¶ … strong and positive actions can school take to help solve the problems of youth?
The poet Langston Hughes once asked if the proverbial "dream deferred" of a young person's thwarted ambition in life "dried up like a raisin in the sun" or "does it explode?" Perhaps it does not matter so much what metaphor is most apt to explain this phenomenon, but how to prevent such a deferment from occurring in the first place. In Chapter 14 of the educational anthology of essays entitled Kaleidoscope, perhaps to suggest the dizzying array of solutions offered to the even more overwhelming amount of problems faced by today's educators, Stanley Eitzen attempts to offer some answers to the poet Hughes' rhetorical question.
Eitzen's essay "Problem Students: The Sociocultural Roots" posits the idea that so-called 'problem students,' contrary to much of current educational fashion today, do not simply have problems in school because of biological or genetic reasons, such as attention-deficit disorder. Rather, student's problems with the authority structure within the educational system have profound sociological and cultural roots. However, Eitzen states that blame should not be the issue. Rather than arguing who is at fault, constructive solutions to address the inequalities of society must be enacted that aid students experiencing such difficulties in the here and now.
Educational authority James Banks similarly suggests in the same anthology that culture is at the root of the difficulties so many young individuals experience. Banks writes in his own essay in the anthology Kaleidoscope, as a kind of drawing-together of the theorists presented in the text, including Banks, that multicultural education is not an academic form of Balkanization but a way of making "many" students into "one," in the spirit of the...
, 1999). In many areas of the country this may be very accurate. Another problem that comes into the picture where obesity in children is concerned is that many parents must work very long hours today to pay bills and have money for what their family needs (Mokdad, et al., 1999). Because of this, many children are latchkey kids and are not watched as closely by their parents as they used
Computer Games Research When considering the short history of computers, video and PC gaming are very recent on the timeline of technology. This is one of the reasons why there have not been many conclusive studies on the negative and/or positive effects of electronic games on children and young adults -- the most formative years. With the ever-increasing interest and involvement of children in this activity, much concern has been expressed
School Choice Program This study aimed to determine the impact of school choice through a comparative study of two private schools, which serve primarily, or exclusively African-American students, and a public school. Data in student achievement in math and reading and data on student attendance were used to determine the impact of choosing a school. Qualitative data derived from interviews with administrators and faculty as well as classroom observation were used to
They predict age and gender variations relate to bullying concerns. Of the 25 cartoons implemented in the study, two depict characters with different shades of skin color where skin color appeared to be an issue. One cartoon relating to sexual orientation was not used in several countries. Smith et al. report Olweus to assert bullying to be characterized by the following three criteria: 1. It is aggressive behavior or intentional
School Culture on School Safety Many studies have been done on safety in schools. Likewise, many studies have been done on the culture of various schools. Unfortunately, there has not been significant research on a link between the two. This is not to say that these kinds of studies have not been done, but rather that there has not been enough of them. Many of the studies that have been
Adults Who Were Bullied in School Bullying is considered repeated acts over time that involves an imbalance of power between individuals. It can be verbal harassment, physical assault, coercion, manipulation, ignoring, or even subtler acts. Usually, psychologists find, bullying is done to coerce others by fear or threat, and occurs more often than one would imagine in the early years of elementary school ("Student Reports of Bullying," 2001). There is a
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