The Disconnect of Poor-Urban Education: Equal Access and a Pedagogy of Risk Taking

In an age of educational accountability and school competition, the gap between current poor‐urban school performance and standards of excellence remains glaringly obvious. As poor‐urban schools scramble to “close the gap,” many abandon sound pedagogy, becoming entrenched in a curriculum where basic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychology in the schools 2005-11, Vol.42 (8), p.855-863
Main Authors: Belfiore, Phillip J., Auld, Ruth, Lee, David L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
Access to Education
Accountability
Early Reading
Educational accountability
Educational Practices
Educational Quality
Educational sector
Equal Education
Literacy
Pilot Projects
Reading Skills
Risk
Small Group Instruction
Teaching Methods
United States
Urban Areas
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Summary:In an age of educational accountability and school competition, the gap between current poor‐urban school performance and standards of excellence remains glaringly obvious. As poor‐urban schools scramble to “close the gap,” many abandon sound pedagogy, becoming entrenched in a curriculum where basic‐skills worksheets are the primary method of educational delivery resulting in a disconnect between pedagogically sound educational practices and those very students that need it most. Two literacy pilot programs are discussed as applied examples showing that good teaching and accountability result in increases in early reading skills as measured by the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test‐Revised (R.W. Woodcock, 1998). Results are discussed in light of raised teacher expectations, assessment‐driven small class grouping, and active student learning. In a supportive, challenging environment, the basis for a pedagogy of risk taking emerges. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 42: 855–863, 2005.
ISSN:0033-3085
1520-6807
DOI:10.1002/pits.20116