School Beat: MESA--Nurturing New ScientistsLisa Schiffbyline‚ Jan. 24‚ 2008Ensuring that all children receive a quality education is one of our society’s most important goals and one of our biggest challenges. The impediments in our way come in a variety of forms. Some of the most significant include a lack of sufficient resources; an inconsistent public commitment to the project of public education; misguided and sometimes mal-intended policy makers; and finally the historic socio-economic inequalities that provide the troubled backdrop to all of our lives. All of these challenges have solutions, though we may struggle to find them, and all are being tackled to some degree. But, some of these challenges are thornier than others, particularly inequalities based on race, ethnicity, gender and income. School districts all over the country, including San Francisco, struggle with these inequalities as they manifest in persistent achievement gaps and increased segregation across schools and even in programs within diverse schools. |