the search for equity..

Children of Immigrants.

This was an issue that stood out to me from Noguera's second portion of the book. He says that the children of immigrant people are the ones that have it the hardest because they do not know what to expect from anyone. They have to balance academic life, social life, family life, etc. There are many students dropping out because everything is so new to them and no one takes the time to address their needs. Due to this, we have an astonishing problem with violence. Violence occurs across every board. Violence has been such an issue, that it no longer is a problem of the school, but a problem of society and the surrounding community.



This same idea of the turning over the schools to the government sounds a bit to familiar to what is going on in Chicago. In the month of February, the Chicago Public School Board approved 17 school closings in the Chicagoland area. When we look at issues like that I wonder if closing 17 schools really does benefit the students. Or is it just a temporary solution? I wonder about the gangs, and how they might now conflict if the schools students have to go to are in "rival territories." Will this affect violence? Will this affect the drop-out rate? Will this be blamed on the school? Will more schools get closed? All of these questions have the answer: "we make the difference."



 As teachers, we should ask ourselves, "What values am I instilling to make them want a better life?" Where do we emphasize the idea of justice? It is as if we let people get away with things for a long time and then expect them to change all of a sudden when we don't see it appropriate. In order to be just and show our love, we need to be proactive with the situation. As a Christian, I believe that everyone is made in the image of God. Thus, we must treat everyone we encounter as such, with love, respect, mercy, grace and forgiveness.



We make the difference. We build the self-esteem. We build community. We build acceptance of others. We build toleration. It all falls on us; not as individuals, but as a team.