csmonitor--2020-09-08--Storm warning: The impact of hurricanes is on the rise

For the first time since such records have been kept , 2020 ’ s Atlantic hurricane season has seen nine tropical storms before Aug. 1 .
The month of July alone saw Cristobal , Edouard , Fay , Gonzalo , Hanna , and finally Isaias , all of which were the earliest named storms , with Isaias strengthening to full hurricane force that threatened as far north as New England .
Two new books , Eric Jay Dolin ’ s “ A Furious Sky : The Five-Hundred-Year History of America ’ s Hurricanes , ” and Andy Horowitz ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” offer insights into the powerful effects of these weather systems .
Dolin ( read the Monitor ’ s Q & A with him here ) explains that hurricanes have left an indelible mark on American history .
In the book ’ s epigraph , he quotes a letter written by a teenage Alexander Hamilton , describing a hurricane that struck his home on St. Croix in the Caribbean in 1772 : “ The roaring of the sea and wind , fiery meteors flying about it in the air , the prodigious glare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the falling houses ... were sufficient to strike astonishment into angels.
” That tone of astonishment runs throughout Dolin ’ s thoroughly engrossing book .
He ’ s combed historical archives , searching for the hurricanes that were severe enough to commandeer the narrative , however briefly .
One such storm , for example , struck Massachusetts in 1635 , flattening trees and houses and prompting then-Gov .
William Bradford to comment that “ none living in these parts , either English or Indians , ever saw ” the like of it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ late August 2005 , taking more than 1,800 lives and causing more than $ 160 billion in damages .
Horowitz , a history professor at Tulane University , has written easily the best book on the subject since Douglas Brinkley ’ s 2006 “ The Great Deluge : Hurricane Katrina , New Orleans , and the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
” Beyond delving into the tangled history of Louisiana politics , Horowitz ’ s book thoughtfully attempts to understand the cultural nature of these calamities .
“ Disasters are less discrete events than they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Seemingly acute incidents , like the largely forgotten 1915 hurricane , live on as the lessons they teach , the decisions they prompt , and the accommodations they oblige.
” His book takes an intriguing look at the social dynamics that so often play out in natural disasters , noting that the “ environmental precarity , economic inequality , racial enmity , political division , bureaucratic ineptitude , social trauma , and resistance to all of these things that defined much of the Katrina disaster might have happened anywhere in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Katrina ’ s impact fell disproportionately on poor Louisianans raises a host of issues that Horowitz addresses better than any previous narrative history of the catastrophe .
Both authors stress the importance of preparedness .
They also question the practice , over the years , of allowing homes to be rebuilt in more or less the same locations where storms had only recently destroyed them .
The kind of long-term planning that accounts for climate change and rising sea levels has been conspicuously absent .
Each book points to the increasingly sophisticated technology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only the onset but also the path of monster storms as a reason for some hope .
But it would be better still if those storms encountered only tough levee systems when they came ashore , instead of row upon row of houses built right down to the water .

For the first time since such records have been kept, 2020’s Atlantic hurricane season has seen nine tropical storms before Aug. 1. The month of July alone saw Cristobal, Edouard, Fay, Gonzalo, Hanna, and finally Isaias, all of which were the earliest named storms, with Isaias strengthening to full hurricane force that threatened as far north as New England.
Two new books, Eric Jay Dolin’s “A Furious Sky: The Five-Hundred-Year History of America’s Hurricanes,” and Andy Horowitz’s “Katrina: A History, 1915-2015” offer insights into the powerful effects of these weather systems.
Dolin (read the Monitor’s Q&A with him here) explains that hurricanes have left an indelible mark on American history. In the book’s epigraph, he quotes a letter written by a teenage Alexander Hamilton, describing a hurricane that struck his home on St. Croix in the Caribbean in 1772: “The roaring of the sea and wind, fiery meteors flying about it in the air, the prodigious glare of almost perpetual lightning, the crash of the falling houses ... were sufficient to strike astonishment into angels.”
That tone of astonishment runs throughout Dolin’s thoroughly engrossing book. He’s combed historical archives, searching for the hurricanes that were severe enough to commandeer the narrative, however briefly. One such storm, for example, struck Massachusetts in 1635, flattening trees and houses and prompting then-Gov. William Bradford to comment that “none living in these parts, either English or Indians, ever saw” the like of it.
Lessons from Katrina
Hurricane Katrina hammered New Orleans in late August 2005, taking more than 1,800 lives and causing more than $160 billion in damages. Horowitz, a history professor at Tulane University, has written easily the best book on the subject since Douglas Brinkley’s 2006 “The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast.” Beyond delving into the tangled history of Louisiana politics, Horowitz’s book thoughtfully attempts to understand the cultural nature of these calamities. “Disasters are less discrete events than they are contingent processes,” he writes. “Seemingly acute incidents, like the largely forgotten 1915 hurricane, live on as the lessons they teach, the decisions they prompt, and the accommodations they oblige.”
His book takes an intriguing look at the social dynamics that so often play out in natural disasters, noting that the “environmental precarity, economic inequality, racial enmity, political division, bureaucratic ineptitude, social trauma, and resistance to all of these things that defined much of the Katrina disaster might have happened anywhere in the United States.” But the fact that Katrina’s impact fell disproportionately on poor Louisianans raises a host of issues that Horowitz addresses better than any previous narrative history of the catastrophe.
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Both authors stress the importance of preparedness. They also question the practice, over the years, of allowing homes to be rebuilt in more or less the same locations where storms had only recently destroyed them. The kind of long-term planning that accounts for climate change and rising sea levels has been conspicuously absent.
Each book points to the increasingly sophisticated technology that enables more accurate predictions of not only the onset but also the path of monster storms as a reason for some hope. But it would be better still if those storms encountered only tough levee systems when they came ashore, instead of row upon row of houses built right down to the water.


csmonitor--2020-09-08--Hurricanes sweep through American history: A Q&A with author Eric Jay Dolin

Fifteen years ago , Hurricane Katrina smacked into New Orleans and produced one of America ’ s worst natural disasters .
The destructive capabilities of these storms have spurred scientists and governments to improve technology and search for ways to limit the impact on humans .
In his fascinating and thoughtful new book , “ A Furious Sky : The Five-Hundred-Year History of America ’ s Hurricanes ” Eric Jay Dolin talks about history-making storms .
Q : What fascinates you about hurricanes ?
They ’ re the greatest storms on Earth , the ultimate in reality TV , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gripping stories you can tell .
In the book , I use the hurricanes as a narrative backbone to tell a broader story about American history and the evolution of meteorology , communications , television , satellite technology , and computer modeling .
It all comes back to this seminal event , which is the hurricane itself .
Q : What gives hurricanes so much power ?
Heat is the No .
1 source of the hurricane ’ s energy .
The process begins when the upper layer of the ocean in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , reaches a trigger point of 80 degrees F. As vapor travels through the air , it condenses into rain as it gets cooler .
It ’ s that heat , the latent heat of condensation , that really provides power : The warmer the waters are , the more energy potential there is .
There have to be other conditions too .
The main one is that there has to be relatively little wind shear .
If the wind blows in different directions at different heights , it tends to rip apart @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its side .
Q : Will we ever be able to perfectly predict the path of a hurricane ?
We have computerized weather models that can do millions of equations , and the cone of uncertainty [ around a hurricane ’ s predicted path ] gets narrower and narrower .
But hurricanes are incredibly complex meteorological events .
It really comes down to MIT meteorologist Edward Lorenz ’ s chaos theory , known as the butterfly effect .
It ’ s not that a butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cause a hurricane in another part of the world .
His point is that small changes in conditions can result in big changes in the future .
Q : Can the U.S. improve its response to hurricanes ?
There ’ s reason for hope .
But in order for that hope to be turned into reality , there has to be volition and determination on the part of individuals , communities , regions , and the entire country .
We need to take effective steps to protect people and clean up after hurricanes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ planning , and most importantly , money and political will .
ρ

Fifteen years ago, Hurricane Katrina smacked into New Orleans and produced one of America’s worst natural disasters. The destructive capabilities of these storms have spurred scientists and governments to improve technology and search for ways to limit the impact on humans. In his fascinating and thoughtful new book, “A Furious Sky: The Five-Hundred-Year History of America’s Hurricanes” Eric Jay Dolin talks about history-making storms.
Q: What fascinates you about hurricanes?
They’re the greatest storms on Earth, the ultimate in reality TV, and all-encompassing events that are among the most gripping stories you can tell. In the book, I use the hurricanes as a narrative backbone to tell a broader story about American history and the evolution of meteorology, communications, television, satellite technology, and computer modeling. It all comes back to this seminal event, which is the hurricane itself.
Q: What gives hurricanes so much power?
Heat is the No. 1 source of the hurricane’s energy. The process begins when the upper layer of the ocean in the tropics, going down about 150 feet, reaches a trigger point of 80 degrees F. As vapor travels through the air, it condenses into rain as it gets cooler. It’s that heat, the latent heat of condensation, that really provides power: The warmer the waters are, the more energy potential there is. There have to be other conditions too. The main one is that there has to be relatively little wind shear. If the wind blows in different directions at different heights, it tends to rip apart the hurricane or shove it over on its side.
Q: Will we ever be able to perfectly predict the path of a hurricane?
We have computerized weather models that can do millions of equations, and the cone of uncertainty [around a hurricane’s predicted path] gets narrower and narrower. But hurricanes are incredibly complex meteorological events. It really comes down to MIT meteorologist Edward Lorenz’s chaos theory, known as the butterfly effect. It’s not that a butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world is going to [directly] cause a hurricane in another part of the world. His point is that small changes in conditions can result in big changes in the future.
Q: Can the U.S. improve its response to hurricanes?
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
There’s reason for hope. But in order for that hope to be turned into reality, there has to be volition and determination on the part of individuals, communities, regions, and the entire country. We need to take effective steps to protect people and clean up after hurricanes. All those things require forethought, planning, and most importantly, money and political will.
A review of Eric Jay Dolin’s book, as well as of “Katrina” by Andy Horowitz, can be found here.


csmonitor--2020-09-08--Trump boat parades: What’s their political message?

