Introduction
The District of Colombia is segregated. From the visual of race to the levels of economic wealth in the area, there are people living at the bottom and the top of the totem pole. In adolescence, teenagers are influenced by their neighborhoods, schools, peers, and parents. This influence produces drive within students to achieve, or leads them to become apathic and unwilling. High school aged adolescents reflect the enthusiasm of such into their own lives, in the ways that are demonstrated so. Woodrow Wilson high school and Bethesda Chevy Chase High School are two segregated schools. Students come from all types of neighborhoods and family situations to come together at school with their peers, and at this point, students are sponges for examples. “All individuals develop within a variety of environmental contexts… the setting having direct contact with the individual (family, neighborhood, peers, and school), which, in turn influence how they will [act] with various [people]” (Foney and Cunningham 144). At Bethesda Chevy Chase, students come from the cities surrounding the area, which have wealthier families attending. Woodrow Wilson High School is in the District of Colombia, Bethesda Chevy Chase is located in Bethesda Maryland. The students’ racial identities flip flop between schools—there are 51% African Americans and 23% White students at Woodrow Wilson, and 49% White and 23% African American students at Woodrow Wilson. There is an obvious difference with the attitude of the students, which can be because of the racial factor. The following observations, interviews, and research show how the influence of others, and the bias of students per teacher, class length, and neighborhood all build or decrease the interest and drive of the students attending high school.
Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Bethesda Chevy Chase High School is well-kept, with mowed grass, trimmed bushes, a minimal amount of litter on the walkways approaching the building, and a walled off area from the dumpster. It has four vast floors, clean hallways, a cyber café, and a courtyard. Teachers resemble hallway security, reminding students that they are on the way to class, not a red carpet event, and nudge students to get moving. Being that there is low security, I can walk into the school, assumed a student or a teacher’s assistant and don’t have a need for a visitor’s badge, although it is expected that visitors wear these. There is silence in the empty halls when students are in class, with the occasional late student, and attentive listeners in the classroom. Bethesda graduates almost 95% of its’ students, and of these, 93.7% plan to attend college (BCC). Of the students I interviewed, New York University, Michigan University, Pennsylvania State University, and University of Virginia are some of the schools that students are planning to attend, with the assistance of their parent’s checkbooks. Students in this class have parents who are from Egypt, Germany, England, and Cuba, along with the United States.
Bethesda Chevy Chase High School is located in Bethesda, Maryland, and is one stop out of D.C., off the Redline Metro. BCC has over 1800 students, who are 62% white, 16.1% African American, 14% Hispanic, and 8% Asian American (BCC). These students also come from all over the world, with bilingual abilities, parents who coach athletic stars on communication skills, and prestigious college plans. I attend the first two fifty minute periods of an eight period day at BCC. Bethesda is situated in an upper-class business district, down the road from the Metro station, and students come from neighbor towns, like Kensington, Silver Spring, Friendship Heights, as well as Bethesda itself to attend the high school.Most students who graduate from BCC go to college, only 6% are seek direct employment after graduation, and only .2% of BCC students join the military.
Woodrow Wilson High School
Located in the heart of D.C., in Tenleytown, called Woodrow Wilson High School. This school houses over 1500 students, and of these, 51% African American, 23% white, 17% Hispanic, and 8% Asian (DCPS). These students come from across the world; I have met students from Iraq, Belgium, Germany, Taiwan, the Balkans, and Latin America. Wilson students come from all over Northwest D.C.
As I enter Woodrow Wilson High School, I’m required to sign in, present an identification card, put my bag on the conveyor belt to pass through the X-ray machine, and walk through a metal detector. I’m asked to wear a visitor’s badge, and am questioned by security when I do not. Sometimes when I arrive, get my visitor’s badge, go through the metal detector and go into the hall, I’m still questioned as to why I am there, because I look so much like a student. Security lines the halls of Wilson high school. Even though I know exactly what I’m doing there, and know it’s nothing conspicuous, I still fear their wrath.
Wilson is one of the better schools in the District of Colombia area. There are many programs that influence students to achieve in their high school careers, and lead them to college. These are called Career Tracks, and students can follow these in their own individual choice for their future, in areas such as Business, Engineering, Science, in the Arts, or in Media and Communications. Of those 80% that graduate from Wilson High, nine out of ten attend college all over the country (Wilson). Though Wilson High School is rather prestigious in academics and extra programs for the students to be a part of, it has issues. The building is old—wires line the walls rather than being in them, the doors are heavy and don’t open as you expect, the stairs have a fence separating the “up” and “down” sides, signs which are rarely followed. There is trash in the hallways. Students dawdle on the way to class, and have to be frequently prodded to get to class on time, with bullhorns, and security yelling throughout the halls. To enter the school, one must have I.D., and go through a metal detector, and wear a nametag.
