Enacted in 2001 by President George W. Bush No Child Left Behind Act emphasizes that public education have to provide equitable rights for all regardless of income, promoting that all school districts provide equality in education to ensure students were afforded equal education to prepare for their workforce future. Such measure has to ensure that public education allows children to succeed regardless of income levels. The book of Ladson-Billings and Tate indicates that the immigrant population increases among the impoverished students and their English as a Second Language compound with their poverty levels, requiring additional special services from LEA’s across the nation (2006, p. ix). Additionally, there is a multitude of cultures and religions among this mix whose diversity should be embraced in the overall educational system.
While the authors of this book compare responses to hurricane Katrina versus the World Trade Tower attacks, it becomes apparent that the responses of the government were quite dissimilar based on the population at hand. The symbolic meaning of hurricane Katrina emphasizes the racial and social problems in the U.S. where educational opportunities are limited by the law income and colour of skin. Rescuers ran to assist those in Manhattan who were of mostly white or upper-income status, while the response of Katrina came slower to those of lower-income and minority status (Ladson-Billings and Tate, p.1).
For the authors, public education is a basement of democracy that guarantees equal access to educational programs for the representatives of all communities. Equality in education in the interest of diversity can only enhance the global spectrum in which the world currently engages for both minorities as well as majorities. The authors see the solution in the investigation of ways to make schools movement-building space which would include the engagement of students with communities as a part of their curriculums. It is highly important to give students more freedom as a possibility to develop independent programs. Such measure allows growing the student activists who could be the political and social leaders in the future. Public interest implores the value of low income and multicultural students to be equitably educated amongst their higher income and racially universe peers. The role of schools in the creation of a virtuous democratic society is significant. It is the fundamental place where students learn how to solve social problems and how to interact and cooperate with people from different communities to develop common methods of the country’s improvement.
Ladson-Billings and Tate analyze various peculiarities within the education system, providing possible solutions and ways of improvement. The present book includes theoretical and conceptual limitations and emphasizes the importance of changes. Public policies such as minimum wage keep families of the urban and uneducated children in poverty as the circumstances of lower value for education. Besides, public policies keep Federal poverty rates so low that the lower middle class are not eligible for the hand up of welfare systems in place (Ladson-Billings and Tate, p.20). As the authors claim about the necessity of educational research, the value of this book consists in its contribution to improving the comprehension of the significance of educational changes, equality of access and training of student activists who can be the leaders of communities and who can change the current political and social situation.
Reference List
Ladson-Billings, G. & Tate, W. F. (2006). Education Research in the Public Interest: Social Justice, Action, and Policy. New York: Teachers College Press.