You know I teach at a community college, so I'm interested in all things educational. Unfortunately, the positive news for modern American education is hard to find. Just when you think it can't get any worse, something like the following comes along.
"San Francisco high school students, just months out of middle school, can start earning San Francisco State college credit this fall through a ninth-grade ethnic studies course," reports the San Francisco Chronicle. Is this for real? Oh, yes.
The program is designed for students who might not otherwise be considering college as an option, said Jacob Perea, dean of the School of Education, who runs the Step to College program at San Francisco State.
"We're not really looking for the 4.4 (grade point average) students," he said. "We're looking for the 2.1 or 2.2 students."
Students cannot fail the class. They either receive a "pass" grade or are withdrawn from the course if it appears they cannot pass, Perea said.
"All we do is give them an opportunity," he said. "I do believe that (the ethnic studies) course is a course set up so the kids will come out of there with the kind of information that a freshman here taking an ethnic studies course will have."
The content of the courses offered in the Step to College program are reviewed by CSU faculty to ensure that they're equal to any offered at the university.
Where to start when contemplating this news article? Someone thinks that kids fresh out of middle school can do passing college work? Out here at Palomar, for instance, the majority of students who have had much more schooling, fail to place in English 100. They have to take one or two semesters of developmental English just to get up to speed. "Students cannot fail the class"--what does this tell them about college and life in general? Is this a good way to prepare them for a tough world? The students will take an ethnic studies class--why do my politically-correct antennae start waving at this news? I picture a class in which all share their ethnicity and compliment all the others for their cultural background, ending in a group hug and singing "Kumbaya." How can you fail ethnic studies? Another great lead forward for American education . . .
Liz and Chris – San Diego Wedding Films
2 months ago
this is depressing and yet completely not-surprising.
ReplyDeletei would like to correct one thing, though - you said you picture a class in which ALL share their ethnicity and compliment others for their cultural background. this is true for everyone except the "white" students... we all know that white people have nothing to offer when it comes to culture and ethnicity! ;-)
An interesting idea, but you are right. It teaches nothing of how the "real world" works in terms of personal responsibility. That's a shame.
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