Though the school is becoming “modernized” so that it is in better shape for the larger amount of students that are going to continually attend Wilson, the “under construction” look of the school isn’t the best for it’s image. There are grassless paths where students defined shortcuts to the actual sidewalks. There are discarded, forgotten pencils, scissors, paper, candy wrappers, and other miscellaneous things on the ground on the way in. Parking is wherever a car can fit that isn’t in the fire lane, sometimes on the sidewalk, and lining the entrance to the school. \
Chaos reigns in some classes at Woodrow Wilson High School. There are students that want to learn, and these lead and add to discussion in class, and bring up good ideas, but they battle with the students that talk religiously during the class. Each period of class is ninety minutes long, and each day alternates to different classes. Though it takes longer to get the class to order, and to get students on task, there is great discussion coming from all the students around. At Wilson high school, 80% of all students graduate. This is one of the better schools that are in D.C., fitting into the median of the D.C.’s public schools, some graduating 100% of their classes and others only 38% of their students graduate (Graduation).
Interviews
Bethesda Chevy Chase High School
Alli, a senior with a 3.6 GPA, was looking to go to New York University. Her mother works at Verisign, and her father works as a drum teacher. They are paying for her education, though in what career and field she has no idea what she wants to do. She said she wouldn’t attend NYU that she had planned if her parents couldn’t pay for it. Alli gets a $30 allowance a week, and unlimited funding for whatever programs and school activities she’s involved in at school. She is on the gymnastics team, and is part of several of the school’s clubs. When going out with friends, they usually go to movies, or eat out. Alli lives in Bethesda, and is white. She thinks her schooling and economic situation is an advantage to her because she “can do almost anything with the resources that [she has].”
Renee lives in Friendship Heights. Her mother is a teacher with a Master’s degree, and her stepfather is self-employed, and didn’t finish college. Renee has a 3.7 G.P.A., is white, and is part of the Advanced Placement program, National Honors Society, and the Spanish Honors Society at BCC. Renee’s parents are also paying for her college education, as she looks to attend Michigan University or the University of South California, with an Undecided Major. She was “not sure” what she would do if her parent’s couldn’t or didn’t pay for school, and “would have to think about her options.” Though she doesn’t receive an allowance, her parents provide money for the Metro, and other activities. Renee spends her time outside of school working with Teen Court, an internship, and her English class. She thinks that her school and economic situation is “an advantage and a disadvantage. [She] gets a good education, but it’s financially hard to live around [D.C.].” When spending time with friends, she “talks on the phone at random times,” but considers her self “pretty anti-social.”
Willi, a Hispanic student from BCC, has a 3.1 GPA, lives in Silver Spring, in a four-bedroom house. Her dad is in the construction business and her mom stays home. Her parents are from El Salvador and received a high school education before coming to the United States. She is part of the Advanced Placement classes at BCC, and volunteers in her spare time. She’s planning to continue her education into paralegal studies, and her parents are paying for her college. She would not go to the school where she was planning to if her parents weren’t going to pay for it. Willi receives $50 a week as an allowance. When she spends time with her friends, they go to the mall, or out to eat, and Willi describes her friends as “energetic and laid back”. She feels that her placement in society is an advantage to her because “the D.C. area offers a lot of open schools and businesses that [she] can place [herself] into.”
Jessica has a 2.5 GPA, is part of the golf team, and feels she has an advantage because of where she attends school because she “gets more opportunities.” She’s African American, and she lives in Silver Spring. She plans on attending a four-year university, and her parents are paying for it, but she would attend there regardless of her parent’s money. Whenever Jessica needs money, her parents will give her whatever amount she asks for, either for her own will or for school programs. She spends some of her extra time with her family, and goes shopping with her “outgoing” friends when she gets a chance.
Georgia’s parents are from El Salvador and her mom is a clerk, and her father, a mechanic, both have a high school education. She’s part of the College Tracks program at BCC, and has a 3.0 GPA. She wants to go to school for Law, and her parents are going to pay for her schooling, and she would attend school regardless of their contributions. Georgia plays sports and runs in her spare time, and when she spends time with her friends, they go to the movies or to the mall, and she describes her friends as “outgoing and fun”. Her parents will giver her $100 for an allowance. She feels that she has an advantage attending Bethesda Chevy Chase, because she’s “getting a great education.”
