I've only been a substitute teacher for 4 years, and already one of my former students has died!
http://www.starbulletin.com/sports/20090722_Vocal_Beasley_left_lasting_impression.html
I only met Tatiana Beasley once.
This was during that one time I was called to sub @ Roosevelt High School. I was there for Mr. Kanno, a health/PE teacher.
Tatiana Beasley was in the weight training class and she helped me with recording the attendance (ie. noting down who's absent, etc. ).
I could already sense she was probably on one of the school's sports teams. About a few weeks later, the local newspapers had an article about her being a star on the school's girls basketball team!
Unfortunately, Beasley died earlier this month in a car accident!
You never know when it's all going to end!
Condolences to the friends & family of Ms Beasley.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
affirmative action debate
Salon had an article a few weeks back on the Sotomayor's confirmation hearings and I was debating on it's comments thread!
Article here
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/07/17/ricci/index.html
Comment thread here
http://letters.salon.com/news/feature/2009/07/17/ricci/view/?show=all
Well, the thing about Salon's comment thread is ... someone can respond to you, and sometimes when you finally see their responses, the comment thread is closed, giving your opponents a false sense of victory, when their only victory is their timing, not their ideas!
Here I demolish the arguments of a commenter called "Jomama"
--------
What if you, a non-white male with mediocre test scores- acceptable scores, but nothing to write home about- applied to a different college and did not gain admission, while 15-20 of your white male friends with LOWER scores than you did get accepted? Would you still be singing the anti AA blues?
My whole point wasn't to "brag" about my test scores, just to say I got into my university by meeting the standards!
I'm for (Oh my God ... NO!) having all students gain acceptance into college following the same standards!
Jim Crow didn't allow for that, NEITHER does Affirmative Action!
------
What if you had to take a test that was structured around cultural questions on something you knew absolutely nothing about, like Susan's wine test, west coast vs. east coast rappers, the brand names in a high end clothing store, whatever... You wouldn't cry foul?
LAMEST ARGUMENT EVER!
The SAT tests I took a decade ago already had reading comprehension questions on Black History and Latino culture!
I don't think it changed since. Or if it did, they probably added questions on Middle Eastern culture, Asian-American history, etc.
By the way, the reading comprehension section of the SAT is about how well you understood what you just read. If there's a paragraph about sharks and the SAT is asking you questions about it, IT IS NOT TESTING WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT SHARKS! It is testing if you understood what the author said about sharks!
The Radical Left rhetoric of "SAT is culturally bias" is evidence-free rhetoric! They're starting to remind me of those Radical Right losers complaining about Obama's birth certificate!
--------
Yes, there are problems with AA. But discrimination still exists.
Yet Jomama didn't explain what he/she thinks the problems with AA is! Jomama is too busy denouncing me with lame arguments!
I never said "discrimination doesn't exist"! Only those who never read my blog can accuse me of thinking that way!
-------
What is wrong with at the very least, attempting to make sure that everybody is given a level playing field?
I am attempting to give everyone a level playing field!
It's the Jim Crow and the Affirmative Action that doesn't give people a level playing field!
---
Sounds like you are firmly in that Republican pull yourself up by your bootstraps crowd. Which would be fine in a world where we all had the same set of boots, or at least a set of boots to start with.
I NEVER even used the words "bootstraps"! And I'm pro-abortion, for legalizing same-sex marriage, for ending the militarized war on drugs, and for sex-ed! That's NOT Republican!
----
PART TWO
Another lame debater, this one named thisrainyanorak
Others have deconstructed your inane and intellectually dishonest NBA analogy that conveniently disregards the FACT that Blacks were actively discriminated against and excluded from NBA teams for decades so I won't go over that ground
That policy ended in 1950! NONE of the current NBA players were born yet! Most of their parents weren't even born yet! My parents weren't even born yet! You can come out of your time-warp now!
---------
I think affirmative action is very flawed and there are reasonable arguments for dismantling it
And you never said a single one of them! You are an AA supporter! You can come out of the closet now!
---------
Many college administrations have determined that having a racially diverse campus is important and the Supreme Court agrees that this is a "compelling interest."
That's why I brought up the NBA example in the 1st place!
The AA supporters complain that there's "too many Asians in our colleges, we need lowered standards for African-American and Latino students"
If the AA crowd had any sense of consistency, they'll demand the NBA to give lowered standards to Latino and Asian ballplayers!