“ This flotilla just shows how a lot of people are so emotionally invested in this election , ” says Mr. Canady .
Others say they ’ re just a way of letting off steam at a time when the pandemic has shut many forms of entertainment and expression .
In person , the boat parades are a mix of pomp and provocation .
The engines and the music are loud , the flags enormous .
Critics charge that they and Trump truck parades are an implicit threat of violence in a polarized political nation .
Mr. Trump has called @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and points to them as proof that he can ’ t be losing to former Vice President Joe Biden .
The Trumptillas have replaced Mr. Trump ’ s raucous rallies , which can ’ t be held due to the pandemic .
They provide his supporters a way to get together in support of their candidate without violating social distance rules .
He fit right in with other participants in a local version of a 2020 political innovation : the Trump boat parade , also known as a Trump flotilla , or “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trip to Pelican Island , Georgia , Shannon Canady flew a new flag depicting President Donald Trump sitting on a tank , muzzle blazing .
Shannon Canady ’ s buddies made a to-do of showing him something before their big trip to the beach for Labor Day .
They even had him close his eyes .
This is what he saw when he opened them : A large flag showing President Donald Trump astride a tank , muzzle blazing .
On Saturday , Mr. Canady and his crew mounted the flag on a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lit out from Tybee Island , the easternmost point of Georgia .
Their destination ?
Pelican Island , a small sandbar and local party spot .
There , after a 10-minute steam , they became part of a 2020 innovation : The political flotilla – or , if you will , the “ Trumptilla.
” In doing so , they joined thousands of boats flying Trump flags that took to America ’ s waters this weekend , at one point so enthusiastically that several boats capsized during a rush of horsepower and props @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one was hurt . )
The goal , participants say , is chiefly camaraderie and fun , with a bonus of built-in social distancing .
The flotillas have in some sense replaced Mr. Trump ’ s political rallies , from which the president appears to draw political and personal strength .
They are also a floating example of the uniqueness of this presidential campaign , where passions are running high in a polarized electorate but many normal activities remain curtailed amid the persistent pandemic .
“ This flotilla just shows how a lot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this election , ” says Mr. Canady .
“ Honestly , it ’ s a bit much sometimes .
It ’ s like we ’ re living in two different worlds.
” Trump-flag-flying cruise boats have been landing here on Pelican Island since May .
The “ Trumptilla ” phenomenon emerged in Southern states this spring , then moved north as the weather warmed onto the lakes of the Northern rust belt and the coast of Maine .
The Trump campaign has often referenced the boat parades , suggesting that they represent political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ muster .
President Trump himself has embraced what he calls his “ beautiful boaters ” and implied that the size of the flotillas is evidence he can ’ t possibly be trailing Democratic nominee Joe Biden , whatever polls say .
“ It ’ s a new form of political expression and participation , ” says Todd Belt , coauthor of “ The Post-Heroic Presidency.
” “ It ’ s a little bit of owning the libs , it ’ s part of being on ‘ Team Trump , ’ flying your colors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the boat .
It ’ s performative politics.
” Is it indicative of anything larger ?
Republican consultant Tim Miller calls the notion that boat owners could swing the election “ farcical.
” Yet they are not an insignificant demographic .
There are 12 million registered boats in the U.S. States with the largest concentrations of boat registrations are also battlegrounds , including Michigan , Wisconsin , and Florida .
The Trump boat parades might connect with some non-traditional voters , says Mr. Miller .
They are a kind of blue collar activity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sat out last election to vote in 2020 .
“ It ’ s part of a broader effort [ by Trump ] to kind of sink his hooks even deeper into the cultural side of exurban , rural , white communities .
That ’ s his path , ” says the GOP consultant .
In a way , the Trumptillas – and other organized flag-and-banner waving events – are a return to the political culture of the 1800s , says Marc Hetherington , a political scientist at the University of North Carolina , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before television and smart phones and even cinemas , organizing a parade for a candidate was a big thing .
For the most part , “ it ’ s a great way to celebrate , ” says Mr. Hetherington , coauthor of “ Authoritarianism and Polarization in America.
” “ There ’ s not that much to do [ in a pandemic ] , so we find other things to occupy ourselves , including lots of political expression.
” But there are risks , as the flag-waving Trump performative political movement has come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says Mr. Hetherington .
Trump ’ s political style includes stoking up his base with images of violence .
On Twitter he has unapologetically retweeted video of Trump supporters attacking protesters in Portland , falsely suggested that images of a New York subway assault were connected to Black Lives Matter or Antifa , and defended Kyle Rittenhouse , the 17-year old charged with murder for killing two protesters in Kenosha , Wisconsin .
On Monday , over 1,000 people taking part in a Trump-flag-flying “ truck cruise ” in the Oregon suburbs clashed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Passion is great .
Passion with guns is another story , ” says Mr. Hetherington , though he adds that , “ I would think chances for confrontation on the water are pretty low.
” Still , political boat flotillas are undoubtedly a mix of pomp and provocation .
The music and engines are loud .
The flags are big .
Some – such as Mr. Canady ’ s – have weapon imagery .
“ We see [ parade flotillas ] as symbolic activities , but they send a signal of , ‘ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ’ ” says J. Michael Bitzer , a political historian at Catawba College , in Salisbury , North Carolina .
The flotillas , like the overall Trump political coalition , are also predominantly white .
At least some of the president ’ s supporters see themselves as defenders of white America as the country approaches a demographic tipping point where white people are likely to lose majority status within the next half century .
“ Is it innocuous to have a flotilla that looks like a battle army ?
Is it innocent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as trains [ rolling into Portland ] ?
” says Jennifer Mercieca , author of “ Demagogue for President : The Rhetorical Genius of Donald Trump ” and a professor of communications at Texas A & M University .
“ If you take them seriously , they say , ‘ What ?
We ’ re just listening to the Beach Boys with Trump flags .
You think we ’ re dangerous ?
’ ” says Dr. Mercieca .
Meanwhile , on Pelican Island , the party just kept going .
There were large @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the sand .
The shindig became so popular that anchoring spots dried up .
Floating in the lukewarm sound with a cool drink , Jim Mathews of Dublin , Georgia , took in the scene with a grin .
“ I think Trump wins by a landslide , ” he proclaims , despite polls showing the president trailing Joe Biden , the Democratic nominee .
On Saturday , a smaller Biden counter-flotilla slipped into the Gulf of Mexico .
“ It seems like we ’ re at loggerheads at the moment , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the country will go back to something approaching normal , ” says Mr. Mathews .
“ I think we ’ ll be all right .
”

