NCJ Number
171734
Journal
Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology Volume: 25 Issue: 1 Dated: May 1997 Pages: 33-40
Date Published
1997
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Classroom observations and interviews with student and teachers in a State community school for paroled juveniles in a large southwestern city formed the basis of an analysis of local and gang identity as a basis for student resistance to school authority and the teaching of dominant values.
Abstract
The school's goal was to provide a positive and effective learning setting for youths making the transition from a secure care facility to the community. The school was operated by the State department of corrections and was located in an office building upstairs from the juvenile parole office. The researcher spent more than 400 hours at the school from July 1994 through June 1995, making observations and interviewing the 4 teachers and 33 students. Results revealed that the students resisted the teachers' attempts to instill in them the importance of objective knowledge and an identity that negated their local life experiences. Students' resistance to school rules and teachers' directives was primarily rooted within the significance of local knowledge, local neighborhood and community, and gang identity. The conflicts between students and teachers resulted in student failure and detachment from education. Findings suggested that teachers working with special student populations may need to reconsider traditional teaching methods and instead explore ways to make school rules and teachers' directives more accepting of and relevant to students' social and cultural identities. 36 references