The real humane standard is for colleges and NBA teams to (Oh my God... NO!) get the most qualified individuals even if it doesn't satisfy the diversity bean-counters of the AA crowd!
--------
Egregiously lowered standards are the bastion of legacy and athletic-based based admissions. Should those be outlawed too?
YES and YES!
-------
Oh, and pompously and repeatedly pointing out that you were able to meet a laughably low admission standard and comparing yourself to favorably to others who may not have IS "bragging" and your repeated denials of that don't say much about your self-awareness.
You're missing my point! My point is if me (an under-represented minority ) can get into a college of my choice following the same standards of European-Americans and Asian-Americans so can others! What's wrong with saying that?
Article here
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/07/17/ricci/index.html
Comment thread here
http://letters.salon.com/news/feature/2009/07/17/ricci/view/?show=all
Well, the thing about Salon's comment thread is ... someone can respond to you, and sometimes when you finally see their responses, the comment thread is closed, giving your opponents a false sense of victory, when their only victory is their timing, not their ideas!
Here I demolish the arguments of a commenter called "Jomama"
--------
What if you, a non-white male with mediocre test scores- acceptable scores, but nothing to write home about- applied to a different college and did not gain admission, while 15-20 of your white male friends with LOWER scores than you did get accepted? Would you still be singing the anti AA blues?
My whole point wasn't to "brag" about my test scores, just to say I got into my university by meeting the standards!
I'm for (Oh my God ... NO!) having all students gain acceptance into college following the same standards!
Jim Crow didn't allow for that, NEITHER does Affirmative Action!
------
What if you had to take a test that was structured around cultural questions on something you knew absolutely nothing about, like Susan's wine test, west coast vs. east coast rappers, the brand names in a high end clothing store, whatever... You wouldn't cry foul?
LAMEST ARGUMENT EVER!
The SAT tests I took a decade ago already had reading comprehension questions on Black History and Latino culture!
I don't think it changed since. Or if it did, they probably added questions on Middle Eastern culture, Asian-American history, etc.
By the way, the reading comprehension section of the SAT is about how well you understood what you just read. If there's a paragraph about sharks and the SAT is asking you questions about it, IT IS NOT TESTING WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT SHARKS! It is testing if you understood what the author said about sharks!
The Radical Left rhetoric of "SAT is culturally bias" is evidence-free rhetoric! They're starting to remind me of those Radical Right losers complaining about Obama's birth certificate!
--------
Yes, there are problems with AA. But discrimination still exists.
Yet Jomama didn't explain what he/she thinks the problems with AA is! Jomama is too busy denouncing me with lame arguments!
I never said "discrimination doesn't exist"! Only those who never read my blog can accuse me of thinking that way!
-------
What is wrong with at the very least, attempting to make sure that everybody is given a level playing field?
I am attempting to give everyone a level playing field!
It's the Jim Crow and the Affirmative Action that doesn't give people a level playing field!
---
Sounds like you are firmly in that Republican pull yourself up by your bootstraps crowd. Which would be fine in a world where we all had the same set of boots, or at least a set of boots to start with.
I NEVER even used the words "bootstraps"! And I'm pro-abortion, for legalizing same-sex marriage, for ending the militarized war on drugs, and for sex-ed! That's NOT Republican!
----
PART TWO
Another lame debater, this one named thisrainyanorak
Others have deconstructed your inane and intellectually dishonest NBA analogy that conveniently disregards the FACT that Blacks were actively discriminated against and excluded from NBA teams for decades so I won't go over that ground
That policy ended in 1950! NONE of the current NBA players were born yet! Most of their parents weren't even born yet! My parents weren't even born yet! You can come out of your time-warp now!
---------
I think affirmative action is very flawed and there are reasonable arguments for dismantling it
And you never said a single one of them! You are an AA supporter! You can come out of the closet now!
---------
Many college administrations have determined that having a racially diverse campus is important and the Supreme Court agrees that this is a "compelling interest."
That's why I brought up the NBA example in the 1st place!
The AA supporters complain that there's "too many Asians in our colleges, we need lowered standards for African-American and Latino students"
If the AA crowd had any sense of consistency, they'll demand the NBA to give lowered standards to Latino and Asian ballplayers!
The real humane standard is for colleges and NBA teams to (Oh my God... NO!) get the most qualified individuals even if it doesn't satisfy the diversity bean-counters of the AA crowd!
--------
Egregiously lowered standards are the bastion of legacy and athletic-based based admissions. Should those be outlawed too?
YES and YES!