“This flotilla just shows how a lot of people are so emotionally invested in this election,” says Mr. Canady.
Others say they’re just a way of letting off steam at a time when the pandemic has shut many forms of entertainment and expression.
In person, the boat parades are a mix of pomp and provocation. The engines and the music are loud, the flags enormous. Critics charge that they and Trump truck parades are an implicit threat of violence in a polarized political nation.
Mr. Trump has called them his “beautiful boaters,” and points to them as proof that he can’t be losing to former Vice President Joe Biden.
The Trumptillas have replaced Mr. Trump’s raucous rallies, which can’t be held due to the pandemic. They provide his supporters a way to get together in support of their candidate without violating social distance rules.
Trump flotillas – “Trumptillas” – are a political innovation at a time when the pandemic has limited many forms of campaigning. Are they provocative or a throwback to old-time candidate parades?
He fit right in with other participants in a local version of a 2020 political innovation: the Trump boat parade, also known as a Trump flotilla, or “Trumptilla.”
On his Labor Day boat trip to Pelican Island, Georgia, Shannon Canady flew a new flag depicting President Donald Trump sitting on a tank, muzzle blazing.
Shannon Canady’s buddies made a to-do of showing him something before their big trip to the beach for Labor Day. They even had him close his eyes.
This is what he saw when he opened them: A large flag showing President Donald Trump astride a tank, muzzle blazing.
On Saturday, Mr. Canady and his crew mounted the flag on a broom handle atop his pontoon boat and lit out from Tybee Island, the easternmost point of Georgia.
Why We Wrote This Trump flotillas – “Trumptillas” – are a political innovation at a time when the pandemic has limited many forms of campaigning. Are they provocative or a throwback to old-time candidate parades?
Their destination? Pelican Island, a small sandbar and local party spot. There, after a 10-minute steam, they became part of a 2020 innovation: The political flotilla – or, if you will, the “Trumptilla.”
In doing so, they joined thousands of boats flying Trump flags that took to America’s waters this weekend, at one point so enthusiastically that several boats capsized during a rush of horsepower and props at a Texas lake. (No one was hurt.)
The goal, participants say, is chiefly camaraderie and fun, with a bonus of built-in social distancing. The flotillas have in some sense replaced Mr. Trump’s political rallies, from which the president appears to draw political and personal strength.
They are also a floating example of the uniqueness of this presidential campaign, where passions are running high in a polarized electorate but many normal activities remain curtailed amid the persistent pandemic.
“This flotilla just shows how a lot of people are so emotionally invested in this election,” says Mr. Canady. “Honestly, it’s a bit much sometimes. It’s like we’re living in two different worlds.”
“Beautiful boaters”
Trump-flag-flying cruise boats have been landing here on Pelican Island since May. The “Trumptilla” phenomenon emerged in Southern states this spring, then moved north as the weather warmed onto the lakes of the Northern rust belt and the coast of Maine.
The Trump campaign has often referenced the boat parades, suggesting that they represent political energy that the Democrats can’t muster. President Trump himself has embraced what he calls his “beautiful boaters” and implied that the size of the flotillas is evidence he can’t possibly be trailing Democratic nominee Joe Biden, whatever polls say.
“It’s a new form of political expression and participation,” says Todd Belt, coauthor of “The Post-Heroic Presidency.” “It’s a little bit of owning the libs, it’s part of being on ‘Team Trump,’ flying your colors, and flags wave really well behind the boat. It’s performative politics.”
Michael Arellano/AP View caption Hide caption Riley Brumeister, 18, attends his first Trump rally atop the hood of his 1970 Ford F-250, at Clackamas Community College in Oregon City, Oregon, Sept. 7, 2020.
Is it indicative of anything larger? Republican consultant Tim Miller calls the notion that boat owners could swing the election “farcical.” Yet they are not an insignificant demographic. There are 12 million registered boats in the U.S. States with the largest concentrations of boat registrations are also battlegrounds, including Michigan, Wisconsin, and Florida.
The Trump boat parades might connect with some non-traditional voters, says Mr. Miller. They are a kind of blue collar activity that might motivate a few people who sat out last election to vote in 2020.
“It’s part of a broader effort [by Trump] to kind of sink his hooks even deeper into the cultural side of exurban, rural, white communities. That’s his path,” says the GOP consultant.
In a way, the Trumptillas – and other organized flag-and-banner waving events – are a return to the political culture of the 1800s, says Marc Hetherington, a political scientist at the University of North Carolina, in Chapel Hill.
Back then, before television and smart phones and even cinemas, organizing a parade for a candidate was a big thing.
For the most part, “it’s a great way to celebrate,” says Mr. Hetherington, coauthor of “Authoritarianism and Polarization in America.” “There’s not that much to do [in a pandemic], so we find other things to occupy ourselves, including lots of political expression.”
Pomp and provocation
But there are risks, as the flag-waving Trump performative political movement has come to include armed people in trucks, says Mr. Hetherington.
Trump’s political style includes stoking up his base with images of violence. On Twitter he has unapologetically retweeted video of Trump supporters attacking protesters in Portland, falsely suggested that images of a New York subway assault were connected to Black Lives Matter or Antifa, and defended Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year old charged with murder for killing two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
On Monday, over 1,000 people taking part in a Trump-flag-flying “truck cruise” in the Oregon suburbs clashed briefly with racial justice protesters.
“Passion is great. Passion with guns is another story,” says Mr. Hetherington, though he adds that, “I would think chances for confrontation on the water are pretty low.”
Still, political boat flotillas are undoubtedly a mix of pomp and provocation. The music and engines are loud. The flags are big. Some – such as Mr. Canady’s – have weapon imagery.
“We see [parade flotillas] as symbolic activities, but they send a signal of, ‘We are ready for the oncoming fight,’” says J. Michael Bitzer, a political historian at Catawba College, in Salisbury, North Carolina.
The flotillas, like the overall Trump political coalition, are also predominantly white. At least some of the president’s supporters see themselves as defenders of white America as the country approaches a demographic tipping point where white people are likely to lose majority status within the next half century.
“Is it innocuous to have a flotilla that looks like a battle army? Is it innocent to have these souped-up trucks as loud as trains [rolling into Portland]?” says Jennifer Mercieca, author of “Demagogue for President: The Rhetorical Genius of Donald Trump” and a professor of communications at Texas A&M University.
“If you take them seriously, they say, ‘What? We’re just listening to the Beach Boys with Trump flags. You think we’re dangerous?’” says Dr. Mercieca.
Party on
Meanwhile, on Pelican Island, the party just kept going. There were large tents, dogs playing, kids digging in the sand. The shindig became so popular that anchoring spots dried up.
Floating in the lukewarm sound with a cool drink, Jim Mathews of Dublin, Georgia, took in the scene with a grin.
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
“I think Trump wins by a landslide,” he proclaims, despite polls showing the president trailing Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee. On Saturday, a smaller Biden counter-flotilla slipped into the Gulf of Mexico.
“It seems like we’re at loggerheads at the moment, but I think once the election is over the country will go back to something approaching normal,” says Mr. Mathews. “I think we’ll be all right.”


csmonitor--2020-09-08--Back to School: In-person, outside.

Back to School: In-person, outside.

