Welcome to EqualEd
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Yvonne Zipp Editor
Tired of hearing about failing schools and the broken US education system?
So are we.
At the Monitor, we鈥檝e been reporting on education for decades. But we鈥檝e come to realize that schools can鈥檛 educate students and overcome the effects of poverty and racism in six hours a day. We want to go deeper, to train our lens on key inequities inside and outside the classroom and, more important, what鈥檚 working to reverse them.
Our new EqualEd section is all about giving voice to constituencies that often aren't heard, such as those who spend the most time in classrooms: teachers and students. It's about helping those outside of education better understand barriers that can keep young people from reaching their full potential.
It's about connecting: EqualEd aims to build a strong community through its in-depth reporting, , and special events that allow for a vital exchange of ideas and ways to engage in solutions. (Feel free to join us on Twitter, as well, at .)
And we want to offer the students themselves a chance to tell their stories with our audio podcasts. By listening to the voices of students at risk of being left behind, we can empower them 鈥� and discover real solutions to help them succeed. We want to take those stories and ideas to the people who are not always hearing them 鈥� because the more people who hear them, the more hands will turn to shaping and expanding the paths of opportunity and success for all children.
Take today鈥檚 story: As Monitor staff reporter Stacy Teicher Khadaroo reports, a Providence middle school realized one-third of its students were missing more than 15 days of school a year. So it gave those sixth graders mentors who were in the school with them, every day.聽The turnaround was dramatic.聽
When Manny Aponte explains in the reason he struggled to聽attend school, it goes straight to the heart of why聽some聽young people need someone extra on their side. He says his relationship with his mentor was unlike anything he'd ever experienced.
It鈥檚 time for children to be seen and heard. Ready to listen?
