Thoughts about Chapter 1-4 of The Flat World and Education by Linda Darling-Hammond

Today is Nelson Mandela’s 93rd birthday. Today is also marking the 67 years he put into public service. To celebrate, people all over the world have been asked to dedicate 67 minutes of service to help others. Sixty-seven years of devote to the cause of equality, and the end of the oppressive system of apartheid. This was the legal separation of the races in South Africa. The United States also had a legal seperation of the races with Plessy v. Fergerson, something that was supposedly overturned with the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education.

The first four chapter of Linda Darling-Hammond’s book The Flat World and Education proves that racial segregation has not ended in America. It has a different look, yes, but there is still a large gap in the educational resources and opportunities granted to students in districts with a large population of racial minority groups, as well as low socio-economic areas. This could be called a type of apartheid as well. There is a legal separation of racial and economic groups in American schools. The United States wants to be one of the leading countries in the 21st Century, and to be viewed as having the best educated populous in the world. This cannot happen with the current conditions of the American education system.

Schools in these areas are falling apart. Some do not have running water, access to bathrooms, or supplies students and teachers need to properly teach or learn in their classrooms. Students do not feel safe in these schools, but required to attend. I am sure some also want to attend for hope of a better future.

Teacher prep programs are also lacking in these schools. A large percentage of teachers in these areas do not have teaching licenses. Some schools are even hiring long term substitutes because they are cheaper than hiring a licensed teacher.

These two details bring me to ask this question: What does our society value? If you asked anyone walking on the street if they think education needs better funding, the most likely response would be positive. This brings me to the government. There is such an emphasis on test scores, and being competitive with other countries. This competition is not to make sure students are learning. It is so America can look good in comparison to other countries.

This brings me to a second question: How can the government expect students to perform well on a standardized test without being in schools with safe buildings and certified teachers? Using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, students need to have their basic needs met, such as a feeling of safety and security, before they could perform well on a test. Students at the schools discussed in Darling-Hammond’s book would not perform well on a test if their basic needs are not met, especially if they do not even feel safe in the building where the test is being administered. This can also be seen in Idaho.

One of the weekends I went out to collect signature to repeal the newly passed Idaho education reform policies, I met a teacher from Nevada. This teacher told me that he moved to Idaho because he heard good things about it, but that was not what he had experienced working in the education system. He told me that the education system in Idaho could be compared to teaching in a third world country compared to Nevada. Some of the schools he had seen were old and falling apart, and they also lacked resources for student and teacher success. Much of this is due to lack of funds. In order to get better schools, Idahoans need to be willing to pay for them. There were districts that did not pass levies for more funding, and were forced to cut their budget, which resulted in the firing of teachers, the cutting of programs, and lowering the supply budgets. With this is also the added pressure of merit pay, which is based in part on student standardized test scores.

Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” In order for this to be true for the students in the schools described in Linda Darling-Hammond’s book The Flat World and Education, the United States needs to be willing to make the changes required to bring equality to these school districts, and to make sure the basic needs of the students are met before placing a large focus on performance on standardized tests.