Hartland educators will have the option to teach outside , inside , or a combination , Principal Christine Bourne says .
“ Hopefully it ’ ll be so successful that once things get back to normal , we ’ ll continue to use [ the outdoor classrooms ] and we can adapt our curriculum to have more outdoor learning , ” she says .
“ We ’ re looking at this as an opportunity.
” In Hartland , Vermont , the community raised more than $ 8,000 and counting to create spaces for learning outside for Hartland Elementary , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reopened today .
Some settings are more conducive to learning than others , with urban educators , for example , competing with ambient city noise like construction .
And any outdoor environment is prone to another variable : weather .
Still , schools faced with wanting or needing to hold classes in person are undeterred .
The move outside is a way to bring kids back together during the pandemic , and could become more than a stopgap .
From coast to coast , educators in both private and public schools are finding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from open-air structures to makeshift classrooms in public parks or forested areas .
As many students in the U.S. officially head back to school today , some will be learning in an atypical environment : the outdoors .
At the Hartsbrook School , a private preK-12 Waldorf school in Hadley , Massachusetts , typical activities – talking , thinking , raising hands – are happening not in a traditional classroom but under waterproof canopies held up by repurposed cedar posts .
The outdoors is always part of daily life for the school ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care for livestock and gardens .
But this year , Hartsbrook has added 16 outdoor classrooms , equipped with desks and blackboards .
The move outside is one of the solutions being used to bring kids back together during the pandemic – and it could become more than a stopgap .
From coast to coast , educators in both private and public schools are finding creative ways to plan for learning outside , from open-air structures to makeshift classrooms in public parks or forested areas .
Though tempered by logistics and funding , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say , go beyond preserving in-person education and accommodating social distancing .
“ We ’ re confident that being outside and being in the presence of nature will help begin to heal some of the trauma [ from the pandemic ] , ” says Sharon Danks , CEO and founder of the nonprofit Green Schoolyards America , based in Berkeley , California .
Interest is coming from both rural and urban communities looking to reopen safely .
Green Schoolyards America has teamed up with three other organizations to launch the National COVID-19 Outdoor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ groups are creating an online how-to manual for schools , says Ms. Danks , who expects some schools will continue on outdoors after the pandemic .
For many schools , education outdoors offers a way to resume at least some level of in-person learning , a key element from an equity standpoint .
The spring ’ s rapid transition to remote learning meant students with little to no internet access and no computer were at a major disadvantage .
Disparity issues continue .
But experts note converting existing outdoor space doesn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ making it an option available to a variety of schools .
The idea has caught on in New York City , where students can start learning in-person as of Sept. 21 .
Parents are among those who have been pushing for outdoor options for their students in the country ’ s largest school district .
In late August , Mayor Bill de Blasio announced principals could submit outdoor learning plans that would use either their own grounds or request space in city parks or streets .
So far , several hundred have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the logistics of such plans , which might affect parking among other things .
Trish Appel Peterson , the principal of PS8 , The Robert Fulton School , which teaches about 650 K-5 students in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood , worked with her colleagues to submit a plan , still pending approval , that proposes closing two nearby streets , using tents on each for classrooms .
The school would also use outdoor space on school grounds .
Ms. Peterson sees the potential for creativity to flourish in an outside class , when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ I think it ’ s going to be interesting to see how things change when we ’ re outside and there isn ’ t a screen as a back up , ” she says .
Lea Ciavarra , co-founding partner at Lubrano Ciavarra Architects in Brooklyn , helped PS8 build a plan for safe indoor and outdoor learning .
Ms. Ciavarra , whose daughter is heading into second grade at the school , says outdoor options are definitely viable , just as they were during epidemics early in the 20th century @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s fresh air and you get reinvigorated , ” she says .
“ Why wouldn ’ t you weave more of that into the day for a child ?
” Further north , outdoor classrooms are also a priority at Hartland ( Vermont ) Elementary School , a public K-8 school with some 270 students .
The community has raised more than $ 8,000 and counting to create these spaces .
Ahead of the Sept. 8 reopening , which will include both in person and remote learning , Hartland raised the number @ @ @ @ @ @ @ town-owned forest from two to five .
On school grounds , carports have been set up to allow for teaching underneath them .
Hartland teachers will have the option to have class outside , inside , or a combination , Principal Christine Bourne says .
“ Hopefully it ’ ll be so successful that once things get back to normal , we ’ ll continue to use [ the outdoor classrooms ] and we can adapt our curriculum to have more outdoor learning , ” she says .
“ We ’ re looking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s kindergarten has used an outdoor classroom on the nearby 17-Acre Wood one day per week .
Lauren Skilling , a kindergarten teacher , recommends educators set aside time for students learning outside to explore on their own and build their problem-solving skills .
Parent Jay Nash , a musician who helped with the fundraising effort for Hartland , recalls the positive impact from his daughter being in the kindergarten program .
“ When kids get outside ...
I think that they become the best possible versions of themselves , ” he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be more calm , more considerate , and more likely to assimilate and retain new information while they are outdoors.
” Rachel Kennedy has seen that happen many times .
She founded the Forest Kindergarten program at Hartsbrook , the Waldorf school in Massachusetts , where children learn about levers by using boards and tree stumps to make a seesaw or a balance board .
She says such activities develop the physical and mental skills that drive creativity – and without leaning on technology .
“ It builds such confidence and such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I feel modern children really need , ” Ms. Kennedy says , adding that those qualities help older kids , too .
Some outdoor settings are more conducive to learning than others , with urban educators , for example , competing with ambient city noise like construction .
And any outdoor environment is prone to another variable : weather .
That makes outdoor learning something that will be limited to certain times of the year in some states .
Hartsbrook plans to offer outdoor heat sources as it gets colder , for example @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lead of previous eras with outdoor learning in the United States , in which students bundled up in the winter .
Even with the hurdles , administrators around the U.S. are keeping learning outside as an option .
One of the districts working with Green Schoolyards America is the Boulder Valley School District ( BVSD ) in Colorado , which includes 56 schools with a total of about 29,000 students .
The school year began on Aug. 26 with district-wide remote learning , but planning for the outdoor option is well underway , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s sustainability coordinator .
And it ’ s nothing new for this district .
“ What ’ s new is using it in a more universal way where we can even teach math outside , ” Ms. Carroll says .
BVSD ’ s outdoor classrooms would come into play as part of a hybrid learning model , of both in-person and remote learning , when that option is deemed safe by local authorities .
At each potential outdoor learning site , the district has considered various factors , including shading , space , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ms. Carroll says outdoor classrooms free up space for in-person learning indoors , and they provide a valuable way for students and teachers to connect .
“ A little bit can go a long way , ” she says .
The Salt Lake City School District , a public district with about 24,000 students , is also starting remote , but is including outdoor classroom spaces in a hybrid learning model to be used when in-person learning is an option again .
Shea Wickelson , a teacher at the district ’ s Salt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lab school teaching grades 7-12 on two campuses , headed up the district ’ s outdoor learning plans ahead of the Sept. 8 start .
“ We ’ re not re-creating the indoor classroom , ” Ms. Wickelson says .
“ Our idea right now is just to be able to identify places we can use outside at the drop of a hat without big infrastructure changes and without a lot of money.
” Ms. Kennedy , the teacher from Hartsbrook , expects a lasting , positive impact from more children problem-solving together @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s a real pull toward compassion and figuring out how to help each other , ” she says .
“ And I think that ’ s more needed than ever .
”

Hartland educators will have the option to teach outside, inside, or a combination, Principal Christine Bourne says. “Hopefully it’ll be so successful that once things get back to normal, we’ll continue to use [the outdoor classrooms] and we can adapt our curriculum to have more outdoor learning,” she says. “We’re looking at this as an opportunity.”
In Hartland, Vermont, the community raised more than $8,000 and counting to create spaces for learning outside for Hartland Elementary, a public school with some 260 students that reopened today.
Some settings are more conducive to learning than others, with urban educators, for example, competing with ambient city noise like construction. And any outdoor environment is prone to another variable: weather. Still, schools faced with wanting or needing to hold classes in person are undeterred.
Solving problems during a pandemic often requires looking outward. As students in the U.S. return to learning, educators are finding ways to allow school to look like school – including teaching outdoors.
The move outside is a way to bring kids back together during the pandemic, and could become more than a stopgap. From coast to coast, educators in both private and public schools are finding creative ways to plan for learning, from open-air structures to makeshift classrooms in public parks or forested areas.
As many students in the U.S. officially head back to school today, some will be learning in an atypical environment: the outdoors.
At the Hartsbrook School, a private preK-12 Waldorf school in Hadley, Massachusetts, typical activities – talking, thinking, raising hands – are happening not in a traditional classroom but under waterproof canopies held up by repurposed cedar posts.
The outdoors is always part of daily life for the school’s 220 students, who regularly help care for livestock and gardens. But this year, Hartsbrook has added 16 outdoor classrooms, equipped with desks and blackboards.
The move outside is one of the solutions being used to bring kids back together during the pandemic – and it could become more than a stopgap. From coast to coast, educators in both private and public schools are finding creative ways to plan for learning outside, from open-air structures to makeshift classrooms in public parks or forested areas. Though tempered by logistics and funding, the benefits for students, some advocates say, go beyond preserving in-person education and accommodating social distancing.
Why We Wrote This Solving problems during a pandemic often requires looking outward. As students in the U.S. return to learning, educators are finding ways to allow school to look like school – including teaching outdoors.
“We’re confident that being outside and being in the presence of nature will help begin to heal some of the trauma [from the pandemic],” says Sharon Danks, CEO and founder of the nonprofit Green Schoolyards America, based in Berkeley, California.
Interest is coming from both rural and urban communities looking to reopen safely. Green Schoolyards America has teamed up with three other organizations to launch the National COVID-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative to help. Ten working groups are creating an online how-to manual for schools, says Ms. Danks, who expects some schools will continue on outdoors after the pandemic.
For many schools, education outdoors offers a way to resume at least some level of in-person learning, a key element from an equity standpoint. The spring’s rapid transition to remote learning meant students with little to no internet access and no computer were at a major disadvantage. Disparity issues continue. But experts note converting existing outdoor space doesn’t always require a lot of resources, making it an option available to a variety of schools.
The idea has caught on in New York City, where students can start learning in-person as of Sept. 21. Parents are among those who have been pushing for outdoor options for their students in the country’s largest school district. In late August, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced principals could submit outdoor learning plans that would use either their own grounds or request space in city parks or streets. So far, several hundred have been approved, with the city working on the logistics of such plans, which might affect parking among other things.
Trish Appel Peterson, the principal of PS8, The Robert Fulton School, which teaches about 650 K-5 students in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood, worked with her colleagues to submit a plan, still pending approval, that proposes closing two nearby streets, using tents on each for classrooms. The school would also use outdoor space on school grounds.
Ms. Peterson sees the potential for creativity to flourish in an outside class, when there is less technology and more talking. “I think it’s going to be interesting to see how things change when we’re outside and there isn’t a screen as a back up,” she says.
Lea Ciavarra, co-founding partner at Lubrano Ciavarra Architects in Brooklyn, helped PS8 build a plan for safe indoor and outdoor learning. Ms. Ciavarra, whose daughter is heading into second grade at the school, says outdoor options are definitely viable, just as they were during epidemics early in the 20th century.
“You get outside, there’s fresh air and you get reinvigorated,” she says. “Why wouldn’t you weave more of that into the day for a child?”
Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff View caption Hide caption First grade students at Hartsbrook School attend class during the first week of school, on Sept. 3, 2020 in Hadley, Massachusetts.
Further north, outdoor classrooms are also a priority at Hartland (Vermont) Elementary School, a public K-8 school with some 270 students. The community has raised more than $8,000 and counting to create these spaces. Ahead of the Sept. 8 reopening, which will include both in person and remote learning, Hartland raised the number of classrooms it has on adjacent, town-owned forest from two to five. On school grounds, carports have been set up to allow for teaching underneath them.
Hartland teachers will have the option to have class outside, inside, or a combination, Principal Christine Bourne says. “Hopefully it’ll be so successful that once things get back to normal, we’ll continue to use [the outdoor classrooms] and we can adapt our curriculum to have more outdoor learning,” she says. “We’re looking at this as an opportunity.”
Hartland’s kindergarten has used an outdoor classroom on the nearby 17-Acre Wood one day per week. Lauren Skilling, a kindergarten teacher, recommends educators set aside time for students learning outside to explore on their own and build their problem-solving skills.
Parent Jay Nash, a musician who helped with the fundraising effort for Hartland, recalls the positive impact from his daughter being in the kindergarten program. “When kids get outside ... I think that they become the best possible versions of themselves,” he says. “I have observed kids to be more calm, more considerate, and more likely to assimilate and retain new information while they are outdoors.”
Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff View caption Hide caption Rachel Kennedy teaches students in the Forest Kindergarten program at Hartsbrook School, on Sept. 3, 2020. The school featured outdoor instruction, including for Forest Kindergarten, even before the pandemic arrived.
Rachel Kennedy has seen that happen many times. She founded the Forest Kindergarten program at Hartsbrook, the Waldorf school in Massachusetts, where children learn about levers by using boards and tree stumps to make a seesaw or a balance board. She says such activities develop the physical and mental skills that drive creativity – and without leaning on technology.
“It builds such confidence and such agency, and those are other pieces I feel modern children really need,” Ms. Kennedy says, adding that those qualities help older kids, too.
Some outdoor settings are more conducive to learning than others, with urban educators, for example, competing with ambient city noise like construction. And any outdoor environment is prone to another variable: weather. That makes outdoor learning something that will be limited to certain times of the year in some states. Hartsbrook plans to offer outdoor heat sources as it gets colder, for example, and some schools may follow the lead of previous eras with outdoor learning in the United States, in which students bundled up in the winter.
Even with the hurdles, administrators around the U.S. are keeping learning outside as an option. One of the districts working with Green Schoolyards America is the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) in Colorado, which includes 56 schools with a total of about 29,000 students. The school year began on Aug. 26 with district-wide remote learning, but planning for the outdoor option is well underway, says Ghita Carroll, the district’s sustainability coordinator. And it’s nothing new for this district.
“What’s new is using it in a more universal way where we can even teach math outside,” Ms. Carroll says.
BVSD’s outdoor classrooms would come into play as part of a hybrid learning model, of both in-person and remote learning, when that option is deemed safe by local authorities. At each potential outdoor learning site, the district has considered various factors, including shading, space, and the location of grassy areas. Ms. Carroll says outdoor classrooms free up space for in-person learning indoors, and they provide a valuable way for students and teachers to connect. “A little bit can go a long way,” she says.
The Salt Lake City School District, a public district with about 24,000 students, is also starting remote, but is including outdoor classroom spaces in a hybrid learning model to be used when in-person learning is an option again. Shea Wickelson, a teacher at the district’s Salt Lake Center for Science Education, a lab school teaching grades 7-12 on two campuses, headed up the district’s outdoor learning plans ahead of the Sept. 8 start.
“We’re not re-creating the indoor classroom,” Ms. Wickelson says. “Our idea right now is just to be able to identify places we can use outside at the drop of a hat without big infrastructure changes and without a lot of money.”
Ms. Kennedy, the teacher from Hartsbrook, expects a lasting, positive impact from more children problem-solving together in the outdoors. “That’s a real pull toward compassion and figuring out how to help each other,” she says. “And I think that’s more needed than ever.”