Daniel lives in an apartment with his dad; his mom passed away two months ago. His dad is a carpenter and his parents are from El Salvador, and received a high school education. Daniel has a 2.71 GPA, and is planning on attending Pennsylvania State University. His dad is paying for his education, and Daniel would still attend even if his dad didn’t pay for it. He receives no allowance, and minimal amounts of money for school programs. He isn’t involved in anything at school, but instead, in his spare time, he “babysits, listens to music, and hangs out with friends.” When hanging out with as he describes, his “trustworthy, funny, sometimes obnoxious” friends, they “play games and sports, hang out, and go out to eat.” Right now, his situation with school, his parents and his placement in society is a “disadvantage because [he] lost his mom. [They] have a lot of expenses to pay for, making it hard to pay for [his] education.”
Cal is an African American who lives in an apartment in Silver Spring with his father and stepmother. His father is a network Engineer for D.O.D. and his stepmom works for the F.B.I. His parents both received Bachelor’s degrees from college. Cal is a senior, and has a 2.57 GPA. He plans to go to school for Architecture to be a developer. His parents are going to pay for some of his education, and he would still attend school even if his parents weren’t able to pay for it. He receives $40-50 a week to spend at his own will. Cal is involved in Operation Simile, B. S. A., football, indoor and outdoor track at school, and in his extra time, he likes to sing, study architecture, and workout. He describes his friends as “smart, confident, responsible in was, and overall good people.” When he spends time with his friends, they “play Madden [a fantasy football video game], go out to eat, party, or train for football.” He feels that his socioeconomic placement is an advantage because “a lot of kids don’t have the same privileges.”
Dillon is a senior at BCC. His GPA is 3.7 and he plans to attend the University of Virginia, and is undecided about a career plan. His parents are paying for his education, and if they weren’t, Dillon said he wouldn’t attend UVA. He receives $20 a month to spend at his own will, and an “unlimited” amount for when he needed funding for school activities. His father graduated college and is a landscaper, and his mother is a counselor and has a B.S. Dillion is a part of the National Honors Society, and the Cross Country team. He lives in Kensington, MD, in a “brick, four bedroom house” which his parents own. Dillon spends his free time playing sports, and “chilling”. When he spends time with his friends, they “eat, play basketball, and chill”. Dillon describes his friends as easygoing, social, and funny. His heritage is Spanish, Irish, and Cuban, and he feels like he has a situational “advantage because [he] has money to go out, [he] lives in a nice neighborhood, goes to a good school.”
Woodrow Wilson High School
Nick, a junior, lives in Northwest Washington, DC. He lives in a row house with his mom, who is a landlord and works for the census. She received a high school diploma as the extent of her education. Nick has a 2.7 GPA, and is part of the baseball team and the Boys to Men program at Wilson. He hopes to go to school for Engineering and landscaping, and is hoping that his parents will pay for his education. He would still attend if his parents didn’t pay for it, but “would try to get scholarships.” Of the money his parents give him to spend at his own will, it’s “not much, but enough to buy what [he] want[s].” In addition to that, any money that he needs for school is also supplied. In his spare time, he “goes outside, and does community service.” When he spends time with friends, they go to the mall or the movies, and Nick describes his friends as “active.” He is African American and is also Muslim. He feels that his socioeconomic placement is “an advantage because [his] parents have experienced what [he] will face in the future, so [he’s] prepared.”
Matt is an African American senior, lives in Northwest D.C. His mother is a head teller of the Federal Credit Union, and has schooling up through high school. He has a 2.3 G.P.A. Matt wants to be a journalist and attend Virginia Commonwealth University. His parents will be paying for some of his education, and he would still attend that school if his parents weren’t going to help pay for it. Matt only receives money from his parents for his own will on certain occasions, and gets a reasonable amount for school programs and activities. In his spare time, he writes, socializes, and plays basketball. Matt describes his friends as “swagg”. Matt feels that if he had attended at different school he would be a much better student, but would be ‘boring and dull as a person.’
