DuVal High School and Eleanor Roosevelt High School are three miles apart physically, but the distance that separates the lives of their students is vast. Eleanor Roosevelt is home to one of three partial site magnet programs in Prince George’s County, MD. DuVal shows test scores and resources that are vastly lower the Roosevelt, most of the best resources going down the road to Roosevelt. Just up 4-95 is Baltimore, the location of The Wire, which depicts the issues of education inequality, especially in its Forth Season.
A great deal of the Forth season takes place in Edward Tilghman Middle School, where a lack of resources and pressures to stick to testing has lead to a failing institution. Children are pushed through grades in a process of social promotion, and there are books that are falling apart. Children are taught to the MSA, a result of the No Child Left Behind. This can be compared to the opulence of the private school that white detective McNulty considers sending his children to. He attends an open house. There are refreshments, and clearly a great deal of wealth. Instead of a test-based curriculum, the teachers are talking about their specialized math curriculum.
The difference is even more disturbing when two public institutions are involved, like in DuVal and Roosevelt. The website MDSchoolReportCardpublishes demographics and highlights their vast differences. One of the areas of difference is advanced placement testing. At DuVal, 10.2% of students took AP tests in 2011, and only 11.8% of tests were between 3-5, the passing rate. At Eleanor Roosevelt 63.3% of exams where above a 3, and 27% of students are enrolled in tests.
The book Savage Inequalities also discusses the problems with the different education people are receiving. In order to encourage students to take higher level courses, Prince George’s county has subsidized the cost of Advanced Placement Tests for all students. The argument is that the cost of tests has barred students from taking the courses. In fact, the amount of AP tests taken in PG county has risen from 2,252 in 2006-2007 to 4,037 in 2010-2011. (Toth) Additionally, 26% of students passed with a 3 or higher, which is lower then 40% in the more affluent Howard county next door. (Toth) In an nominal effort to make sure the waiving of fees is matched with the avialabilty of classes, the school system has also created a minimum of AP courses offered at each school, between 8 and 18. (Toth) The county is also working with the College Board, adminstrator of the Advanced Placement test to complete a full study of AP testing in the county. (Terhune) The county hopes to reach a goal of 75% of students taking AP tests by 2017, but so far only 43% of students are taking the test, even with the pushed emphasis. (Terhune) The money for this is being funded with $250,000 from its Maryland “Race to the Top Grant.” (Terhune) This “Race to the Top” grant is a part fo No Child Left Behind. Only time will tell how successful these measures are. However, based on previous patterns, pouring money into more forms of testing, or forcing students to take honors classes will not increase school performance. Schools like Roosevlet, who have more children interested in taking AP classes will still have more funding. After all, though the system said it is increasing testing, it is still based on “interest” and “enrollment.” And so, the cycle will likely continue.
Terhune, Virginia. “College Board Takes In-depth Look at Prince George’s AP Classes.”Gazette.net. Gazette, 17 Mar. 2011. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. <http://ww2.gazette.net/stories/03172011/prinsch140920_32534.php>.
Toth, Sara. “More Prince George’s Students Taking AP Tests, According to College Board.” Explore Howard.com. Baltimore Sun, 15 Feb. 2012. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. <http://www.baltimoresun.com/explore/howard/news/ph-ll-edbriefs-ap-0216-20120215,0,4149345.story>.
Not So Charming City: The Wire and Urban Life 