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Voices in Urban Education
Archives
Educating Vulnerable Pupils
VUE Number 12, Summer 2006
| VUE Home | Archives | Order Print Copy |
Educating the Most Vulnerable Pupils
By Robert Rothman
Robert Rothman is a Principal Associate & Editor of VUE at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University.
> Author's biography
The imperative to educate all students to high
standards has challenged educators in virtually every
community. While many schools and communities
have succeeded in raising performance overall, achievement
gaps remain stubbornly persistent. Large numbers
of students continue to lag behind. And these
tend to be the same students the education system
has, historically, served poorly — low-income students,
students of color, and students with learning needs.
Our continued failure to educate all students well has serious consequences. The children left behind tend to lack many of the social and family supports that their more-advantaged peers possess. They are truly "the most vulnerable pupils," as Monica Teixeira de Sousa put it in a recent issue of this publication. Without a strong education system, many young people will face a bleak future.
In part, continued existence of the achievement gap puts a spotlight on the shortcomings of our efforts at educational improvement. The most common approaches, research and experience clearly show, may not be reaching the most vulnerable pupils. Our strategies may not be enough to educate all students to high levels. Accountability systems signal problems but do not suggest solutions or provide resources to help.Common instructional-improvement approaches tend to help many students but not necessarily the growing number of students with significant challenges. And it is increasingly clear that students who are behind in school also lack access to the out-of-school supports that better-performing students receive.
What would it take to fulfill the promise of education reform and educate all students to high levels? For one thing, it would take a recognition that all young people need supports, but the kind and amount will vary from child to child. Also, educators and community leaders need to think about ways to integrate supports for children and families with educational supports. Schools alone cannot educate all students well.
This issue of Voices in Urban Education looks at ways to address the needs of the most vulnerable pupils.
Pia Durkin lays out a vision for a system that provides an array of supports for children in both general education and special education in order to reach 98 percent of students.
> Full text with audio
Beatrice Bridglall describes a program under way in Harlem to help parents bring up young children who are healthy and ready to learn.
> Excerpt
Gwendolyn Webb-Johnson addresses the role of principals in leading schools that avoid the overrepresentation of African American youths in special education by addressing students' needs in culturally responsive ways.
> Excerpt
Dwight Watson considers his own experience and his work as a teacher educator in preparing teachers who are able to help diverse students learn the critical skill of literacy.
> Excerpt
Lucretia Murphy discusses how five cities are providing alternative pathways for students who are struggling or who have left school.
> Excerpt
Underlying each of these articles is a potentially radical idea: that the education system should consider each student as an individual and provide the support that he or she needs. This idea is radical because large systems are not designed to provide individualized supports. They were created to provide basically the same level of supports for all students. Such systems work efficiently, but not effectively for all students. The most vulnerable pupils lose out.
Fortunately, many urban education systems are abandoning the one-size-fits-all approach. Cities are experimenting with a wide range of educational approaches, including virtual schools and charter schools, as well as traditional schools. Districts are creating new schools that cater to students' varied needs and interests. Schools are creating learning plans for every student.
Despite their promise, though, these efforts remain fairly small-scale. Only by expanding them can cities ensure that all students have access to educational opportunities and supports that address their needs. In order to educate all students well, we need to educate each student well.
Archives
Educating Vulnerable Pupils
VUE Number 12, Summer 2006
| VUE Home | Archives | Order Print Copy |
Educating the Most Vulnerable Pupils
By Robert Rothman
Robert Rothman is a Principal Associate & Editor of VUE at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University.
> Author's biography
The imperative to educate all students to high
standards has challenged educators in virtually every
community. While many schools and communities
have succeeded in raising performance overall, achievement
gaps remain stubbornly persistent. Large numbers
of students continue to lag behind. And these
tend to be the same students the education system
has, historically, served poorly — low-income students,
students of color, and students with learning needs.
Our continued failure to educate all students well has serious consequences. The children left behind tend to lack many of the social and family supports that their more-advantaged peers possess. They are truly "the most vulnerable pupils," as Monica Teixeira de Sousa put it in a recent issue of this publication. Without a strong education system, many young people will face a bleak future.
In part, continued existence of the achievement gap puts a spotlight on the shortcomings of our efforts at educational improvement. The most common approaches, research and experience clearly show, may not be reaching the most vulnerable pupils. Our strategies may not be enough to educate all students to high levels. Accountability systems signal problems but do not suggest solutions or provide resources to help.Common instructional-improvement approaches tend to help many students but not necessarily the growing number of students with significant challenges. And it is increasingly clear that students who are behind in school also lack access to the out-of-school supports that better-performing students receive.
What would it take to fulfill the promise of education reform and educate all students to high levels? For one thing, it would take a recognition that all young people need supports, but the kind and amount will vary from child to child. Also, educators and community leaders need to think about ways to integrate supports for children and families with educational supports. Schools alone cannot educate all students well.
This issue of Voices in Urban Education looks at ways to address the needs of the most vulnerable pupils.
Pia Durkin lays out a vision for a system that provides an array of supports for children in both general education and special education in order to reach 98 percent of students.
> Full text with audio
Beatrice Bridglall describes a program under way in Harlem to help parents bring up young children who are healthy and ready to learn.
> Excerpt
Gwendolyn Webb-Johnson addresses the role of principals in leading schools that avoid the overrepresentation of African American youths in special education by addressing students' needs in culturally responsive ways.
> Excerpt
Dwight Watson considers his own experience and his work as a teacher educator in preparing teachers who are able to help diverse students learn the critical skill of literacy.
> Excerpt
Lucretia Murphy discusses how five cities are providing alternative pathways for students who are struggling or who have left school.
> Excerpt
Underlying each of these articles is a potentially radical idea: that the education system should consider each student as an individual and provide the support that he or she needs. This idea is radical because large systems are not designed to provide individualized supports. They were created to provide basically the same level of supports for all students. Such systems work efficiently, but not effectively for all students. The most vulnerable pupils lose out.
Fortunately, many urban education systems are abandoning the one-size-fits-all approach. Cities are experimenting with a wide range of educational approaches, including virtual schools and charter schools, as well as traditional schools. Districts are creating new schools that cater to students' varied needs and interests. Schools are creating learning plans for every student.
Despite their promise, though, these efforts remain fairly small-scale. Only by expanding them can cities ensure that all students have access to educational opportunities and supports that address their needs. In order to educate all students well, we need to educate each student well.
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