Tuesday, August 31, 2010

August Rewind

Our August included...

some silly times...

seeing if the bottle piggy bank has milk in it like a real bottle...

story time with Uncle David and Aunt Sara...

a new pool toy...

a shoulder ride on Grandpa Coburn...

story time with Grandma Coburn...

and meeting 12 day old Karis Tucker.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Back to School


I have a great group of students this year and several of them are sibilings of my former students- which is really fun! I teach at a school that serves a population of students in which 96% qualify for free/reduced lunch. Like every teacher, I have stories...some uplifting and some that are very tough to hear. Instead of telling one of my classroom stories, I want to highlight some national facts about our public education system for you to digest.

Educational inequity is the reality that where a child is born determines the quality of his or her education and life prospects.

Educational inequity starts early and gets worse over time.
  • By the time they reach fourth grade, children living in low-income communities are already two to three grades behind their higher-income peers.

  • Just half of students in low-income communities will graduate high school by age 18. Those who do graduate will perform on average at an eighth-grade level.

  • Overall, only 1 in 10 students growing up in poverty will graduate from college.

Educational inequity prevents children from fulfilling their potential.


  • It limits life choices, professional options, and incomes, and weakens families and communities. Because children in low-income communities are predominantly children of color, they also face the added burden of societal low expectations and discrimination.

Educational inequity undermines our nation's economic strength.

  • A McKinsey & Company study indicates that educational inequity costs the country $500 billion each year, which is the equivalent of a permanent national recession.