nathan Walsh & Pornpat Pootinath
Final Web Project Proposal
EDUC 308: The Cities, Suburbs, & Schools Project

Racially Desegregated Schools and Segregated Classrooms

Part 1: Story We Wish to Tell

We would like to analyze the success and drawbacks of the Sheff vs. O’ Neill case in achieving desegregated schools. Although many magnet schools in the Hartford region enroll both white and non-white students and meet Sheff desegregation goals, classrooms can remain highly segregated. By using Hartford Magnet Trinity College Academy as an example, we will explore the effects of tracking on educational inequality. We hope to better understand how tracking occurs in the classroom and why minority students are overrepresented in lower-track classes.

This deserves its own page because studies shows that students of color tend to excel more in racially mixed classrooms. The Sheff case tries to improve educational opportunity for all students by creating more racially balanced schools. Even if schools are racially balanced, classrooms may remain segregated. Segregation, in any form, has devastating consequences for minority students. It is important to understand the realities of tracking and its impact on the ultimate success of the Sheff movement.

This paper will enable us to critique specifics of Sheff v. O’Neill and propose an alternative solution better designed to address tracking. Our web project is intended for a general audience, people looking for a general understanding of tracking and educational opportunity.

Part 2: Additional Reading and/or Research

We hope to provide readers insight on how Sheff vs. O’Neill cases are being implemented inside the classrooms, beyond just meeting the racial requirements. We plan on using Hartford Public Schools’ website, data from the CT State Department of Education, Sheff vs. O’Neill agreements, and readings on tracking such as Jeanie Oakes’ “Keeping Track”.

Part 3: Digital Elements

1. Student demographics
2. Student region of residence
3. Student test scores, disaggregated by race
4. Pictures or videos, as appropriate

We would like to construct a simulation/survey for prospective students of many ages to engage in, in respect to the type of school they would want to receive their education from. Society focuses heavily on the needed reform and social change in the Hartford Schools.  This focused attention is primarily based on the influential factors affecting the children in the school system, neglecting the demands and opinions of the actual students attending these schools. School children must be comfortable in their environment in order to attain a valuable education and a successful academic experience.

These are five critical points we must examine about students. We would like to know from the perspective of the students:
1. Desired outcome (expected future achievement)
2. Curriculum based activities students would like to engage in
3. Form of instruction in classroom (Ex. Montessori, or testing prep. Etc.)
4. Role of teacher (amount of guidance)
5. Classroom setting: coed, same sex, etc.

Student Demographics are equally as significant to determine the appropriate schooling environment:
*Where one lives
*Transportation
*Parental/caregiver support etc.

Factors that could impede the potential success of this simulation would be:
*Early private school waitlists and public school space availability
*Family influences
*Economic situations

Readings:
We plan to share readings that will give insight on current educational practices in each type of school setting. Readings will include a range of educational inequalities, such as the reasons for drop out rates and school enrollment rates. Our objective is to enhance students’ input on their individual education in hope of promoting motivational incentives.

Web Project will include the following aspects of education:
1.      Various types of schooling
2.      Data base statistics (freely accessable form UNESCO)
3.      Family economics
4.      Student demographics

Helpful visuals will include (in video and photo form):
Classroom exercises and activities in different school settings.