csmonitor--2020-09-08--How a pandemic exposed – and may help fix – inequalities in education

With this in mind , the Monitor reached out to experts across the country to ask for their ideas of how to rethink education to create a more equitable future for America ’ s students .
“ There are gaps that have always been there that are becoming more visible to a lot of people , ” says Jon Valant of the Brookings Institution , who conducted the research on perceptions of achievement gaps .
And COVID-19 has delivered a critical disruption to an often inflexible system .
The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the reality that some students simply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ others .
A recent survey found that 72 % of U.S. respondents worried the pandemic would exacerbate inequality at school .
This year may be changing that .
It may also be opening the door to what some scholars hope could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revamp one of the most intransigent systems in American life , education ; and one of its most intractable problems , inequity .
Ten years ago , most Americans did not believe that discrimination or injustice played a role in the different educational outcomes of white and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ published in 2016 .
They blamed parenting and student motivation instead .
In the early 2010s , Jon Valant , a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution ’ s Brown Center on Education Policy , began researching Americans ’ perception of the “ achievement gap , ” mainstream lingo for the difference in educational outcomes between historically advantaged and disadvantaged students .
What he found surprised him .
As a scholar of education , he thought it was clear that systemic racism had long impacted the country ’ s school system .
From @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was illegal to teach Black children , to today , when researchers have found that school districts filled primarily with students of color receive billions less in funding than predominantly white school districts , students of color have faced undue difficulties .
But most Americans , it turned out , did not see it this way .
Indeed , according to a study that he released in 2016 with colleague Daniel Newark , most Americans – particularly white Americans – did not believe that discrimination or injustice played a role in the different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
They blamed parenting and student motivation instead .
While respondents were interested in closing disparities between wealthier and poorer students , a majority were hesitant to support policies that experts believed would close the Black-white divide .
“ Most Americans at the time just did not believe that social injustice or discrimination played a role , ” recalls Dr. Valant .
This year may be changing that .
It may also be opening the door to what some scholars hope could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revamp one of the most intransigent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and one of its most intractable problems , inequity .
Recent polling shows a dramatic shift in the way Americans see racial disparity .
A majority of white Americans now believe policing is racially biased , according to a recent Associated Press poll , and there is a growing sense among white Americans that racial injustice is a continuing problem in the United States – something that most Black Americans have said for years .
At the same time , the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the reality that some students simply do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , whether technological , familial , or institutional .
A recent Pearson survey found that 72 % of U.S. respondents worried the pandemic would exacerbate inequality at school .
“ There are gaps that have always been there that are becoming more visible to a lot of people , ” says Dr. Valant .
For decades , educational reformers from all sides of the political spectrum have faced an uphill battle making fundamental changes to the American school system .
As John Danner , an entrepreneur who focuses on equity in education , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ free monopoly , ” a system that is both resilient and resistant to uncomfortable disruptions or innovations .
“ But will the next two years of COVID allow some cracks to form in that structure ?
” he asks .
“ I think to some extent yes.
” The big question , he and others say , is how to make the most of this opportunity .
With this in mind , the Monitor reached out to experts across the country to ask for their ideas of how to rethink education to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s students – from the bold and creative to the mundane but essential .
Below are five solutions that emerged from those conversations .
They are ideas to ponder during a pandemic-induced disruption that David Kirkland , professor of English and urban education at New York University and the executive director of NYU ’ s Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools , describes as an “ incredibly crucial intermission.
” “ How can we focus not only on what the disease has taken from us but what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asks Dr. Kirkland .
“ The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
” Tech , yes , but better America ’ s uneven experience with remote online-based learning this year has made many people shy away from the idea of a tech-based education future .
Parents are exhausted , students are bored , and America ’ s digital divide , with Black people and Hispanics far less likely than white people to own a computer or have access to high-speed internet , threatens to exacerbate learning inequities .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there is still huge potential in online learning to both improve education and reduce inequalities .
“ It was difficult to watch during the spring how we were not doing it right , ” says Jan Plass , professor of digital media and learning sciences at New York University , during a recent webinar about the future of education .
“ Emergency remote learning was nowhere near what technology can accomplish.
” Done well , Dr. Plass says , technology can engage students by allowing them to pursue their own interests , regardless @ @ @ @ @ @ @ particular school .
Through augmented and virtual reality , gaming , and other formats , students can connect to larger networks and delve into interest-driven activities scholars know motivate children to learn .
“ The right technology can give you access to the vast amount of information that ’ s available , ” he says .
“ It gives you access to a wider world.
” This sort of technology can disrupt what he sees as an outdated model of “ sitting in a room full of chairs with someone standing at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can be available to students with the technology they have .
While the Pew Research Center found a significant racial divide in broadband access , it also found that Black people and white people are equally likely to own smartphones .
Technology can also boost equality when it comes to educational opportunities outside of school , says Amir Nathoo , co-founder of Outschool , a burgeoning marketplace of online classes and camps .
“ Supplemental education before was the reserve of the wealthy , people who could afford private enrichment programs , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ online classes , you ’ re getting much lower price points.
” At Outschool , weekslong lessons for everything from piano basics to video game design cost as little as $ 10 an hour .
Outschool has also pledged $ 3 million to provide financial assistance to families .
Because the classes are online , Mr. Nathoo says , they connect children of different socioeconomic and racial backgrounds more regularly than in-person schools , which tend to cater to students who are demographically similar .
“ I ’ m not advocating that anyone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Mr. Nathoo says .
“ The future of education is going to be hybrid .
Teachers , parents , and kids will use a combination of in-person and online resources .
The mix will depend on the subject , the kid , the particular availability of resources.
” If you start with the idea that education in the future could be hybrid , then it doesn ’ t take long to question some of the long-standing structural aspects of school itself .
Why are children grouped by age ?
Why divide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high school ?
And what about the calendar – why should children go to school when they do ?
“ Parents for the first time are getting a front-row seat into schooling and are asking questions they haven ’ t asked before , ” says Michael Horn , co-founder of the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation and co-author of “ Disrupting Class : How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns.
” Take child care , he says .
Perhaps more clearly now than ever , working parents who have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ play a significant role in child care .
But even in the best of times , Mr. Horn points out , schools are not particularly well designed for that .
“ I ’ m not sure a lot of two-working-parent families want child care from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and not during the summer , ” he says .
“ What are the opportunities to create a much better set of coverage for families that is more flexible ?
” This is an equity issue , says Elena Silva , director of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New America , because parents with more resources can compensate for the inadequacies of school structure .
They have jobs that allow them flexibility to be at home in the afternoon , or they can enroll their children in after-school programs .
They are also able to offset the ways that the current school structure , set up for a host of historical and institutional reasons unrelated to children ’ s needs , disconnects with childhood development .
For instance , studies question the traditional elementary-middle-high school format .
Rather than grades one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ group , she explains , it would make more educational sense to focus on birth through third grade , which experts see as a unique developmental phase .
At the same time , high schools typically offer the same structure for ninth grade through 12th grade .
But during those final two years of school , adolescents are ready to embrace far more independence – and responsibility .
And middle school ?
There is a reason it seems such a mess , she says , and it ’ s not just because of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sat down to say , ‘ How should we educate a child from birth to age 25 ?
’ ” she says .
“ The weaknesses in the system ... are made up for in households that have a lot of resources.
” Changing the calendar could help with learning loss .
“ Every single summer some kids fall behind , ” Dr. Silva notes .
“ Other kids gain .
They ’ re going on trips and they ’ re going to summer camp and they ’ re having experiences and exposure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weaknesses in the school system so you don ’ t see them.
