The Fight for Immigrant Children’s Rights in School

With all of the current media attention to the issue of immigration in the US, one area seems to get overlooked- that is educating the immigrant children that show up in our public schools. How is their enrollment to be handled? Most don’t have transcripts from their school in other countries- some may never have been to school. Many students appear on the front steps of schools with no health records and no record of immunizations.  What about placement? How does the enrolling school know what grade to place a student in? And of course, the overarching issue is what to do about the language barrier since these stu8denst don’t speak English.

For those educators watching this issue, some are keeping an eye on a case currently being played out in Collier County, Florida. This week a federal judge stopped the school district’s attempt to end a lawsuit on behalf of English Language Learners(ELL) who were denied an education in the public schools. The district superintendent denied enrollment to six students stating that since they could not possibly graduate from high school on time, they should be sent to a special non-credit program to learn English. The Southern Poverty Law Center in Atlanta, has filed the suit on behalf of the students. According to the Center,” Federal and state law mandate that schools offer children in their jurisdiction, regardless of immigration status, access to free public education.” This case, now almost a year old, does not address the issue of whether or not the students are undocumented nor does it deal with the issue that their parents, or even students themselves may be deported.

It should be noted that Collier County is one of only two counties in Florida that has agreed to cooperate with ICE regarding the detention of undocumented immigrants.

 If you are having similar issues in your state, please post a comment and share the information.

c.2017 J. Margolis

Teaching About Fake News

In the current political climate, the term “ fake news” has entered into the lexicon of everyday usage. An obvious and critical question for teachers today is “ how do we teach our students the difference between “real news” and “ fake news.”  With the Internet and social media, it is all to easy to manufacture a story, complete with photo-shopped pictures and send it around the world in minutes. If you are of a certain age and remember the television show “Dragnet,” Sergeant Joe Friday, the main character would always say “ just the facts, ma’am.” Today there is a lot more to it. A recent article in the journal of the New Jersey Education Association- The Review- lists several suggestions for getting students to search for accurate information.

1)   Who authored the story? What publication carried the story? You always want to determine the legitimacy of the web site and/ or sponsor.

2)   What are the sources of the story? It is like checking the authenticity of a bibliography.

3)   Is this a true story or propaganda? In the wonderful film “ Paperclips” which relays the story of teaching eighth graders in rural Tennessee about the Holocaust, the teacher remarks’” propaganda has nothing to do with the truth.” Students need to learn that everything they read is not necessarily true.

4)   Students need to learn to ask the right questions. Just as teachers learned in their methods classes, asking the right questions will generate thoughtful discussion and lead to the correct answers.

Now, more than ever, we must teach our students to discriminate between what is true and real and what is not.

c.2017 J. Margolis

NYC Students BEAM with Math Success

The recent success of the film “ Hidden Figures” has brought into the public consciousness the struggle of minority women to be acknowledged as competent in math (and science). There is a need to challenge minority students to succeed in math and to accomplish that educators must look beyond the traditional classroom setting.  A recent article in the New York Times examined an experimental four-week summer program, BEAM 6 in New York City. BEAM stands for Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics and is designed for students had just completed the sixth grade. This extracurricular program currently has over 75 students who come from low-income families throughout the city’s public schools. The program has demonstrated that these students, with the proper teaching and encouragement, can succeed in higher-level mathematics.

According to the Times article only 2% of the Ph.Ds. in math, engineering and physical sciences were awarded to African- American candidates in 2015. The rate for Latino students was only slightly better. The BEAM program is just a microcosm of what needs to be done to both encourage and assist low-income minority students to succeed.

C.2017 J. Margolis

Finding Cultural Equality in the Classroom

It has been more than 60 years since the US Supreme Court issued the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka and the question that we as educators must ask is how much of an improvement in American public education has there been since then? But even if all schools are integrated, new issues keep popping up.

Let’s start with immigrant children. In view of recent events, there is fear among many immigrant children that their parents will not be at home when they get home from school, victims of ICE deportations. There are concerns among indigent families that after school services and free and reduced lunch programs may be cut.

What about Muslim children? Are they concerned that they might be bullied or harassed at school?  Have their families express the fear that the long-standing American welcome mat may no longer apply to them?

 As if America’s educators did not have enough to deal with in the classroom, these new concerns come along. How are we going to address multi-culturalism in the classroom? The questions can go on infinitely but we need to seek answers.

Teachers need to find a way to connect with their students and those paths may not always be through textbooks. We need to stress that in order for America is to remain first among nations, that inclusion is the key to success. Teachers need to be advocates for social justice, even if it can’t be found on the streets and in our neighborhoods.

All-time Best Movies About Teachers

Over the years there have been many films about teachers, many of them not showing educators in a positive light. I have decided to compile of my own list of films that do show the good,the honest,the brave and the successful in teaching. Please feel free to comment with your own additions. I will add them to a future Blog.

Here Goes (in no particular order)!

1)   Dead Poets Society

2)   The Emperors Club

3)   Goodbye Mr. Chips

4)   October Sky

5)   Dangerous Minds

6)    Freedom Writers

7)   Blackboard Jungle

8)   Mr. Holland’s Opus

9)   To Sir With Love

10) Stand and Deliver

C. 2017 J. Margolis