Archived Issue Archived Front Page of TCLA - Vol.3, No.5/6 (8/11/03)
Teaching to Change LA: An online journal of IDEA, UCLA's Institute for Democracy, Education, & Access: TCLA's School Accountability Report Card Series

UCLA/IDEA Double Issue #5/#6 - Learning & Assessment/Safe & Democratic Environment
TCLA's School Report Card Series
La serie de la Boleta escolar
de calificaciones de TCLA
Subject
Asunto
 Comments
Comentarios
1. Introduction
Introdución
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2. Mission & Description
Misión y descripción
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3. Learning Materials
Condiciones para el aprendizaje de calidad

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4. Teaching Quality
Enseñanza de alta calidad
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5. Learning & Assessment
Asesoría y aprendizaje estudiantil
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6. Safe & Democratic Environment
Ambiente escolar seguro y democrático
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7. Final Comments
Comentarios finales
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>> The Latest

Week of Monday August 4, 2003

Checked BoxLeave No Child Behind
Public Education Network has developed an indispensable 80-page guide for community leaders, parents and educators on how to use No Child Left Behind Act to advocate for improved public education.

Checked Box Building Parents as Researchers
On April 21 - April 25 Parent U-Turn traveled to Chicago to present a paper at the American Educators Research Conference (AERA) entitled "Building Parents as Researchers."

>> Special Features

Youth Summit 2003
On Friday, June 13th, Los Angeles students traveled to UCLA to report on the conditions in their schools and to ask questions of LAUSD School Board Vice President, Jose Huizar. TCLA proudly hosts these presentations.
Don't forget to read past issues of TCLA:
< The Digital Divide - Spring 2001 >
< Democracy 2000 - Fall 2000 >

>> Safe and Democratic Schools

Our current issue of TCLA calls attention to two competing ideas about “school safety.” Our theme, “Safe AND Democratic Schools,” offers a peaceful and hopeful alternative to the common idea of “Safe OR Democratic Schools.” The “Safe OR democratic” folks argue that we should give up some of our rights to participate and organize in order to feel more secure. This issue of TCLA argues that “security” becomes the exclusive concern when we start believing that the only way to eliminate “danger” is to concentrate “authority” in the hands of those we pay to “protect” us.

Photo: High School Exit Exam Protest, May 2003
Rallying Against the High School Exit Exam, May 2003

Checked Box TCLA's Virtual School Report Card
Take a look at the latest school reports on learning & assessment and safe & democratic environments. South Gate Middle School parents give a special report on safety in their children's school. Fourth grade students at 99th Street Elementary express their thoughts about whether democracy has a place in school.
Photo: No on AB 540, 1/02 Undocumented Students Struggle with High Cost of Education: A Look at AB 540
AB 540 allows undocumented students who have attended a California high school for three or more years to qualify for in-state tuition. However, even the cost of in-state tuition is out of reach for many working class families.
by Yvonne Ballesteros

Photo: GuzmanA Former Undocumented Student Tells his Story
"The main question is 'Why are you here?' We are not here to take over, to take up space or live off the government. We are here to live our dreams and enrich society. Go out there and fight the fight."

Photo: Kirti BaranwalA Political Victory for the Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ): An interview with Kirti Baranwal
Gompers Middle School teacher and CEJ member Kirti Baranwal offers insight into LAUSD School Board's decision to state that attaching diplomas to the California mandated High School Exit Exam is unfair.
by Solange Castro Belcher

Photo: Toy Gun Boycott/99th Street ElementaryImplementing a Social Justice Curriculum in an Inner City School
How to create a social justice curriculum using everyday practice and pedagogy.
Story and photos by Laurence Tan

ACLU Flyer/Targeta Access to Comprehensive Sexuality Education and Reproductive Rights: An Interview with Rocio Córdoba
Schools can promote safety and health by enabling young people to make informed decisions about their sexuality. Civil rights attorney Rocio Córdoba discusses reproductive rights and a new bill, SB 71, that will change how sex education is taught in schools.
by Solange Castro Belcher

Photo: Ron Avi Astor Tools for Reducing School Violence:
An Interview with School Violence Expert, Professor Ron Avi Astor
USC Professor Ron Avi Astor researches children's understanding of violence and school violence interventions. In this interview, he discusses effective tools for reducing violence in schools.
by Solange Castro Belcher

Letter to Mayor HahnLetter What Does a Gang Member Look Like?: Second Grade Students Voice Concerns to Mayor Hahn on Racial Profiling
Second grade students engage in a critical dialogue on gang profiling that leads them to write letters to Mayor Hahn.
by Kimberly Min

Checked Box SARCs Across the Country: Safe & Democratic Learning Environments
Leigh Dingerson discusses the importance of reporting on school conditions to ensure safe and democratic learning environments.

>> Features in this Issue

Photo montage: CQE Speakout at Immanuelle Presyterian Church

Community Speakout
On Saturday, May 17th, students, parents, and teachers from greater Los Angeles and San Diego came together at Immanuelle Presbyterian Church for a public "speakout" in support of quality education for low-income students, students of color and English Language Learners.
by Solange Castro Belcher

Stories Icon Stories of Possibility

The Accelerated School (TAS)Photo: The Accelerated School
This South Central Los Angeles school has been recognized as one of the most promising models for urban public renewal.
by Karen Hunter Quartz and Cris Gutierrez

Checked Box Teaching to Change LA Advocates Peace
Peace educator Cris Gutierrez invites students and teachers to submit stories, questions, poetry, reflections, drawings, pictures, or photographs about peace for TCLA's new ongoing feature. Check out the latest contribution from Watts/South Gate Youth & Jordan High teacher Sean Leys.

TCLA's Peace Page

Photo: Jordan High

On Bombs, School Reform, and Student Power
A Jordan High School English teacher trains students in grass-roots organizing techniques in order to support them in creating student power.
by Sean Leys

Photo: 99th Street Elementary School Students Boycotting Toy GunsNo More Guns: 99th Street Students Boycott the Ice Cream Truck
Two teachers reflect on the growing awareness and activism of their fifth graders as the students organize to boycott the sale of toy guns by a local ice cream truck.
by Kim Min and Laurence Tan

Student Leaders/LA Map Student Leaders Report On Learning, Assessment, and School Safety
Students report on what it means to be well-educated and attend a safe and democratic school.

Checked Box Creating Democracy in English as a Second Language (ESL) Classes
Reflections on a pedagogy that emphasizes teaching critical thinking skills to students in ESL.
by Eddie P. Reyes
>> Paths to College

The Right Grades
UCLA researchers detail the complex issue of achieving the "right grades" by sharing the story of two individuals who made their way to a four-year college.
by Marisa Saunders and Tony Collatos

Students
Talk Back Icon >> Talk Back
Talk Back is the area of the TCLA journal dedicated to providing a voice for its readers. We would love to hear from you. Click here to read some of the most recent Letters to the Editor.

Search TCLA for:
www.TeachingtoChangeLA.org
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