Hodgkinson's Report

Ok Ok, I read Hodgkinson's article and I have to admit that this guy knows his stuff. He has so many percentages and census reports that give factual information on our student diversity. I think he made a good point when he mentioned transiency on page 8. The fact that 40 million Americans move each year really surprised me. A little unstable don't you think? Because of this I can definately see why teachers would have a tough time getting used to their classrooms, especially when 20 out of the 22 students you started the school year with are different by the time it ends. This doesn't allow teachers to get comfortable with their class and it stops them from developing relationships. I feel that when i teach it would be important to me to get to know my students. I know when i was in high school i really got to know my professors over my 4 years there. By the time i graduated i could really say that everyone was like a family, and it made my learning experience there better. To have new children coming into my classroom at different points of the year is something i feel would make my teaching a little difficult.

Response To Martian Questions: 1 - 3

1. Schools are seperated into local school districts, which there are over 14,000 in the US. They are funded by mostly state and local institutions, and get little money from the national level. Some schools are underfunded, depending on how well a district is funded by their local institutions. What a school is like varies depending on what school district you look at, because depending on how much money they have. Some schools are severely undefunded and don’t even have enough money for new textbooks, while others have enough money to buy whatever they want.

2. America as a nation is also known as, "the melting pot" of the world. Since the birth of our nation individuals from other countries have fled to this land in search opportunity. Because of this we have a created a nation full of diversity. One cannot classify a typical American under physical characteristics. Because of this, the students who fill our classrooms come from all parts of the world. They range in age, knowledge, language, and ethnicity. 53% of students are white, 24% are Latino, 15% African American, 6% multiracial, and 5% Asian. But all have one intended goal. America's students are a diverse population working towards an academic degree in the field of their choice.

3. Most of our teachers are highly educated in their field, and are looking to be further educated. 9 out of 10 are white, and 8 out of 10 are female. The percentage of teachers who are africn american is ever declining since the 1970’s. Teachingis a very important but highly stressful job, and 46% of new teaches leave within the first 5 years.

Public Education Primer

Public Education Primer


When i usually see these census reports i don't usually agree with what their saying. After reading the full article, my opinion quickly changed. Their percentages were way on. According to the chart in chapter one the percentage of public school enrollment in the south was 24% higher in the south than in the northeast. When i thought about it, that did seem correct. Having family in both New Jersey and Florida, i've noticed that all of my cousins in Miami, and all my cousins friends all go to public schools. I myself went to a private high school. Whenever i would tell my friends in Florida this they would be shocked. They would ask me all sorts of questions about it. On the other side of the spectrum all of my friends from my neighborhood attended different private schools in the area. In New Jersey we had the option of picking which private school we wanted to go too. In Miami, Florida my cousins and his friends had barely even heard of one.
Another fact that caught my attention was the amount of charter and magnet schools that have recently opened up. In my area, Hudson County, by the time i graduated high school there was three of these types of high school: CREATE charter, High Tech, and County Prep. All of these high schools were opened within a 10 mile radius of eachother. Another point that the article hit was that most of these schools were opening up in urban settings. If anyone has visited Hudson County they know it is by far the most urban county in the state of New Jersey.