I will always consider myself a Chicagoan at heart. After all, I have lived in the Chicago suburbs all my life. Over the course of this week, however, I experienced a very different side of the city while participating in the Chicago Urban Education Program, located in the northern Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago. My assignments varied throughout the week, but my focus was to discover the diversity and multiculturalism within a large urban setting, and in so doing, apply my experiences within the Chicago Public School System to my future education career.

Chicago has always been a city full of small ethnic neighborhoods. My daily commute to Kenwood Academy in the near south Hyde Park neighborhood acquainted me better with the diversity within the city in general. I begin my one-hour commute first by getting onto the Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) Red Line “El” train through numerous regions of the city that all vary by populace income, race, and ethnicities. Once downtown, I jump on a city bus that takes me via Lake Shore Drive to Chicago’s near south side and onto Kenwood Academy’s campus. Hyde Park, perhaps one of the most racially mixed areas of the city, possesses a demographic medium that includes a populace that is 40% Caucasian, 40% African American, 10% Asian, with the remaining population a mix of Hispanic and other smaller ethnicities.

For the last week, I have taught in Kenwood Academy, a small Chicago Public School magnet program that includes an annex for gifted students called the Academic Center. (http://www.kenwoodacademy.org) My host teacher and I both teach within the Academic Center. I must warn readers that all preconceived notions about urban education must be left at home if one is to enter this part of the school. The Center’s student body is 90% African-American students, 60% whom are economically disadvantaged, but the center itself is a testament to parent and teacher support and gives off the air that all students have the ability and intelligence to succeed in the academic world.

On Friday, I led a discussion over the first half of A Catcher in the Rye, with the 24 students in my English I class listening to both the comments and of myself and their peers with respect and curiosity. As a new teacher, one can never imagine how gratifying it is to be the mediator of the reward of all secondary school educators, active engagement.

My experience at Kenwood Academy provided me with a definite taste of a diverse environment, one in which I am the actual minority. Nevertheless, I never considered this a huge deal. The students that I observed and worked with over the past week were some of the best within the Chicago Public School system. In a word, my experiences teaching in the nation’s third largest metropolitan area was enlightening to say the least.

Posted by Howard Hewitt at 06:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Graham Nelson '07 - Before coming to Chicago for the Urban Education Program I really had mixed thoughts about what I was going to expect from this experience. I really wasn’t too sure about how the students and the teachers were going to react to me. Even coming from a big city, South Bend Indiana, I wasn’t sure if my past experiences with diversity would help me to better integrate in a Chicago Public School.

I prepared myself by imagining the worst possible cases that I could come across in a CPS. I imagined kids with guns and classes so uncontrollable that classes had cops in them. Come to find out that these classes were totally opposite from that. The classes were almost a thing of beauty in that the teachers served as not only their teachers but as parental figures and guides for these children’s lives. The student-teacher relationships were so personal that you could tell that each had a genuine love and respect for each other. I am not trying to say that there wasn’t any clash in this relationship, but they were a hundred times better than I imagined them. I was really blown away how this relationship worked in the classes that I observed.

The school that I was assigned to is called Prosser Academy. It is located in west central Chicago about an hour away from where we are staying. To get there I have to take the Red Line of the EL, get off and take a 40 to 45 minute bus ride headed westbound on Fullerton. This was the first time that I was able to see just how diverse the city of Chicago really is. On the EL you can see the ethnic and racially diversity but you also can hear it. I overheard several phone conversations in languages I had never previously heard before. It shows how many different walks of life there are in Chicago.

Getting on the bus and traveling down Fullerton you first are surrounded by the bigger buildings and a more diverse population that you would expect. Then you start to notice all of the business names start to be written in Spanish and all you really see are Hispanic or Latino people. As the passengers on the bus got on and off you could start to see the difference about 5 to 6 blocks into the trip. At this point the only language you hear being talked is Spanish. Most of the time I was the only Caucasian on the bus. By the time I reached the end of my bus ride every business was a Hispanic run business. I couldn’t believe how a portion of the city could be so culturally dominated.

Once you enter the school you have to first go through a metal detector which I thought was a myth, but it’s true. Then I find my way to my host teachers’ office where she is preparing for school. She didn’t have a class first period so we had time to talk and discuss about her classes. Her first class was second period which was US History. The class was held in the music room. I thought that this was very awkward, but she later told me that every class except for two were in different rooms. I realized that this wasn’t by choice but by necessity. There just weren’t enough classrooms for every teacher to have his or her own room. This was the first instance where I realized that teaching in a CPS was hard work.