Cate, an African American student, lives in a four-bedroom house in the D.C. area. Her mother is a computer technician and her father a minister. Cate plans to pursue a college degree at West Salem University to be a computer technician, and her parents are paying for her college. If they didn’t pay for it, she would still attend that school. Her GPA is 2.9. Cat’s parents give her about $100 to spend at her will at the mall, and have spent about $1000 total on school programs and activities through her high school career. She’s part of the program at the math center and the peer mediation program. In her spare time, Cate sketches and practices photography. She works as an intern at the Department of State in the Human Resources Department. Cate feels that her socio economic situation is an advantage because she is offered so much.
Jan is a senior at Wilson High School. She has a 2.6 GPA, and is planning on attending UMES. She wants to own her own sports bar. Her parents are going to help pay for her education, but she’s seeking financial aid. She has a job, and is involved in cheerleading at school, and ballet in her spare time. She lives in Northeast DC. Her father is an orthodontist and her mother a teacher, and between them, they have a Master’s Degree and a PhD. Her parents are willing to pay for whatever the amount that school activities cost. When Jan spends time with her friends, they go to parties, movies and to the mall. She described her friends as stuck up. She feels like if she attended a different school, she would have an advantage to the school that she is attending, but she likes Wilson High and it has everything. “What you get from a better school may no be what you need to grow in character and compassion for others.”
Irene is a sophomore at Wilson High School She lives in a three-bedroom house in the D.C. area. Irene’s dad works as an analyst at the Library of Congress, and her mom works at Mitne Homeland Security. Her father has two Masters degrees, and her mother has one. Her GPA is 3.6. She is part of the HAM academy, and the basketball and softball team. As a career option, she wants to be either a linguist of a forensic anthropologist. Her parents are not going to pay for her education. She plans on going to school with or without parental funding. If she asks her parents for money to spend for her own will, they will give her $10, and about the same amount if she needs some money for school activities. In Irene’s spare time, she plays soccer and volunteers. She spends time with her friends in the area of where they live. Irene feels like she has an advantage because she has money to further her education, and doesn’t feel like anything is a disadvantage.
Issues Within the Schools
Teacher to Student Ratio
There are many different issues that I observed in the schools. One of the main issues that I noticed was the student to teacher ratio. Bethesda Chevy Chase has one teacher to about fifteen students, and Woodrow Wilson High School has a ratio of one teacher to thirty-one students. This causes quite a discrepancy between the teachers in the different schools and their ability to teach the students.
At Bethesda, students are more likely to behave. They have good leadership, and have had consistent teacher to student ratios in their schools. These teachers have the educational example that shows students what an education can give in a life—there are careers that secure bank accounts and jobs with positions that are always going to be need to be filled.
Because these students behave, the teachers have control of the classroom most of the time. They command the attention of the students. Students at BCC respect their teachers because the teachers are educated in their specialized areas. Many of the teachers have their Master’s in their subjects. Because of the amount of staff in the building—there are 118 staff that are professionally educated, students have many different highly educated role models for to look up to (BCC). Many different classes go on during the day and students have lots of options to choose from, all from good teachers. Class periods are only fifty minutes long—students’ attention spans are met—and teachers keep them interested using projectors to show relevant videos and articles on the Internet. Bethesda is an upper class school with an upper class teaching system, meeting students where they are with their attention levels. This is great for the students that are lower class that attend Bethesda Chevy Chase. Whether or not they went to a middle school or former high school with bad leadership and scheduling, BCC offers a way for these lower class students to succeed.
Woodrow Wilson High School has issues with behavior in the classroom. At Wilson, students brought up with good leadership in schools show respect to teachers. There are only a small percentage of students who follow this ideal—something I’ve observed is that students, in a predominantly African American school, who are disinterested in the class, spend the period talking, while white students, in a predominantly white school spend the period being silently disinterested. At Woodrow Wilson High School, only 23% of the students are white, and this percentage is not equivalent in the classes that I have worked in—there are less white students (DCPS). At Wilson, many of the African American students have the black student persona that doesn’t want to have anything to do with the persona of being white and excelling. Because of the higher amount of students per teacher, there is less control in the classroom. The length of classes at Wilson High School leaves room for teachers to take control of the classes, however, because each class is ninety minutes long, the students’ attention span is much shorter than the length of class. Though there are many teachers in this school that have their degrees and have attitudes that demand respect, students still don’t pay attention. The problem with having so many students in the classroom is that education disappears as a way of mental growth for an adolescent and becomes a factory, where efficiency is the most important thing, and students study for tests, not to learn a subject. When someone knows the answer, others migrate toward him or her, not to learn their ways of knowledge, but ask for the answer. I have seen this at Wilson high school, as one female student does her homework for math during the Social Issues class I attend, and compares answers with another classmate, who brings her work to class. There is a constant fight between the students and the teachers to win their attention. This is becoming easier now that they are banning electronics in classrooms, and attempting to hold students accountable. The obvious problem over even the distractions in the classroom is that factor that there aren’t enough teachers. If there were more teachers, smaller classes, and newer materials, desks, programs, and buildings, then the student attention span toward learning would be more focused on it.
