I consider myself a citizen who cares and is involved with her community. I volunteer in the community, only doing the things I know I will enjoy doing, which helps me to remain committed. I have done a shift with a very popular and busy Peoria Police Officer and I have done a ride about with a very popular and busy District 150 Teacher who is desparately trying to reach students who have dropped out and pull them back.
On the first ride about with this teacher, we encountered the young man, who is the "city's seventh homicide victim of the year." His street name: Reco Suave, his birth name: Roberico King. Roberico was a drop out from District 150 public schools, he had so much potential. Potential that he will never realize. If only this teacher had more help in reaching him...
Peoria has got to find a way to reach all of these young people who have dropped out of school and subsequently civil society. Recently a reader of the blog pointed me to a program that other communities are implementing, a program called "Drop Out Walks":
A Drop Out Walk is when volunteers (community representatives, Board members, administration and school staff) take part in an annual “Reach Out to Dropout Walk” to encourage students who have dropped out of school to return and complete their education. The event would give volunteers the opportunity to meet face-to-face with students to show that they care about the students’ success at completing high school. This is the call to action from another city:
The teacher I mentioned above is heart broken about Roberico and all of the other students that we are losing to the street. This teacher has gone into neighborhoods that even I wouldn't consider going, just to reach students. This teacher shouldn't be alone in the drop out walk - we can all help.
Let's get this started Peoria. We can plan over the summer and kick off the 2012-2013 school year reaching out to youths who have dropped out. Is this something readers of this blog would get behind?
Hat tip to Kohlrabi for the Drop Out Walk information.
11 comments:
Emerge
Things like this are the reason why i love this blog this is a wonderful idea and i would love to help you with it in any way that i can. This is one of the baby steps that can help save our neighborhoods. I have a first grader down the road from me that wants to quit school and come work for me it breaks my heart that this young man says this to me every time i see him. i tell him i will let him work for me when he gets older. One of my guys dropped out and doesn't even have a drivers license i am teaching him how to drive and he keeps telling this young man down the street you need an education to get anywhere. We need to come together and make sure these kids get their education it is the only thing that can't be taken away from them.
Emerge, count me in.
Let me know how I can promote this
on CAPtions, JT's Bourbon St. LIVE, etc. I'd also like to meet this teacher and police officer, and do a video 'ride-a-long' with them as well. You have my email.
If we can prevent one youth from ending up behind bars or in the grave, it will be a success.
Thanks.
Unfortunately, the teacher of whom Emerge speaks had a plan approved by Dr. Durflinger and the board that could have been working right now to further a cause such as Drop Out Walk; however, Dr. Lathan didn't like the plan.
In some limited sense I did understand that Dr. Lathan might have been taking the stand that District 150 does not get funding from the state to handle those who have already dropped out. However, this program wouldn't have broken the bank anymore than some of the other programs purchased in the last two years--programs that might not produce even close to the same results.
Right now the plan in District 150 is to eliminate dropouts by raising the graduation rate. Here I go, cynic that I am; however, some of those young people are in no better shape than are the dropouts because they have not really done the work or achieved the goals necessary to have marketable skills of any kind.
Many of these young people do not see the light until after they have dropped out. It is at that point in their lives when they realize what they need that the community needs to provide that door of opportunity.
During the brief time that I worked at Proctor (a couple of years ago), I saw several of these young people, who were taking advantage of the opportunity to work toward their GED. There probably should be a whole building dedicated to this effort instead of one classroom. Some will say that ICC offers these opportunities. I say, "No," because some of these older dropouts would never have the confidence to start at ICC--they need a place to transition.
My understanding of the program that was running in Des Moines is that they were targeting kids who hadn't shown up for the beginning of the next school year - but were expected to. They were there for 9th grade but didn't show up for 10th grade. The folks doing the drop-out walk actively went out and found the kids, talked to them, brought them to the school and got them enrolled, got supplies, found out about transportation, etc. I don't think they were targeting kids that had dropped out in the past years.
This is a great idea. I would also like to be involved in any way that I can. Hopefully there is more news to come on this, and that you can gain support and traction with it.
Sharon, you are right. Quite few of the graduates didn't deserve to graduate as they didn't do the work.The same thing with saying the high amount attending college. That is inflated too.
Potential that he will never realize. If only this teacher had more help in reaching him...
Like from his parents?
This graduation rate game is yet another evil spawned by NCLB. AYP cannot be easily manipulated, but the graduation rate can be manipulated. As a consequence, Credit Recovery was created in District 150--it is the means by which students can bypass classroom requirements like term papers, etc., to get a diploma. All a student has to do is fail a class and then he/she can take the computer class, which does not have any of those long term requirements, etc. Also, I hope nobody believes that students really have to pass the computer-generated assignments, tests, etc.
Also, Credit Recovery has replaced Summer School, where students had to complete course work during the summer instead of piling up several Credit Recovery classes during the regular school year.
As for the statistics about those entering college--no one checks to see how many of those students pass classes or even stay in college for any length of time.
I don't know what Sharon's talking about but the TAEOP and Safe School Programs that I've worked in require that the students pass, yes actually pass, the assignments and tests in their online classes. In fact, most of the online classes I'm familiar with (APEX) are more difficult that 'classroom' classes. Those kids who take the online classes don't have the luxury of classroom discussion or a teacher to help explain difficult concepts. Additionally, some of the kids I've worked with were only placed in online classes because the alternative programs they were placed in didn't offer the array of courses available in those other programs.
And you know what? I sure as heck think that any student willing to put the time in on an online class should get a lot of credit for their efforts to make good after having been marginalized. Students who are willing to show up, sit in front of a computer all day, every day with very little peer interaction and very little teacher support deserve some recognition.
Further, several of the students I worked with actually had to do MORE long-term work than their peers. There ARE research papers, non-computer scored quizzes and even essay exams that are required.
Everyone should stand behind students who choose non-traditional methods to get a high school diploma. These are the young people who will stay in the community and will need to find work to support a family. These days kids who want to go into the military are better off with a diploma instead of a GED.
Anything that gets young people back in a classroom - any classroom - gets them off the streets and heads them in the right direction. For some kids, just getting up at the same time every day, in school for 'X' number of hours and exposed to an alternative to where they've been is a wonderful thing.
Great points Rix, thanks.
Rixblix, I hope you're right. It isn't what I've heard about District 150. I know it wasn't the case when Credit Recovery was first initiated in 150 while I was there. I would certainly applaud the program about which you speak and if that is what District 150 is doing, then that's great. I'm sorry to be a cynic, but I know that not all programs are carried out with fidelity in District 150.
I know that Pekin has a program for kids who can't function in the classroom--and they do all by computer. I've heard it is a good program.
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