Just finished the book, and I wanted to add my thoughts.
David, with a busted arm in the basement
Julia, after swim practice, being held down in the hall
David, still caring about Jerome in the cold polebarn
Julia, listening to David's story about being "branded" through the intercom
I think Scheeres is brilliant in her depictions of her own hypocricy- and how she struggles with her whiteness throughout. The "reform school" in the Dominican Replublic was particularly horrifying. I found this video on YouTube, if anyone is interested in learning more. Jesus Land is the first thing mentioned, and then a report follows- troubling, indeed.
How does the methodology used at New Horizons inform the assumptions at work in our public schools? Are students routinely forced to "play a game" in which they are encouraged to perform meaningless tasks, repetitively, and then given meaningless rewards? Are teachers and administrators weilding their power to create an atmosphere of terror, and shame? Are we, as pre-service teachers, able to change this kind of social dominance without addressing our own notions of what it means to be a teacher?
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