Memphis Central High School aka “The High School”
Fans of “The Wire” are familiar with the terms “stoop kids” versus “corner kids.” For those of you who don’t know. Stoop kids are those who stay on the stoop when told by their parents. Corner kids are those that hang out on the corner for lung hours and push the package. In the show’s recent episode, the corner kids are separated from the stoop kids so that the latter could learn in the regular class rooms. The stoop kids were too disruptive to order and prevented the whole from learning.
This plot line sparked a great debate that I decided to bring to the blog. I told some people how the Memphis City School system was structured when I was growing up. The system two main tracks: Level 6 (the optional program) included a college prep line of classes. The other track was Level 4. If you had to do remedial, that was a Level 2 class and if you wanted to take an AP (advanced placement) course, that was Level 8.
How did one determine what level you were on? Students were given tests (probably the California Achievement Tests) and based on their test scores, they were placed in the appropriate level. Periodic testing was done to check for any change in the student’s level.
The Debate: I think the system worked well because each child learned on their level. The way I see it, there was little concern of putting a child in a course that he wasn’t prepared for and failing under this system. The other side argued that it was wrong to doom a child based on a test or series of tests given at an early age. The program is elitist and benefits a chosen few good test takers.
What say you?
Filed under: Schools