-------
Oh, and pompously and repeatedly pointing out that you were able to meet a laughably low admission standard and comparing yourself to favorably to others who may not have IS "bragging" and your repeated denials of that don't say much about your self-awareness.
You're missing my point! My point is if me (an under-represented minority ) can get into a college of my choice following the same standards of European-Americans and Asian-Americans so can others! What's wrong with saying that?
Monday, July 27, 2009
Education: Public vs Private
Earlier this month, the Honolulu Star Bulletin had an interview with UH professor Ann Bayer. Bayer wrote a book "Going Against the Grain: When Professionals in Hawai'i Choose Public Schools Instead of Private Schools"
http://www.starbulletin.com/editorials/20090719_Going_public.html
From that article
------
I'm a public school graduate! I remember joking around about how private school students are "overly sheltered"! ( I know, an exxagarated stereotype. Sorry for offending private school alumni!)
I have aligned myself with libertarians on many issues! Many libertarians hate the public school system! But I am a public school grad, and a public school employee!
So where do I stand?
Here's what I wrote to Dr. Ann Bayer
--------
----------
I hope that explains what I think about the government education system and school choice!
http://www.starbulletin.com/editorials/20090719_Going_public.html
From that article
As part of her research, Bayer, a professor and chairwoman in the Educational Psychology Department at the University of Hawaii, interviewed dozens of parents — doctors, lawyers, college professors, military officers and business executives — who could afford to pay private-school tuition but resisted the peer pressure to do so.
Instead they enrolled their children in Hawaii public schools and ended up being satisfied with the quality and scope of the academic and extracurricular activities, the condition of the facilities and the safety of the campuses. "They didn't feel like they were sacrificing their children for some greater cause. They were simply satisfied with the overall quality of the experience," said Bayer. "Their kids went on to the same colleges as their friends who had gone to private school."
------
I'm a public school graduate! I remember joking around about how private school students are "overly sheltered"! ( I know, an exxagarated stereotype. Sorry for offending private school alumni!)
I have aligned myself with libertarians on many issues! Many libertarians hate the public school system! But I am a public school grad, and a public school employee!
So where do I stand?
Here's what I wrote to Dr. Ann Bayer
--------
Hi Dr. Bayer,
I read the article about your book in yesterday's edition of the Honolulu Star Bulletin. It really hit home with me.
I am a graduate of McKinley High School, which has been labeled a "dropout factory".
I do think McKinley High School does a GREAT job with well-motivated students. Many do well in math meets and do go on to top-notch universities!
However, the great flaw of McKinley High School when I was there (late 1990's) was that it didn't do well with un-motivated students! Many of those students were either gang-affiliated, gang wanabees or just didn't care!
If we want to talk about the failures of the public education system, it has ALMOST NOTHING to do with well-motivated students. It is the failure of the system to make un-motivated students into well-motivated students!
I do currently work as a substitute teacher in various schools. I did work at Central Middle School as a substitute a few years ago! That school had a reputation for being "rough", "dangerous" and "not being a good school". However, that school did have modernized computer labs, air conditioned classrooms and plenty of EAs. Also, not everyone was a victim or a predator! Some are well-adjusted students headed for success!
While I haven't been back to that school in a while (due to the difference of philosophy between me and it's administration under Brian Mizuguchi) if someone ask if I'll send my future children there, I'll tell them "I 'll give it a year's chance. If it goes well, I'll continue, if not, I'll find another school".
Another flaw of the public education system is the "one-size-fits-all-for-all-students-in-the-district". That's NOT true! Some students will do well in a large public school. Other students would've been better off in a charter school, alternative school, private school, homeschool, etc."
As for vouchers, I think government-funded vouchers would too much of a hassle politically, but I am in a favor of privately funded vouchers for those children who are struggling in their district public school and might be better off in a school like (for example, ASSETS or Academy of the Pacific), or any private school!
So I am in favor of school choice, NOT because "public schools are always bad" but parents need more choices in where to send their kids. If their public school works well with that student, GOOD! If not, let the parent choose another school!
Anyways, I wrote about "dropout factory" issue on my blog a few years back and you can check it out at
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2007/11/i-graduated-from-dropout-factory.html
If time permitting, let me know what you think about what I wrote in that blog post!
Anyways, in case you want to write another book or article on this issue, feel free to quote ANYTHING I wrote in this e-mail or on my blog-post linked above!
Pablo Wegesend
----------
I hope that explains what I think about the government education system and school choice!
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