Cultural & Ethnic Studies: RACE AND VOICE

If our schools are racially biased, what is it we actually teach our children?

Jonathan Kozol is an Educational Activist who has been working for Social Justice for all since the early 1960’s. For these 40 years one of his concentrations has been in the area of education.  In his most recent book on this subject, “The Shame of the Nation” Kozol looks at the state of our public education system.

Using the resources provided in this lesson, and others that you may find on your own, approach the following:

After watching the video and reading this article, what does this short passage quoted below tells you?  It comes from Kozol’s book, The Shame of a Nation.  Post your own reactions to the video.  Post your own understand of what Kozol is saying in this short quotation about the use of our voices, and what our schools are teaching our children, and respond to the ideas of others.  How important is it that our schools are free of race based bias?

“In a third class of over 30 students that was housed in a portion of the school building itself that was still unusable, children read me [Kozol] sentences they’d written about what they liked best about the new curriculum.

‘My favorite skill is silence,’ said one child.

‘No talking,’ said another.'”

Attempt to answer the questions posed here in a 2 page essay, double spaced.