Education and the Disadvantaged

This conference paper argues that if schools are to meet the needs of a changing society, and if disadvantaged children are to learn effectively, the objectives and practices of the current educational system must be modified. To individualize the educational program, grade levels and the marking system must be abolished. Innovative curriculums and materials developed independent of the children for whom they are ostensibly created should give way to scientific considerations of the unique developmental, interpersonal, and environmental factors which influence the actual learning process. Also, a huge body of research on learning processes is presently being ignored. Moreover, educators should accept the personal worth of each student, regardless of his race or ethnic group. Finally, at the present time there is too great an emphasis in the schools on subject matter to the exclusion of other considerations in a student's education. The reactions of the conference participants to this paper are included. (DK)