Our Schools Suck : Students Talk Back to a Segregated Nation on the Failures of Urban Education

"Our schools suck." This is how many young people of color call attention to the kind of public education they are receiving. In cities across the nation, many students are trapped in under-funded, mismanaged and unsafe schools. Yet, a number of scholars and of public figures like Bill Cosby have shifted attention away from the persistence of school segregation to lambaste the values of young people themselves. Our Schools Suck forcefully challenges this assertion by giving voice to the compelling stories of African American and Latino students who attend under-resourced inner-city schools, where guidance counselors and AP classes are limited and security guards and metal detectors are plentiful—and grow disheartened by a public conversation that continually casts them as the problem with urban schools. By showing that young people are deeply committed to education but often critical of the kind of education they are receiving, this book highlights the dishonesty of public claims that they do not value education. Ultimately, these powerful student voices remind us of the ways we have shirked our public responsibility to create excellent schools. True school reform requires no less than a new civil rights movement, where adults join with young people to ensure an equal education for each and every student. Shares the voices of students speaking out against the failures of urban education "Our schools suck." This is how many young people of color call attention to the kind of public education they are receiving. In cities across the nation, many students are trapped in under-funded, mismanaged and unsafe schools. Yet, a number of scholars and of public figures have shifted attention away from the persistence of school segregation to lambaste the values of young people themselves. Our Schools Suck forcefully challenges this assertion by giving voice to the compelling stories of African American and Latino students who attend under-resourced inner-city schools, where guidance counselors and AP classes are limited and security guards and metal detectors are plentifuland grow disheartened by a public conversation that continually casts them as the problem with urban schools. By showing that young people are deeply committed to education but often critical of the kind of education they are receiving, this book highlights the dishonesty of public claims that they do not value education. Ultimately, these powerful student voices remind us of the ways we have shirked our public responsibility to create excellent schools. True school reform requires no less than a new civil rights movement, where adults join with young people to ensure an equal education for each and every student. Culture Trap: Talking About Young People Of Color And Their Education -- I Hate It When People Treat Me Like A Fxxx-up: Phony Theories, Segregated Schools, And The Culture Of Aspiration Among African American And Latino Teenagers -- They Ain't Hiring Kids From My Neighborhood: Young Men Of Color Negotiating Public Schools And Poor Work Options In New York City -- Where Youth Have An Actual Voice: Teenagers As Empowered Stakeholders In School Reform -- Conclusion -- Methodological Appendix: Listening To Young People. Gaston Alonso ... [et Al.]. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 233-274) And Index. Culture trap: talking about young people of color and their education "I hate it when people treat me like a fxxx-up": phony theories, segregated schools, and the culture of aspiration among African American and Latino teenagers "They ain't hiring kids from my neighborhood": young men of color negotiating public schools and poor work options in New York City "Where youth have an actual voice": teenagers as empowered stakeholders in school reform Conclusion: when young people talk back to a segregated nation Methodological appendix: listening to young people. Presents compelling stories of African American and Latino students who attend under-resourced inner-city schools. This book highlights the dishonesty of public claims that young people do not value education.