Ecology of the School
Schools exert influence on children by:
their educational programs leading to achievement
their formal organization, introducing students to authority
the social relationships that evolve in the classroom
The school's function in the U.S.:
universal in that it is open to all
formal in that it is methodical
prescriptive in that it provides directions based on custom
Schools have goals:
Academic goals
Vocational goals
Social, civic, and cultural goals
Personal goals
mastery of basic skills, intellectual development
Career education
Interpersonal understanding, citizenship, enculturation, moral and ethical character
Emotional and physical well-being, creative expression, self-realization
Options for schooling:
Magnet school- a public school that offers special programs such as science, music, or performing arts and draws students from various neighborhoods
School voucher- an amount given to families who chose to send children to private school or to homeschool in the amount that would've been spent on that child in a public school
Charter school- a school funded by the government but formed by a group of parents, teachers, and community members who share an educational philosophy