BLOG #3

In the reading it states that “The school system is the primary normative institution for children and youth in the United States and holds vast potential for supporting young people in becoming productive, healthy adults.” In most cases I have not seen this. My major before youth development was elementary education and I have intershipped in five different schools. I feel as though they do not keep these students productive, but just go along with their curriculum and do busy work. Other schools might be a different case, but I have yet to see this happen. When this article talks about the history, I feel as though those students appreciated school more and got more out of learning then students do today. This statement “if children were in school, they were not out on the streets causing mischief and social disorder.” I feel as though this is a true statement because these kids are busy with other actions rather than causing trouble. I also believe in the youth programs for later in the day to help keep kids out of trouble. They talk about the size and diversity in the public schools. I think that the more diverse people that are in one school the more likely people are to be nice to each other because everyone is different. When I was in high school I started off at one school which was mainly high class whites. I was an outcast and got into a lot of trouble. I than went to a more diverse school that I liked a lot better, made more friends and did better in school without causing trouble. As far as faculty goes for the first school I felt they did not help me at all they just turned their backs. The lower class schools faculty was much more helpful in guidance and extra help as well.

“Teachers whose actions are determined more by rules and regulations than by their own creativity and judgment as professionals have limited latitude in allowing adolescents to make judgments about the course of their studies or the ways in which they will participate in or contribute to the school and the community.’ This statement bothers me because the student should have the right to choose what classes or what they need to do with their own life.  I understand that schools have rules, but there is a line to let these teachers have their own judgment on these students that they work with because not all students are the same.