Racial Diversity
Racial diversity is one of the District area’s promises. Students come from everywhere because their parents come from everywhere, and many attend Bethesda and Woodrow Wilson schools. Both schools have large chunks of African American students, and this affects the ‘teachability’ of students within the schools, though in different extents. Beverly Tatum, PhD, says in her renowned book “Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together In the Cafeteria?” And Other Conversations About Race, “in racially mixed schools, Black children are much more likely to be in the lower track than in the honors track. Such apparent sorting along racial line sends a message about what it means to be Black” (56).
At Bethesda, the student body is 62.1% White, 16.1% African American, 14% Hispanic, 7.2% Asian, and 0.5% American Indian. The white students have high success on standardized testing—at BCC, 98% white students passed the Maryland Schools Assessment, and 98.6% passed the reading assessment, whereas African Americans, being taught by the same teachers and in the same classes, passes the mathematics assessment at 78.3% and the reading assessment at 89.9%. These rates of passing are better than Woodrow Wilson High School’s student body as a whole, on the DC-CAS. Because these scores are so high, I had a thought that these African American students have assimilated into the system, being of an upper class community. These students could have also been accepted into the system for having great athletics. The seating at Bethesda is not naturally segregated into groups, but there are not a lot of African Americans in the schools. Of the African Americans in the school, many of them fit into the “success of the athletically talented.” Many of the other African Americans at Bethesda also “play down [their] Black identity in order to succeed in school” (Tatum, 58). The first class of the day is quiet, but seem interested in what the teacher is talking about, though little discussion is approached. There’s more noise in the second class of the day. Students opinionate themselves and argue with ideas brought to discussion. This student isn’t afraid to talk about the things that bother them in society and within their own lives. Discussion has ranged from cat calling’s positive and negative sides, to students being open about dealing drugs in their neighborhood.
There are 51% African American Students at Woodrow Wilson High School, with minorities of 23% white students and 17% Hispanic Students. There are 6% Asian students. The classes that I attended were mostly African American, but there were larger amounts of white and Asian students in the classes through their own choice of scheduling. In contrast, many of the African American students in the class were placed there because of scheduling mishaps at Woodrow Wilson high school. These students don’t care about their grade and the class. They don’t want to participate or do the little homework that the teacher gives them. Though this may be because they don’t want to be like the “white person who goes on to be a CEO”, there is also a possibility that their default of boredom and disinterest is to talk, disrupt, and skip classes that they are not interested in. These students are also driven by their peers, and when no one else wants to do anything, neither do they. African Americans are upfront about their attitudes, and disrespect because they personally feel like they don’t need whatever teachers are teaching them. The class that I attend is an elective at the school.
Segregation
Though not often addressed, there is a slight issue of segregation within both Bethesda Chevy Chase High School, and Wilson High School. Much of the time, segregation is not up front, and noticeable at first glance—it has taken an entire semester to establish what the segregation within these schools is for me.
At Bethesda Chevy Chase, the school itself is not segregated--there are students of all ethnicities and backgrounds attending. However, a large amount of students attend BCC because their parents can afford to live in the area. The neighborhood is segregated—there are less black people who live in the area because it is an area where people with more money live. There are less African American teachers and faculty at Bethesda because there are less African American students. The classes that I attend at BCC seem to have the ratio of African American to white students at Bethesda, but there may be a possibility that many of the students that were interested in the course where white that did not get to take it.
At Woodrow Wilson, the classroom itself seems segregated. African American students line the outside and back rows of the classes that I attend. They talk in the back while the white students sit in the front rows, listening and giving the teacher their attention (with the exception of those white students that do their math homework in class). Students that were interested in taking the class were intellectuals and willing to listen. Those that did not want to be there were less likely to listen and did not want to be there.
Students’ Drive and Interest in the Class
All of the students that I interviewed were interested in going to college. At Bethesda Chevy Chase High School, and Woodrow Wilson high school, there are similar levels of drive, with an occasional twist and turn.