” Some organizations are already trying to tackle this problem .
Sora Schools , an education startup based in Atlanta , offers a virtual learning-based high school that adjusts its model as students get older .
Rather than classes , students pick among small group “ learning expeditions ” tailored to match their development , says co-founder Garrett Smiley .
Mr. Smiley started Sora after running a nonprofit to teach financial literacy to children in foster care .
It became clear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ traditional education wasn ’ t working .
“ The kids who were entirely dependent on the system are just being failed , ” he says .
“ We have to fix the system itself .
That ’ s what Sora is doing .
We are trying to do a full-fledged replacement that is more equitable and also offers better education.
” Another way to make education more equitable , some experts say , is to look small .
During the pandemic , a growing number of families have banded together to create “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – basically small learning groups led by a private instructor .
Critics say this is inequitable : Pods allow wealthy parents to bypass imperfect remote learning while lower-income and students of color languish .
But many who have been involved in the microschool movement for years say that these small , alternative learning arrangements have the ability to create more equity .
Kelly Smith , founder and chief executive officer of Prenda , a company that helps run microschools , says it is a misconception that only white or wealthy parents are involved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ children .
Equity , he says , is central to Prenda ’ s model .
The company has partnered with the Black Mothers Forum of Phoenix to bring microschools into primarily Black and lower-income neighborhoods , and it has brought a microschool to the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation in Arizona .
“ Our goal is not to help the rich get richer , ” Mr. Smith says .
In Prenda ’ s microschools , there is a “ learning guide ” who organizes students ’ academics .
This could be a student @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the community .
That person is not responsible for teaching all subjects , but coordinates students ’ learning , making use of both online and community offerings .
This model allows for more investment and ownership on the part of parents who may otherwise feel marginalized by school systems .
It also is easier to recognize and avoid the sort of baked-in racism that happens regularly in larger school districts , experts say , from the way school administrators interact with Black parents to the well-documented disparities in the disciplining of Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such complex ecosystems .
The way they are designed right now , it ’ s so hard to get anything but incremental progress , ” says Michael Finnegan , founder and CEO of QuantumCamp , a science camp and educational program that grew out of Dr. Finnegan ’ s work with underserved youth in Oakland , California .
As schools closed in response to the pandemic this year , it became increasingly clear just how many services they provided to children and families beyond education .
There was child care , for sure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with some 20 million children across the country receiving free lunch at school .
Mental health counseling is big , too .
And child protection services .
“ Everyone is worried that someone is going to go hungry because schools aren ’ t going to provide free lunch , ” says Geoffrey Canada , founder of the Harlem Children ’ s Zone , a renowned educational and neighborhood renewal program in New York .
“ America should just stop right there and say , ‘ How is it that we have so many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
’ ” When he began running the Harlem Children ’ s Zone in 1990 , Mr. Canada realized quickly that there was no way to separate school from the rest of children ’ s lives .
Everything about their experiences – where they lived , what was happening with their family , how much violence took place on their street – impacted what happened in the classroom .
“ Traditionally , we have separated education from the rest of the environment .
...
But there is no evidence at all that for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that works , ” Mr. Canada says .
Indeed , to Mr. Danner , the educational entrepreneur , it doesn ’ t work .
He notes how in Palo Alto , California , considered one of the best public school systems in the country , lower-income students attending from other districts do not achieve better test scores than in their home schools .
“ We look at the data and know it ’ s not working , ” says Mr. Danner .
“ But we have a lot of loyalty to this system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ equalizer .
... We ’ ve all told ourselves a story that if we can just make the system work everything will be good .
But , in fact , the system works for the people who have the most political voice in the system.
” What works for students of color , whose communities often lack political or financial power , is wraparound investment , says Kwame Owusu-Kesse , Mr .
Canada ’ s successor .
This is what happens at the Harlem Children ’ s Zone .
The program addresses the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with The Baby College , a parenting and early childhood education course , and continuing through to college , jobs , and mentoring programs and wellness initiatives .
The nonprofit runs charter schools but also supports public school students ; it uses intense data metrics to measure outcomes and adjust its interventions .
What started on one Harlem block has expanded over 30 years into one of the most successful and well-documented experiments in urban education .
Critics have argued that the model would be too expensive to replicate across the country .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ have not had equal success .
But this , Mr. Owusu-Kesse says , is a matter of priorities .
The organization is calling for a $ 100 billion investment in the 100 most disadvantaged neighborhoods in America .
Over 10 years , it wants each community to invest $ 1 billion in education , health care , mental health , after-school programming , mentorship efforts , wellness , and various other initiatives .
It ’ s a huge amount of money , Mr. Canada and Mr. Owusu-Kesse acknowledge , but not compared to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , lost economic revenue , and policing .
“ The question of investment is about breaking mental models , ” says Mr. Owusu-Kesse .
“ COVID has shed a bright light on this .
We need to reprioritize what we are putting money on.
” Brookings Institution researchers found in 2016 that white families had on average 10 times the wealth of Black families .
Dr. Valant of Brookings says that “ baby bonds , ” a proposal that would give every child at birth a bank account , funded in reverse proportion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could help mediate this inequality .
“ If we were really able to target and address wealth gaps , you close the gaps in resources when it comes to tutoring , digital divides , pods , all sorts of other things that cost money .
...
When you invest more , kids perform better , ” Dr. Valant says .
There is a question , though , at the base of all of this work .
How should students – particularly students of color – experience education ?
What does it mean to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ purpose of learning ?
It ’ s an area that Dr. Kirkland , of NYU , has been pondering a lot recently .
As tough as this pandemic has been for families and schools , he is conscious that , for the first time , many children have had the opportunity to see what it ’ s like to not walk through metal detectors every day .
It ’ s the first time that no students have been suspended and the first time they haven ’ t gotten in trouble with teachers or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s been asking , he says , is “ what does a joy-based education look like ?
” It ’ s an issue on the minds of many education disrupters .
“ You have a system that ’ s built on the opposite of what we know motivates people , ” says Mr. Horn of the Clayton Christensen Institute .
“ There are very few opportunities to feel successful in it ; there are very few opportunities to tackle the problems that are interesting to the students themselves ; there are very few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s why every kid starts off excited in kindergarten , and they get to high school and the word they use about school is ‘ boring.
’ ” The belief in educational joy is why Ryan Delk helped create Primer , an online-based home-schooling network scheduled to launch this year .
Mr. Delk remembers how his parents decided not to send him to public school in Florida , concluding that it was better for his father to work three jobs for a time and his mother to teach him at home rather @ @ @ @ @ @ @ school district .
Today he sees it as “ one of the most incredible gifts that anyone has given me .
My parents ’ whole orientation was ‘ we want you to love learning.
’ ” Primer helps parents work through the bureaucracy of home schooling , and then connect to experts and the community .
Mr. Delk says he has seen growing interest among parents of color .
The National Home Education Research Institute says Black students in 2015 made up the fastest-growing segment of home-schooled children .
“ Giving parents more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ equity , ” he says .
But there also should be joy in traditional schools , most scholars agree .
And this is not a straightforward proposition , nor is it apolitical .
In many ways , says Dr. Kirkland , Black children have experienced school as a hostile environment – an institution that is about control and regulation , not expression or pleasure .
Joy expressed by Black students has traditionally been viewed with suspicion , he says .
Think , for instance , of a group of Black teens laughing loudly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ institutional reaction from that toward a group of white teens enjoying each other ’ s company .
“ When we see Black and brown bodies in joyful moments there is a collective judgment , ” Dr. Kirkland says .
“ There is a narrative about deviance.
” So it is perhaps unsurprising , he says , that educational institutions catering to students of color have been constructed – consciously or unconsciously – to eliminate joy .
Dr. Kirkland tells the story of a private school on 33rd Street , not terribly far from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and financially privileged students .
It has great facilities .
The children learn by playing .
They have toys and equipment .
“ They have created a setting where they can love the kids , ” he says .
Two blocks north , there is a public school , with mainly disadvantaged students of color .
“ They go through metal detectors .
They ’ re marching in single-file lines .
There ’ s no love of them .
It ’ s about obedience .
This is the type of school we have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Editor ’ s note : As a public service , we have removed our paywall for all pandemic-related stories .

