Socioeconomic Aspect of Tiers
Adriana Amador
When it comes to applying to selective enrollment schools, Chicago students are faced with greater or slimmer chances of getting into their preferred choice based on the Cps tier system. The theory was that by putting a tier system in place, all Chicago students would be given the equal opportunity to enroll in Chicago’s elite schools, however, this is far from the reality. According to Cps only 30% of the students who take the selective enrollment test are chosen by their test score alone (the highest scores make up this 30%) (Rapier). The remaining 70% are chosen based on many factors having to do with a child’s background. This creates a system that not only establishes a student’s destiny regarding their education, but also categorizes students based on one of four tiers. The danger of this is the misrepresentation of a single student or, ultimately, creating a large group of expendable students.
As of 2012, one Chicago neighborhood, Logan Square, faced a jump from tier 2 to tier 4 (Golab). This effect caused by the gentrification sweeping through Chicago, is the start of overlooking students and, ultimately, creating expendable students. The ideal is that every student is given an equal education when the reality is that children are categorized based on the environment they are surrounded by and have a lack of voice. If what happened in the 2012-2013 census tract (what determines the tiers of neighborhoods in Chicago) with Logan Square's tier update happens in other Chicago cities, then it is guaranteed that many students will fall short of accurate representation due to the large scale labeling that the tier system is responsible for.
The question that is vital to ask when it comes to the education of students everywhere is this: Why is the education of a child dependent on the economical characteristics of their neighborhood and household?
Sources:
Golab, Art. "CPS Tier System Update Changes Chances of Getting into Selective School." - Chicago Sun-Times. N.p., 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Rapier, Donald. "My Unfair Sense of Academic Superiority." - Chicago Sun-Times. N.p., 5 Dec. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Adriana Amador
When it comes to applying to selective enrollment schools, Chicago students are faced with greater or slimmer chances of getting into their preferred choice based on the Cps tier system. The theory was that by putting a tier system in place, all Chicago students would be given the equal opportunity to enroll in Chicago’s elite schools, however, this is far from the reality. According to Cps only 30% of the students who take the selective enrollment test are chosen by their test score alone (the highest scores make up this 30%) (Rapier). The remaining 70% are chosen based on many factors having to do with a child’s background. This creates a system that not only establishes a student’s destiny regarding their education, but also categorizes students based on one of four tiers. The danger of this is the misrepresentation of a single student or, ultimately, creating a large group of expendable students.
As of 2012, one Chicago neighborhood, Logan Square, faced a jump from tier 2 to tier 4 (Golab). This effect caused by the gentrification sweeping through Chicago, is the start of overlooking students and, ultimately, creating expendable students. The ideal is that every student is given an equal education when the reality is that children are categorized based on the environment they are surrounded by and have a lack of voice. If what happened in the 2012-2013 census tract (what determines the tiers of neighborhoods in Chicago) with Logan Square's tier update happens in other Chicago cities, then it is guaranteed that many students will fall short of accurate representation due to the large scale labeling that the tier system is responsible for.
The question that is vital to ask when it comes to the education of students everywhere is this: Why is the education of a child dependent on the economical characteristics of their neighborhood and household?
Sources:
Golab, Art. "CPS Tier System Update Changes Chances of Getting into Selective School." - Chicago Sun-Times. N.p., 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Rapier, Donald. "My Unfair Sense of Academic Superiority." - Chicago Sun-Times. N.p., 5 Dec. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.