At Bethesda Chevy Chase High School, there are students who sleep in class, but many less than at Wilson High School. With classes being shorter there is less reason and ability to go to sleep. Students at BCC have more interest in learning about the subject and participating in the discussions now that they know the teacher better and can connect with the relevancy of the material. There seems to be a lesser amount of drive to reach higher without the support of a parent to fund the necessary school. There is drive from some that are driven by ideas, knowledge, and wanting to attain more ideas and knowledge. Among students, there are many who aren’t interested in going to the same university that they originally wanted to attend if their parents wouldn’t pay for it.
Wilson’s students have different levels of interest and drive. There are many who have the drive to attend college and have a career in mind that they want to do, but are not interested in the present class that they are enrolled in. Students eat, sleep, play with their smart phones, chew snuff, and leave class to do something else, but there are some students who listen in class and add their opinion to discussion in class. There is diversity in the apathy to get work done within Wilson, but most students want to finish sooner so that they can spend time with their friends later. There is also abhorrence to being in class and being forced to listen. In the end, those that are driven do drive, and they excel. Those that could care less continue to care less. It’s much easier to teach a class that is interested that one who wants to just get out of school. Classes are large, and that makes making each lesson relevant to each student is rather difficult.
Influences
Within an adolescent’s life, they are influenced by everything around them. They are mental sponges, taking in ideas, mannerisms, and ideas, and then personifying them wherever they go. Some of the biggest influences for teenagers are their parents, peers, the neighborhood they live in, and their schools.
At Bethesda, there is a good amount of parental influence. Students whose parents have been well educated lead their children to do likewise. In contrast, parents with soly high school diplomas still urge their children to get more schooling. Parents are willing to fund unlimited amounts for school activities, and do so by supporting their children’s college choices financially. The peer influence at BCC is a positive force. Since 93.7% of the students that graduate Bethesda go on to college, many students follow their predecessor’s example, and get their education. Peers who participate in class make others more likely to do so. Relationally, if students know other students in their classes well, they are more likely to take them seriously when they have a discussion in class, rather than sloughing off their ideas and thoughts. Students who live in high-class neighborhoods that are well cared for are more likely to take care of their schools in the same way, making it a better school. Because BCC has such a high level of Highly Qualified Professionals teaching in their specialties, making many programs that lead to success for students, BCC has a positive influence on their students. Classes are well taught and concise, the rooms are well kept, well heated, and bright, and these things make a huge difference in learning environments.
Woodrow Wilson High School’s parents have positive influence on their children. They are good examples through their successful careers and schooling they pursued. They encourage their children to do the same—to be successful, attend college, and do well in classes. The peer influence at Wilson high school can be a positive and a negative influence. Within the students with the higher G.P.A.’s and drives, there are students planning to attend prestigious colleges to pursue their careers. These students influence their friends to shoot high and hope for nothing less. Within the peers that have lower G.P.A’s, with fewer worries about school and more worries about what they’re going to do after school, influence is both positive and negative. There are some students who strive and reach for the stars with their work. They work really hard to do what they need to do to get to college. There are also many students that have an attitude and have dreams and ideas, but are too caught up in their emotion to be motivated by these. These students live in neighborhoods all over D.C., with varying degrees of poverty and wealth, success and failure. Students will treat their neighborhoods like they treat their schools, and vice versa. Thus, neighborhoods have both a positive and a negative influence on students. Woodrow Wilson’s example is a mixed influence. There are many teachers with drive to get students to college and to teach so that students will learn to learn, not to get an “A” on a test. But the high school itself has litter around it. The dumpster at Wilson High School is on the way to the main entrance. Parking is chaotic, and there are parked cars on both the sidewalk and the road to the school. Grass is worn away where a makeshift path has been placed by multitudes of students. The school is under construction for “modernization”, to make room for more students coming in, but it is far from being beautiful and welcoming. Wilson looms like a prison sometimes. They are implementing an In-school Suspension program from students who are late to class to reduce tardy students. There is much proactivity to improve the school, but as with the Civil Rights Movement, nothing changed until the minds of the people involved also changed.
Conclusion
From my observations, both schools are good. There are good programs and teachers in each. The issues come with the amount of students that enter in the doors, and the influence that they have. Those who have the drive to succeed do succeed, and those who could care less, do care less. The issues come from the students themselves, but also from their own influences.
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