With this in mind, the Monitor reached out to experts across the country to ask for their ideas of how to rethink education to create a more equitable future for America’s students.
“There are gaps that have always been there that are becoming more visible to a lot of people,” says Jon Valant of the Brookings Institution, who conducted the research on perceptions of achievement gaps. And COVID-19 has delivered a critical disruption to an often inflexible system.
The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the reality that some students simply do not have the same resources as others. A recent survey found that 72% of U.S. respondents worried the pandemic would exacerbate inequality at school.
Education faces existential change as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. But the tumult may open the door for innovation, helping schools reduce inequality – through everything from microschools to joy-based learning.
This year may be changing that. It may also be opening the door to what some scholars hope could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revamp one of the most intransigent systems in American life, education; and one of its most intractable problems, inequity.
Ten years ago, most Americans did not believe that discrimination or injustice played a role in the different educational outcomes of white and Black students, according to a study published in 2016. They blamed parenting and student motivation instead.
In the early 2010s, Jon Valant, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Brown Center on Education Policy, began researching Americans’ perception of the “achievement gap,” mainstream lingo for the difference in educational outcomes between historically advantaged and disadvantaged students.
What he found surprised him.
As a scholar of education, he thought it was clear that systemic racism had long impacted the country’s school system. From the days of slavery, when it was illegal to teach Black children, to today, when researchers have found that school districts filled primarily with students of color receive billions less in funding than predominantly white school districts, students of color have faced undue difficulties.
Why We Wrote This Education faces existential change as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. But the tumult may open the door for innovation, helping schools reduce inequality – through everything from microschools to joy-based learning.
But most Americans, it turned out, did not see it this way. Indeed, according to a study that he released in 2016 with colleague Daniel Newark, most Americans – particularly white Americans – did not believe that discrimination or injustice played a role in the different educational outcomes of white and Black students. They blamed parenting and student motivation instead.
While respondents were interested in closing disparities between wealthier and poorer students, a majority were hesitant to support policies that experts believed would close the Black-white divide. “Most Americans at the time just did not believe that social injustice or discrimination played a role,” recalls Dr. Valant.
This year may be changing that. It may also be opening the door to what some scholars hope could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revamp one of the most intransigent systems in American life, education; and one of its most intractable problems, inequity.
Recent polling shows a dramatic shift in the way Americans see racial disparity. A majority of white Americans now believe policing is racially biased, according to a recent Associated Press poll, and there is a growing sense among white Americans that racial injustice is a continuing problem in the United States – something that most Black Americans have said for years. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the reality that some students simply do not have the same resources as others, whether technological, familial, or institutional. A recent Pearson survey found that 72% of U.S. respondents worried the pandemic would exacerbate inequality at school.
Cheney Orr/Reuters View caption Hide caption Alexa Callander virtually teaches a second grade class for students who are either at home or in a separate classroom at the Rover Elementary School in Tempe, Arizona.
“There are gaps that have always been there that are becoming more visible to a lot of people,” says Dr. Valant.
For decades, educational reformers from all sides of the political spectrum have faced an uphill battle making fundamental changes to the American school system. As John Danner, an entrepreneur who focuses on equity in education, puts it, public schools are a “free monopoly,” a system that is both resilient and resistant to uncomfortable disruptions or innovations.
“But will the next two years of COVID allow some cracks to form in that structure?” he asks. “I think to some extent yes.”
The big question, he and others say, is how to make the most of this opportunity.
With this in mind, the Monitor reached out to experts across the country to ask for their ideas of how to rethink education to create a more equitable future for America’s students – from the bold and creative to the mundane but essential.
Below are five solutions that emerged from those conversations. They are ideas to ponder during a pandemic-induced disruption that David Kirkland, professor of English and urban education at New York University and the executive director of NYU’s Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools, describes as an “incredibly crucial intermission.”
“How can we focus not only on what the disease has taken from us but what it’s given us?” asks Dr. Kirkland. “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.”
Tech, yes, but better
America’s uneven experience with remote online-based learning this year has made many people shy away from the idea of a tech-based education future. Parents are exhausted, students are bored, and America’s digital divide, with Black people and Hispanics far less likely than white people to own a computer or have access to high-speed internet, threatens to exacerbate learning inequities.
Lucy Nicholson/Reuters View caption Hide caption Los Angeles students Keiley Flores (left), Andrea Ramos, and Alexander Ramos work on school-issued computers with unreliable internet service as their mother, Anely Solis, looks on.
But many involved in cutting-edge educational technology say there is still huge potential in online learning to both improve education and reduce inequalities.
“It was difficult to watch during the spring how we were not doing it right,” says Jan Plass, professor of digital media and learning sciences at New York University, during a recent webinar about the future of education. “Emergency remote learning was nowhere near what technology can accomplish.”
Done well, Dr. Plass says, technology can engage students by allowing them to pursue their own interests, regardless of the resources or capabilities of their particular school. Through augmented and virtual reality, gaming, and other formats, students can connect to larger networks and delve into interest-driven activities scholars know motivate children to learn.
“The right technology can give you access to the vast amount of information that’s available,” he says. “It gives you access to a wider world.”
This sort of technology can disrupt what he sees as an outdated model of “sitting in a room full of chairs with someone standing at the front talking to you.” And it can be available to students with the technology they have. While the Pew Research Center found a significant racial divide in broadband access, it also found that Black people and white people are equally likely to own smartphones.
Technology can also boost equality when it comes to educational opportunities outside of school, says Amir Nathoo, co-founder of Outschool, a burgeoning marketplace of online classes and camps.
“Supplemental education before was the reserve of the wealthy, people who could afford private enrichment programs,” he says. “With small group online classes, you’re getting much lower price points.”
Christina Rothermel-Branham/AP View caption Hide caption James Rothermel-Branham does schoolwork at home in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. His mother is considering home-schooling him if remote learning goes poorly.
At Outschool, weekslong lessons for everything from piano basics to video game design cost as little as $10 an hour. Outschool has also pledged $3 million to provide financial assistance to families. Because the classes are online, Mr. Nathoo says, they connect children of different socioeconomic and racial backgrounds more regularly than in-person schools, which tend to cater to students who are demographically similar.
“I’m not advocating that anyone learn online every day, all day,” Mr. Nathoo says. “The future of education is going to be hybrid. Teachers, parents, and kids will use a combination of in-person and online resources. The mix will depend on the subject, the kid, the particular availability of resources.”
Forget grade school
If you start with the idea that education in the future could be hybrid, then it doesn’t take long to question some of the long-standing structural aspects of school itself.
Why are children grouped by age? Why divide schooling into elementary, middle, and high school? And what about the calendar – why should children go to school when they do?
“Parents for the first time are getting a front-row seat into schooling and are asking questions they haven’t asked before,” says Michael Horn, co-founder of the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation and co-author of “Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns.”
Take child care, he says. Perhaps more clearly now than ever, working parents who have struggled through remote learning recognize that schools play a significant role in child care. But even in the best of times, Mr. Horn points out, schools are not particularly well designed for that.
“I’m not sure a lot of two-working-parent families want child care from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and not during the summer,” he says. “What are the opportunities to create a much better set of coverage for families that is more flexible?”
This is an equity issue, says Elena Silva, director of Pre-K-12 for the education policy program at New America, because parents with more resources can compensate for the inadequacies of school structure. They have jobs that allow them flexibility to be at home in the afternoon, or they can enroll their children in after-school programs.
They are also able to offset the ways that the current school structure, set up for a host of historical and institutional reasons unrelated to children’s needs, disconnects with childhood development.
Adam Robison/The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal/AP View caption Hide caption Middle school staffers in Corinth, Mississippi, pass out lunches to students in classrooms instead of serving them in the cafeteria.
For instance, studies question the traditional elementary-middle-high school format. Rather than grades one through five being treated as a cohesive group, she explains, it would make more educational sense to focus on birth through third grade, which experts see as a unique developmental phase. At the same time, high schools typically offer the same structure for ninth grade through 12th grade. But during those final two years of school, adolescents are ready to embrace far more independence – and responsibility. And middle school? There is a reason it seems such a mess, she says, and it’s not just because of issues surrounding puberty.
“Nobody ever sat down to say, ‘How should we educate a child from birth to age 25?’” she says. “The weaknesses in the system ... are made up for in households that have a lot of resources.”
Changing the calendar could help with learning loss. “Every single summer some kids fall behind,” Dr. Silva notes. “Other kids gain. They’re going on trips and they’re going to summer camp and they’re having experiences and exposure. It’s covering for those weaknesses in the school system so you don’t see them.”
