Effecting Change in Inner City Schools: Some Reflections

It is suggested that the ways in which the inner city Sch's which serve the econ'ly & educ'ly disadvantaged can become relevant include: (a) restructuring the teaching style & behavior, (b) curriculum change, & (c) participation of teachers in decisions about the curriculum & Sch org. A discussion of the characteristics which interfere with the educ of the disadvantaged inner-city child is presented. The teacher must be able to cope with the problems of the disadvantaged child. An elementary Sch sci program established by the Amer Assoc for the Advancement of Sci was exp'ed with in 3 Atlanta, Ga elementary Sch's. The process approach was utilized to present the program, & an attempt was made to provide a method of teaching style & to demonstrate the student's competence. The experiment lasted 2 yrs & was found to be a successful method in teaching the underprivileged child. A description of the implementation of the program is provided. It was decided that the program had to move slowly. A model for teacher participation was established. A delineation of new responsibilities of the members of the hierarchal Sch structure is portrayed. The conclusions include (I) recommendations for the improvement of language skills for the disadvantaged child, (ii) suggestions for participation of teachers in decision making procedures, (iii) a model for curriculum development, & (iv) better models for teacher behavior & teaching style. 1 Table. G. Satt.