Toch, Thomas,
Divide and Conquer. Thomas Toch. - Washington Monthly, 2003. - SIRS Enduring Issues 2004. Article 9, Institutions, 1522-3256; .
Articles Contained in SIRS Enduring Issues 2004. Originally Published: Divide and Conquer, May 2003; pp. 20-26.
"High schools don't produce a lot of headlines in the national education debate. But they are arguably the weakest link in American education. International studies show that U.S. grade-school students perform reasonably well compared to their counterparts in developed countries in Europe and Asia. By junior high school, however, Americans fall behind their international peers, and plummet during the high school years. The gap is especially pronounced for kids who attend large high schools in urban areas with lots of students from low-income families. A typical example of a sprawling inner-city school was the Julia Richman High School on Manhattan's Upper East Side." (WASHINGTON MONTHLY) This article examines the educational reforms that have taken place at the violence-plagued Richman High School since it "abandoned the American tradition of the 'big high school' in favor of multiple scaled-down educational settings within the same building that engender a strong sense of community, where both students and teachers can flourish."
1522-3256;
Academic achievement
Class size
Community
Educational change
High schools
Inner cities
School size
Urban schools
AC1.S5
050
Divide and Conquer. Thomas Toch. - Washington Monthly, 2003. - SIRS Enduring Issues 2004. Article 9, Institutions, 1522-3256; .
Articles Contained in SIRS Enduring Issues 2004. Originally Published: Divide and Conquer, May 2003; pp. 20-26.
"High schools don't produce a lot of headlines in the national education debate. But they are arguably the weakest link in American education. International studies show that U.S. grade-school students perform reasonably well compared to their counterparts in developed countries in Europe and Asia. By junior high school, however, Americans fall behind their international peers, and plummet during the high school years. The gap is especially pronounced for kids who attend large high schools in urban areas with lots of students from low-income families. A typical example of a sprawling inner-city school was the Julia Richman High School on Manhattan's Upper East Side." (WASHINGTON MONTHLY) This article examines the educational reforms that have taken place at the violence-plagued Richman High School since it "abandoned the American tradition of the 'big high school' in favor of multiple scaled-down educational settings within the same building that engender a strong sense of community, where both students and teachers can flourish."
1522-3256;
Academic achievement
Class size
Community
Educational change
High schools
Inner cities
School size
Urban schools
AC1.S5
050