Dohn Community High School, a dropout recovery charter school in Cincinnati, just started trying a new idea to get kids to come to school – paying them. The school, through help from private donors and the Easter Seals, is offering seniors that arrive on time every day for the whole week and behave well $25 a week. Students in lower grades are eligible to get $10 a week.
Not good – in urban schools, that is. Unfortunate news for the country, as the city schools are tested regarding the progress of the student attending them. According to the Huffington Post, overall, the math grades have gone up slightly, however grades have been stagnant in every other subject.
The data was taken from 21 different urban school districts, and revealed that math scores have risen, but urban school districts are behind suburban and rural districts in test scores in all other areas, including reading.
Bad news for Detroit as well, as they revealed that 71 percent of 8th grade students are performing below basic math levels.
The good news is that math scores continue to rise:
“If you look at the trends since 2003, it paints a clear picture about the progress that has emerged in the large cities since that time; we’ve been able to close the gap between us and the nation by between 25 percent and 36 percent in those eight years” said Mike Casserly, executive director of the Council of the Great City Schools, which helps administer the test.
Progress has been made, therefore we are moving in the right direction. It will take more than the government and national education system, however.
This week’s episode features Kwesi, our Ohio State Director. Check the vibrant conversation on inspiring young people, building power in our communities and protecting voting rights. Much love to the hosts for putting together a thought-provoking show week after week!
Join the conversation on twitter by following @OhioLeague @ellecee404 and @BrianKeith2039
Hit the jump to listen to the show…
Maurice Johnson, 55, lives in Boston in a homeless shelter. He has a master’s degree in Plasma Physics from Dartmouth College, and a master’s in electrical engineering from Purdue University. He even once worked as a Senior Research Engineer for eight years at Lockheed Aerospace Corp. Check out Maurice’s LinkedIn profile. If you want to contact Maurice, his email is Mjnomad@yahoo.com
In high school, I attended Bradley Tech in Milwaukee, WI. Compared to other schools, they tried to be ahead of the curve with the latest technology but it’s nothing compared to what is available now. If I could substitute a textbook for a tablet assignment, college might have been on my radar. With the burst of social media platforms and options for young tech lovers to explore, how can a student not be excited to learn?
Check out how students and technology are co-existing: Jump For A Dope Infographic
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