Some organizations are already trying to tackle this problem. Sora Schools, an education startup based in Atlanta, offers a virtual learning-based high school that adjusts its model as students get older. Rather than classes, students pick among small group “learning expeditions” tailored to match their development, says co-founder Garrett Smiley. Mr. Smiley started Sora after running a nonprofit to teach financial literacy to children in foster care. It became clear to him, he says, that traditional education wasn’t working.
“The kids who were entirely dependent on the system are just being failed,” he says. “We have to fix the system itself. That’s what Sora is doing. We are trying to do a full-fledged replacement that is more equitable and also offers better education.”
Rise of the microschool
Another way to make education more equitable, some experts say, is to look small.
During the pandemic, a growing number of families have banded together to create “pods,” or “microschools” – basically small learning groups led by a private instructor. Critics say this is inequitable: Pods allow wealthy parents to bypass imperfect remote learning while lower-income and students of color languish.
But many who have been involved in the microschool movement for years say that these small, alternative learning arrangements have the ability to create more equity.
Kelly Smith, founder and chief executive officer of Prenda, a company that helps run microschools, says it is a misconception that only white or wealthy parents are involved in creating alternative educational opportunities for their children. Equity, he says, is central to Prenda’s model. The company has partnered with the Black Mothers Forum of Phoenix to bring microschools into primarily Black and lower-income neighborhoods, and it has brought a microschool to the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation in Arizona.
Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images View caption Hide caption Students work on an assignment in a “learning pod” that parents have put together to help with schooling during the pandemic at a home in Woodland Hills, California.
“Our goal is not to help the rich get richer,” Mr. Smith says.
In Prenda’s microschools, there is a “learning guide” who organizes students’ academics. This could be a student’s parent or another trusted adult in the community. That person is not responsible for teaching all subjects, but coordinates students’ learning, making use of both online and community offerings. This model allows for more investment and ownership on the part of parents who may otherwise feel marginalized by school systems.
It also is easier to recognize and avoid the sort of baked-in racism that happens regularly in larger school districts, experts say, from the way school administrators interact with Black parents to the well-documented disparities in the disciplining of Black and white students.
“Schools are such complex ecosystems. The way they are designed right now, it’s so hard to get anything but incremental progress,” says Michael Finnegan, founder and CEO of QuantumCamp, a science camp and educational program that grew out of Dr. Finnegan’s work with underserved youth in Oakland, California.
Focus outside of school
As schools closed in response to the pandemic this year, it became increasingly clear just how many services they provided to children and families beyond education. There was child care, for sure. But there was also food, with some 20 million children across the country receiving free lunch at school. Mental health counseling is big, too. And child protection services.
“Everyone is worried that someone is going to go hungry because schools aren’t going to provide free lunch,” says Geoffrey Canada, founder of the Harlem Children’s Zone, a renowned educational and neighborhood renewal program in New York. “America should just stop right there and say, ‘How is it that we have so many students who cannot afford to eat?’”
Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images View caption Hide caption “Everyone is worried that someone is going to go hungry because schools aren't going to provide free lunch. America should just stop right there and say, 'How is it that we have so many students who cannot afford to eat?'" – Geoffrey Canada, founder of the Harlem Children’s Zone, an educational renewal program in New York
When he began running the Harlem Children’s Zone in 1990, Mr. Canada realized quickly that there was no way to separate school from the rest of children’s lives. Everything about their experiences – where they lived, what was happening with their family, how much violence took place on their street – impacted what happened in the classroom.
“Traditionally, we have separated education from the rest of the environment. ... But there is no evidence at all that for the most disadvantaged students in this country that works,” Mr. Canada says.
Indeed, to Mr. Danner, the educational entrepreneur, it doesn’t work. He notes how in Palo Alto, California, considered one of the best public school systems in the country, lower-income students attending from other districts do not achieve better test scores than in their home schools.
“We look at the data and know it’s not working,” says Mr. Danner. “But we have a lot of loyalty to this system – like it’s this democratic equalizer. ... We’ve all told ourselves a story that if we can just make the system work everything will be good. But, in fact, the system works for the people who have the most political voice in the system.”
What works for students of color, whose communities often lack political or financial power, is wraparound investment, says Kwame Owusu-Kesse,Mr. Canada’s successor.
This is what happens at the Harlem Children’s Zone. The program addresses the needs of the entire community, starting with The Baby College, a parenting and early childhood education course, and continuing through to college, jobs, and mentoring programs and wellness initiatives. The nonprofit runs charter schools but also supports public school students; it uses intense data metrics to measure outcomes and adjust its interventions. What started on one Harlem block has expanded over 30 years into one of the most successful and well-documented experiments in urban education.
Brynn Anderson/AP View caption Hide caption Teachers Jennifer Scandle (in bus) and Renee Roberts (right) deliver a lunch to Kelsi Clarke in Cusseta, Georgia.
Critics have argued that the model would be too expensive to replicate across the country. And less well-funded versions of the program have not had equal success.
But this, Mr. Owusu-Kesse says, is a matter of priorities. The organization is calling for a $100 billion investment in the 100 most disadvantaged neighborhoods in America. Over 10 years, it wants each community to invest $1 billion in education, health care, mental health, after-school programming, mentorship efforts, wellness, and various other initiatives. It’s a huge amount of money, Mr. Canada and Mr. Owusu-Kesse acknowledge, but not compared to costs of incarceration, treating poor health, lost economic revenue, and policing.
“The question of investment is about breaking mental models,” says Mr. Owusu-Kesse. “COVID has shed a bright light on this. We need to reprioritize what we are putting money on.”
Brookings Institution researchers found in 2016 that white families had on average 10 times the wealth of Black families. Dr. Valant of Brookings says that “baby bonds,” a proposal that would give every child at birth a bank account, funded in reverse proportion to a family’s wealth, could help mediate this inequality.
“If we were really able to target and address wealth gaps, you close the gaps in resources when it comes to tutoring, digital divides, pods, all sorts of other things that cost money. ... When you invest more, kids perform better,” Dr. Valant says.
Joy-based learning
There is a question, though, at the base of all of this work. How should students – particularly students of color – experience education? What does it mean to go to school? What is the purpose of learning?
It’s an area that Dr. Kirkland, of NYU, has been pondering a lot recently. As tough as this pandemic has been for families and schools, he is conscious that, for the first time, many children have had the opportunity to see what it’s like to not walk through metal detectors every day. It’s the first time that no students have been suspended and the first time they haven’t gotten in trouble with teachers or school police.
The question he’s been asking, he says, is “what does a joy-based education look like?”
Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff/File View caption Hide caption Students take a class in media literacy at Match High School, a public charter school, in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston in February 2019.
It’s an issue on the minds of many education disrupters. “You have a system that’s built on the opposite of what we know motivates people,” says Mr. Horn of the Clayton Christensen Institute. “There are very few opportunities to feel successful in it; there are very few opportunities to tackle the problems that are interesting to the students themselves; there are very few opportunities to make learning joyful. It’s why every kid starts off excited in kindergarten, and they get to high school and the word they use about school is ‘boring.’”
The belief in educational joy is why Ryan Delk helped create Primer, an online-based home-schooling network scheduled to launch this year. Mr. Delk remembers how his parents decided not to send him to public school in Florida, concluding that it was better for his father to work three jobs for a time and his mother to teach him at home rather than send him to their struggling local school district. Today he sees it as “one of the most incredible gifts that anyone has given me. My parents’ whole orientation was ‘we want you to love learning.’”
Primer helps parents work through the bureaucracy of home schooling, and then connect to experts and the community. Mr. Delk says he has seen growing interest among parents of color. The National Home Education Research Institute says Black students in 2015 made up the fastest-growing segment of home-schooled children.
“Giving parents more options is a good way to increase equity,” he says.
But there also should be joy in traditional schools, most scholars agree. And this is not a straightforward proposition, nor is it apolitical.
In many ways, says Dr. Kirkland, Black children have experienced school as a hostile environment – an institution that is about control and regulation, not expression or pleasure. Joy expressed by Black students has traditionally been viewed with suspicion, he says. Think, for instance, of a group of Black teens laughing loudly together. It often prompts a different institutional reaction from that toward a group of white teens enjoying each other’s company.
“When we see Black and brown bodies in joyful moments there is a collective judgment,” Dr. Kirkland says. “There is a narrative about deviance.”
So it is perhaps unsurprising, he says, that educational institutions catering to students of color have been constructed – consciously or unconsciously – to eliminate joy.
Dr. Kirkland tells the story of a private school on 33rd Street, not terribly far from his work, that serves primarily white and financially privileged students. It has great facilities. The children learn by playing. They have toys and equipment.
“They have created a setting where they can love the kids,” he says.
Two blocks north, there is a public school, with mainly disadvantaged students of color. “They go through metal detectors. They’re marching in single-file lines. There’s no love of them. It’s about obedience. This is the type of school we have created for Black and brown students.
“We have to radically change education.”
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