Repudiation, Reinvention, and Educational Reform: The Comprehensive High School in Historical Perspective

Wraga, William G.

doi:10.1177/00131619921968554

Cited by 6 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Some of these reforms, if properly implemented, would have affected the distribution of important educational resources among students from different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds, and would have had implications that extend well beyond school gates regarding issues of access, equality of opportunity and social mobility (Oakes 1994). An example of such a reform is the development of comprehensive high schools; particularly regarding the specific features intended to prevent the tracking of students into academic and vocational tracks in secondary education (Lucas 1999;Wraga 1998). …”

Section: General Statement Of Problem Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Comprehensive high schools supposedly offer different types and levels of classes to serve students' needs according to their abilities and interests "under the same roof' (Hallinan 1994;Wraga 1998Wraga , 1999. The original designers of comprehensive schools intended to prevent American schools from following the English and German models that tracked students into formal and separately housed academic and vocational tracks (Wraga 1998(Wraga , 1999.…”

Section: General Statement Of Problem Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The original designers of comprehensive schools intended to prevent American schools from following the English and German models that tracked students into formal and separately housed academic and vocational tracks (Wraga 1998(Wraga , 1999. Educational policymakers in America wanted the comprehensive school to provide all students with the general knowledge required for citizenship in American society.…”

Section: General Statement Of Problem Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The first factor was the economic need for a minimally trained yet literate workforce. The second factor was the belief in the role of public schools in the transformation of immigrants into "modern American citizens" who could not only speak English, but also would understand and share the basic "modern" democratic ideology and thus become members of this new nation (Lucas 1999;Tye 2000;Wraga 1998). …”

Section: The Modern Comprehensive High Schoolmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the other side of this society versus child debate is a progressive definition of equality as "fitting the curriculum to the student," in terms of ability, interests, or vocational future. Wraga (1998Wraga ( , 1999, a staunch defender of the concept of comprehensive schools, states that to be considered truly comprehensive, schools must perform two functions: A unifying and a specializing function. The goal of the unifying function is to create a citizenry for the Nation, with a shared commitment to democratic principles and other fundamental values of American life.…”

Section: The Modern Comprehensive High Schoolmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The maintenance of tracking : the role of organizational culture

Acherman-Chor¹

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Acherman-Chor, Dora, "The maintenance of tracking : the role of organizational culture" (2001 The dissertation of Dora Acherman-Chor is approved. It was found that school cultures shared deeply held beliefs that regard ability as a fixed trait. This prevented schools from providing access to information about the consequences of course selection to the majority of the student body, with the exception of those students defined as "college bound." State and County level policies that reward achievement in standardized tests combined with school overcrowding, resulted in organizational cultures that favored the adoption of strategies stressing efficiency, as vi opposed to a challenging education for all students. Only one of the four schools in the study had a policy requiring students to attempt courses that were more challenging. The practice was resented by both teachers and counselors, since it was perceived as interfering with other goals of the institution, i.e.: graduating students in four years.The culture of the schools stressed college as the only legitimate post-secondary option; consequently, the majority of counselors did not encourage students-even those already defined as "not college material"-to consider other alternatives, such as vocational education. The elimination of formal tracks in these comprehensive high schools resulted in the school culture lacking a clear mission in regards to non-college bound students. Findings are discussed in relation to current theoretical explanations for educational policy and equality of opportunity.

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Section: General Statement Of Problem Areamentioning

confidence: 99%