Dear Minneapolis School District,
In our course work as pre-service teachers we have been analyzing issues of the achievement gap, integration, and educational policies. Through this we’ve come across Minneapolis North High School’s educational struggles, and felt compelled to share a possible alternative plan of action. With the documented turmoil in American schools and the potential redistricting after North Community High School’s closing provides MPS a unique opportunity to drastically impact how diverse communities educate their children. With the goal of closing the achievement gap in mind we believe that creating a student and faculty partnership through area high schools would prove beneficial for not only students and faculty, but the community as well.
This partnership would involve integrating two separate high schools including North High School. The partner high school could be chosen based on high achievement and proximity to North High. We recommend exchanging 50 percent of the students and faculty through lottery selection. The implementation of this plan could provide learning opportunities beyond those currently available. Students and faculty would have the opportunity to learn from and with one another, creating a lasting and solid partnership.
Through our research we have learned that common educational practices often widen the achievement gap, whether knowingly or not. Former Boston school principal, Kim Marshall, wrote “A How-to Plan for Widening the Gap” in which he lists 15 contributing decisions. Some of these informative ideas are listed below alongside our correlated suggestions.
Looking at this plan of action from different perspectives we understand the probable upset. Throughout history, notable events have taken place when people took risks - trying new things when they saw hope and potential in places and times when giving up looked easiest. Therefore, we strongly encourage MPS to consider this plan.
Please feel free to contact us. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Future Educators at Luther College: Kristina Tucker, Emmalee Johnson, Brittinae Dralle, Ryan Monroe, and Ethan Schultz
In our course work as pre-service teachers we have been analyzing issues of the achievement gap, integration, and educational policies. Through this we’ve come across Minneapolis North High School’s educational struggles, and felt compelled to share a possible alternative plan of action. With the documented turmoil in American schools and the potential redistricting after North Community High School’s closing provides MPS a unique opportunity to drastically impact how diverse communities educate their children. With the goal of closing the achievement gap in mind we believe that creating a student and faculty partnership through area high schools would prove beneficial for not only students and faculty, but the community as well.
This partnership would involve integrating two separate high schools including North High School. The partner high school could be chosen based on high achievement and proximity to North High. We recommend exchanging 50 percent of the students and faculty through lottery selection. The implementation of this plan could provide learning opportunities beyond those currently available. Students and faculty would have the opportunity to learn from and with one another, creating a lasting and solid partnership.
Through our research we have learned that common educational practices often widen the achievement gap, whether knowingly or not. Former Boston school principal, Kim Marshall, wrote “A How-to Plan for Widening the Gap” in which he lists 15 contributing decisions. Some of these informative ideas are listed below alongside our correlated suggestions.
- Issue: Isolated and Shallow Planning
Solution: Through this integration collaborative planning and input would allow for differentiated experiences for both students and teachers. - Issue: Unclear Expectations/Lack of Curriculum and Standards
Solution: The integration will provide opportunity for collaborative goal setting, expectations, curriculum, and standards. - Issue: Track-Pairing of Students and Teachers
Solution: The random selection of students and teachers will allow for diversified pairings, less tracking, and varied learning opportunities.
Looking at this plan of action from different perspectives we understand the probable upset. Throughout history, notable events have taken place when people took risks - trying new things when they saw hope and potential in places and times when giving up looked easiest. Therefore, we strongly encourage MPS to consider this plan.
Please feel free to contact us. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Future Educators at Luther College: Kristina Tucker, Emmalee Johnson, Brittinae Dralle, Ryan Monroe, and Ethan Schultz