The class sizes weren’t that big usually 15 to 25 students per class. This was good because the teacher didn’t have to handle that many kids and that allowed her to get to talk to every student individually if she needed or wanted to. I believe that this is crucial because some students really need the extra attention in order for them to be successful. I was told that this part of town was predominantly a Polish community but from what I saw it was a Hispanic community. The makeup of the class was mostly a fifty-fifty mix of African American and Hispanics. I finally got to see some of the Polish students in her 3rd period when I over heard some students speaking Polish. But those 4 students were the only Polish students that I came across in her classes. I was wondering how this part of town is considered a Polish part of town but the community seemed to be predominantly Hispanic and the classes were a mix of both Hispanic and African American. I really don’t know how to explain the lack of Polish students and the lack of African Americans in the community but their presence in the classroom.

In conclusion, I think that there are ups and downs in working in the Chicago Public School system. I think that the teacher is in tough position because it places them in a role where they need to be their teacher as well as a mentor and a parental figure. The kids seem to need and want this from their teachers. They open up to them and it is hard for a teacher who sees and knows their story but also has to be the one who gives them their grades and more often then not it is a bad one. It just puts teachers in a really emotionally stressful situation. The kids seem to be well grounded despite the fact that they live in this very diverse and economically challenged area. I also believe that they understand more than the teachers give them credit for. All of the kids have the ability but most choose not to show it and it really bothers me because they understand that education will be the thing that can get them out of the bad situations that they are in but they just don’t care. I also know that not all of the students are in bad situations but more often than not they are.

I know that there is only so much you can do to try and motivate these kids and it is up to the students if they want to be successful or not. I guess I will end this by saying that despite all of these bad situations being a teacher here would be a challenge and a blessing at the same time. As an aspiring teacher and wanting to help students working in a CPS would be the best place to do so.

Posted by Howard Hewitt at 08:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Justin Raisor '07 - Ms. Wegner (Chicago classroom teacher) informed me almost every student in the class has already been accepted to college and are receiving good scholarships. However, it troubled me very much when she explained to me the situation some of the less fortunate students. Because they are illegal, there are students in her classes that although they perform higher than a majority of the other students, they can not go to college. Because they don’t have identification, they can not apply for FAFSA and or any loans for school.

So, although they are receiving a great education, they are going to work a 6 dollar an hour job, because they can’t further their education. I explained this in our meeting Monday afternoon, but I wanted reemphasize how much this upsets me. It was not these students’ fault they were born in the United States by illegal parents. There is nothing they can do to change that. Yet, our political system, according to Ms. Wegner, has a bill in place that is trying to send these students back to Mexico. Okay, enough with this issue, because it will become a term paper.

Ms. Wegner creates a great classroom environment in all four of her classes. I noticed that in all four periods, there was not “that student” who sat in the back and did not participate. In every class, she did some type of group activity that engaged all the students. I felt this was a great method to ensure that all students were participating. Further, she is great at explaining what she wants the students to get out of activities. She does not just have them work in groups and then assign homework at the end. Rather, she explains to them why they are doing certain tasks. It is obvious the students respect her very much, because she is a very fair teacher. Although having problems with the “regular” students turning in homework, she works with them to make up the missed points.

In the first class I observed, A.P/I.B. History, I noticed the Hispanic and Asian students to not sit together. The Hispanics sit on the left side of room, and the Asians sit on the right side. This was the same trend for the second class also, Urban Studies. Yet, the students engaged in active class discussions that included a majority of both ethnicities, so I can not explain the reasoning for this separation. The students do not have assigned seats, as they moved periodically throughout the class to sit with other people. This is basically all I have for the first couple days of observations.

Posted by Howard Hewitt at 07:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Will Certain '07 - Chicago is a very confusing city! Public transportation has been an extremely fun experience! The first day of school observations, we missed our bus stop and had to walk around downtown Chicago until we finally figured out where we needed to go to get on the L. We probably should've stopped and asked for directions, but we didn't and it is not just because we were all men because there was a woman with us from Denison University. We did finally make it back though and it was a good experience walking through downtown.

I really enjoy Chicago. It is a very interesting city with plenty to do during the day. Unfortunately we are busy all day long with school observations and seminars. So when we do get to go out everything is closing as early as 8:00 pm. As far as the school observations go, I really enjoy I have been assigned to. The children there are extremely intelligent and well behaved. I would thoroughly enjoy teaching at the school, Kenwood Academy. The school is on the south side of town and an hour and a half away from where we are staying via public transportation. I have the privilege of teaching one lesson of Pre-Algebra to a class of seventh graders. I really enjoy the kids there and would love to get to know them and work them for more than a week.

