Paper

Lauren Helffrich               

Professor Eileen Brumitt

Writing 100

                                                                Effect Demographic Location has on Education.

                Education in America is not the same everywhere you go, it varies on type of city, type of teachers, the teacher union, and the view of potential the students has. A big effect of the type of education you receive depends on the demographic area you live in. Jean Anyons “Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum” and Paolo Freire’s “The Banking Concept of Education” help to explain how the demographic area of a school district, whether in the suburbs or city, determines how the students are tracked and the type of education they receive.

Growing up in the suburb of Kutztown is entirely different experiences that growing up in a big school like Parkland. Kutztown High School has three main types of high school classes you can take. There are the college prep students that aim to continue their education after high school, the vo-tech students that are hoping to start a basic career right out of high school by learning the basics requirements early, and there are the agriculture students who are children of farmers and are assumed to continue the “family business” and tradition by helping on the farm. Students at schools closer to the city with a larger population do not have classes for agriculture. Parkland for example is a school with a good education that has more options available.  At school districts like this, there are more art, music, business classes available for students. It is not that some of those classes are there for students in suburbs, however at schools like Kutztown it is encouraged to participate in agriculture to keep the community into farming. Students in school districts that track to keep the community enriched in the same culture and that is not open to change, inhibit student’s educational growth. If children choose to follow their parents footsteps it should be just that, their choice. Farmers sons and daughters should have that option available however they should also have the option to take other classes and experience on a small scale what else is out there and other roads of opportunity.  Schools should not be making the decisions for our next generation.

                The way the students are taught affects their education. The demographic location of schools, affects the type of students that are attending there. Larger suburb schools tend to have a population of adults that have better paying jobs. Schools located more in the city have a population of lower income. The use of the “banking” concept is more commonly known in the lower income schools. Paolo Freire explains what the “banking concept” is and how it affects students. “This is the “banking” concept of education, in which the scope of action allowed to the students extends only as far as receiving, filling, and storing the deposits (Freire 368). Using the description Anyon gives us of the various classes of education. The main classes of education are the working class school, the middle class school, the executive elite school and the affluent professional school.  The “banking” concept is not allowing the students to debate information they are given and understanding the reason behind it. Most students that are taught by the “banking” theory might know the answer to a question, however they may not understand why the answer is what it is and the thought process behind it. They will not be able to think for themselves without direction. The “banking” concept would be more likely found in working class and middle schools. Kutztown is a school that focus a majority of its effort toward the agricultural aspect of its classes. There is not a lot of pressure put on for the college prep courses. Kutztown would fall into the Middle-Class School. There are teachers her that use the “banking” concept. Many of the staff at Kutztown, have also come from small schools and talk at the students. The main goal is fill the students head with the required knowledge. There are not high expectations of students to become great inventors or creators. The thought is only half (if lucky) will continue education. Parkland High School is known to be more focused on the arts and embracing the students creativeness. There are still teachers that will use the “banking” theory to try to just get students by and fill their head with enough information to pass state tests. There are more options for students to choice from to do with their future. The students are able to express themselves. Parkland would fall into Executive Elite School. “A primary goal of thought is to conceptualize rules by which elements may fit together in systems and then to apply these rules in solving a problem (Anyon 8). The way a student is taught effects they type of career have and the life they are given.  

                Although there are state regulations and government regulations, not every school is teaching their students the same way.  There have been many programs that have been tested to try and fix current problems with education. The problem is that everyone has different opinion on what is wrong with the education system so there is no clear answer of what to do to fix the education or how it should run. There are many differences between school districts because of the demographic area of the schools , they type of teachers they employ, the stereotype that the school is under. Students are the ones that pay the consequences. The area that a student lives, does not affect how smart they are, therefore they should all be able to have the same options available to them. Having Jean Anyon and Paolo Freire to help show explain the exactly how the demographic area of a school affects how the students are tracked and the type of education they receive.