This is the reality of the conditions which produce many of the stereotypes present within low-income communities with low graduation rates. Rhetoric surrounding these schools and students often ignores the socioeconomic conditions that push kids into misbehavior, drugs, and gang violence.

For both girls, their relationship with their fathers (or lack thereof) can create a sense of loathing for anything gang related, and oversight of the conditions that may force someone into gang violence.

This is so interesting to me, I find it significant that the author mentions this, and I feel that it reflects the fact that modern day wealth disparities have shrunk the middle class and often created two opposite classes in areas like OC

the increase in latinos in these communities has led to a feeling by white residents that their communities are rapidly changing, and paired with an increase in conservative ideology in recent years, it contributes to a lack of cohesion between white and latino communities in OC

elevated levels of drug use in youth from impoverished or oppressed communities is a direct result of socioeconomic factors that perpetuate a cycle of poverty and prevents access to education, accomplishment.

Language skills of younger children often begin at home. For children who have parents that need to work longer hours in order to support their families, they are not able to spend as much time with their children. In turn, their children can be undersocialized or not have enough exposure to a variety of languages.

It's interesting to think about how while this might be true, the system as it is right now is simply fueling competition in the education system. Higher incomes can decrease stress, but to obtain a higher income, individuals should strive to do well in school and get a degree. But, higher education institutions don't have the bandwidth or capacity to make their services accessible to everyone, pushing students to compete with their peers and find ways to out-perform them.

Obtaining a bachelor's degree or any general degree in higher education can set someone up for success that is out of millions of Americans' reach. I do believe that college-level education is important for financial and generational success, but it should first and foremost be accessible to all.

This was extremely unexpected to me and ultimately goes to show the importance of stepping out of the norm in educational settings. I feel that if teachers are unable to challenge how their students think, especially outside of the textbook and academics, they are not fulfilling their role as an educator.

The concept of control within education is very important, given that education started in America as a tool to control society and communities as a whole. Denying the inclusion of race, sex, and class for the sake of avoiding conflict creates barriers to change. Positive and beneficial growth cannot be achieved through comfort and requires an openness to discomfort for the greater good.

This portion of the text is highlighting the importance of acknowledging the teacher perspective, specifically regarding any doubts, fears, or reservations they might have. By way of providing the appropriate resources to acknowledge these concerns, we can then make strides to adopt multiculturalism into education.

This is such an important concept to cover. Many institutions focused towards upward mobility have an underlying factor that keeps people in arms length from power. It is the very foundation to the concept of "the poor get poorer and the rich get richer." The drawbacks to institutional upwards mobility is a benefit to those who are above it.

This is a really interesting talking point, as I resonate with it on a deeply personal level. I was granted the privilege of growing up in a highly competitive and successful public school system, that provided countless resources to take advantage of and begin college preparation in middle school. Our local Asian community highly encouraged SAT prep, private tutoring, and placement exams to start Senior level courses in Freshman year. Because of this, I feel as though I was able to gain countless skills to succeed academically and socially in college, further allowing me to set myself up for a brighter future.

I strongly agree with this statement. It is impossible to fully grasp any American institution without recognizing intersecting systems and how they interact/affect one another. Given America's history with slavery and how that has set up a system against Black Americans, it is imperative to recognize the role race plays in lower income Black communities. This sentiment applies to other racial groups within America.

Connecting this reading to ED50, we recently learned about Mann and his involvement in the Common School Movement. He was a very big advocate for democratizing education, but his efforts were faced with a lot of apprehension.

This paragraph discusses the fight between the localization versus democratization of educational policies. Although it is important to value local communities' values, inputs, and autonomy, it is also imperative to consider how those values might play into ideologies surrounding systematic racial dispositions.

Equality within educational settings and the public school system often gets used in substitution for equity. Placing emphasis on the goal of reaching equality negates the necessity of equity to reach that goal.

Concepts like the American Dream are extremely interesting to me. Although I agree with the core principles of it, our history has transformed it into a tool to fuel capitalism and competition within our education system. It furthers other concepts like the Bootstrap Theory, which indicates that with hardworking, upwards economic and social mobility is guaranteed.