The program here is good experience. I have to admit though, that the seminars are boring and don't all seem relevant. Also, one downside is the fact that I have to get up at 5:50 every morning so I can get to my school on time. Not the summer experience I was looking forward to. The part of the program I am excited about is going into different ethnic areas of Chicago. We are going to a Vietnamese area tonight. What I really would love to do is eat more great food from the city from the different cultural groups here. We haven't been able to do that besides the Indian food that we ate the first day. I really look forward to the Mexican food places! So, food is a huge thing that excites me about this city (after all, I am an offensive lineman).

I look forward to the next few days I have here in Chicago and know that there is so much left to see here. I hope to come back some day and havethe time truly tour the city and enjoy the city life.

Posted by Howard Hewitt at 07:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ashley Stephen '07 - After catching the Amtrak train in Crawfordsville on Sunday morning, 8 of us (Morgan Nolan, Austin Crowder, Justin Raisor, Jeff Williams, Graham Nelson, Will Certain, Chris Serak, and me) made our way to Chicago. We lucked out when our train got in early. However, we then had to walk at least a mile to a station on the Red Line of the 'El' carrying our luggage.

Nevertheless, we managed to find our way to the Urban Education Program (UEP) building, where we were greeted by fellow Wabash student Kiel Hansen and lunch. After lunch we had a class session during which we met the other 8 students - all girls - who are attending the program.

After the class session ended, we were free for the evening. In my free time I watched part of a movie in the UEP's lounge and then Austin and I decided to try to hit a pub. After catching the final bus out to the pub's neighborhood, Austin and I found out that they were hosting a party and the cover charge would be $35. We decided to pass, and headed back the way the bus had taken us so that we could catch one of the 'El' trains. After a 2.3-mile walk, we took the 'El' back to the UEP. Once we got back, I decided I needed to get ready for bed so that I could get up early this morning.

After trying to enjoy our first night in the big city, most of us had to get up bright and early to head to our school placements. However, I did not really have any problems being awake because at some point before sunrise there were several emergency vehicles driving down area streets with their sirens blaring, so I had been awake for quite awhile when my alarm went off at 6:20am. After eating some breakfast and getting dressed, I headed out earlier than I had been told I would need to because I wanted to make sure that I arrived on time. And arrive on time I did...well, actually I arrived almost an hour before my host teacher did, but that's not all that odd for me. I am observing in von Steuben Academy, which is just down the street from North Park University. The neighborhood seems very nice and I was quite surprised when I did not have to pass through a metal detector and all I had to do was sign in to get a visitor's pass. However, after observing two classes I realized why -- the school is wonderful. The students are fairly well-behaved and nearly all of them act like they want to be there so they behave themselves and do what the teachers ask of them. I was also surprised by the fact that the classes I observed in the high school of 1600 students were quite similar to classes I had taken at my high school of only about 540 students. Many of the students were easily engaged by the teachers and wanted to contribute to the class. It was quite a different experience from those I have had in the Crawfordsville area schools.

After observing for about three hours, I headed back to the UEP. After changing clothes, I ran out to get some lunch before we started our class session. However, several people from the program were late getting back from their placement so we definitely did not start on time. When we did start, I discovered that my experience at von Steuben had been fairly atypical. First, I did not have any problems with the transit system. Second, von Steuben did not have school uniforms or massive security measures. Third, von Steuben was very diverse, which was something that I thought contributed significantly to the overall success of at least one of the classes I observed. After a short break following the first class session, we had a second class session at which a local Asian Studies teacher gave a presentation about the Asian American communities in Chicago. It was an interesting presentation but it was quite long, continuing for almost an hour and a half.

Once the class sessions ended, we were free for the evening. So, needing dinner and wanting to see some of the city, 7 of us, including Chris, Will, and me, headed to the Navy Pier. After wandering about for a few minutes, we decided that no attractions or stores would be open long enough for us to enjoy them so we decided to eat. After eating a Joe's Be-Bop Cafe, we walked back to the 'El' and headed to the UEP. As our group was arriving back at the station where we get off for the UEP, we met Justin, Morgan, Jeff, and Graham who were just heading out to have another night on the town.

Posted by Howard Hewitt at 08:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As part of EDU 302, juniors in the Teacher Education Program are experiencing a week in the Chicago Public Schools (May 7-12). The opportunity is part of a partnership Wabash College Teacher Education Program has with the Chicago Urban Education Program (An Associated Colleges of the Midwest program). The purpose of the trip is to extend the multicultural education and student diversity component of EDU 302 and to give our students experience working with teachers and students in diverse settings. As well, the education students will experience the diversity of Chicago with field trips to ethnic neighborhoods and various cultural events in the city.

The class has corresponded with author Leslie Baldacci during the semester in preparation for their week-long visit. Baldacci took a year off from here journalism career at the Chicago Sun-Times and wrote about the experience: Inside Mrs.B's Classroom: Courage, Hope, and Learning on Chicago's Southside.

Posted by Howard Hewitt at 03:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)