ASB Chicago Urban Education 2018

This morning was the first time on this trip that we had to wake up at 5:30. After getting breakfast, we headed to Muchin. Mr. Madonna showed us the list of tasks that we could choose from. From there, we all split up: some shadowing teachers (Jossie, Jennifer, David, Lingge, Becca…), some grading papers (Paula, Hieu…). It was an incredibly rewarding experience talking to the students and teachers. We got to sit in classes, tutored, and offered them college advice. We learnt a lot about the culture of Muchin by observing how the teachers and students interacted. We all agreed that it was a lot more laid back and casual than we expected, but the students still seemed to respect their teachers. Muchin is strict on their disciplinary measures, such as giving out demerits for simple things like showing up late to class, or being loud. We’ve heard a lot of personal stories from the students, either about their life, goals, dreams, college plans… Compared to some of our own high school e...

Hi everyone, it's day five here with Eunice, Sarah, and Jessica. Today, we spent half the day at Muchin College Prep and spent the first lunch shift paneling with junior students. Similar to previous days, we continued working with teachers and made a bulletin board. The rest of the day, we traveled to the Urban Education Institute (UEI) at the University of Chicago, where we learned about the education system, issues, and disparities related to Chicago's system. Today, Sarah was surprised to hear that a female freshman student had already been given 33 detentions, and that if she received any more than 12 more demerits (4 of which equals one detention), she would have to repeat the grade. Additionally, she was surprised with how frustrating it was for the student to remedy her situation. Eunice was surprised to hear that the newsletter students received today in AM advisory had to be signed by their parents, and if it wasn't signed, students had to serve LaSalle. (We als...

Hi friends! Jennifer, Becca, and Hieu again! It's day four here in the windy city and we have continued to learn more about urban education and gain insight on the lives of the students and faculty of Muchin Prep. We started off the day with advisory meetings where we got to hold college panels and answer questions from students. It was great being able to talk to the students about college and give them advice. Then we went to our respective classrooms, continuing to assist the teachers with their classes. Jennifer helped students finalize their revolution projects in World History and went over different methods of campaigning in U.S. History. During her World History class, she spoke with a sophomore boy who told her how he was affected by gang violence. She was shocked that at such a young age, his family members tried to get him to join a gang. Becca continued to help Mr. Madonna with his Algebra II and Calc AB math classes, answering the students' questions one-on-one...

Hi all, this is Alice, Christine, Lingge, and David reporting! We started off the day bright and early, leaving just after 6:30 to arrive at Muchin College Prep on time for the first bell. Each of us went to advisory periods to begin the day, then split off to our respective teaching-assistant posts. Christine noted one interesting facet of the Muchin system in algebra I education: there are no proper lectures or PowerPoints given by the teacher. Rather, the teacher poses the problems to students openly, expecting them to arrive at answers through group deliberations. She found it interesting that students were relatively free to address teachers informally without reprimand, although this seemed to be confusing when juxtaposed with the fact that they were required to have adult escorts to go to the bathroom. Additionally, she appreciated the fact that advisory periods served as a forum for not only academic discussion, but also a time where students could relate to each other over f...

Hey guys it's Lauren, Josie, and Sally. Today we started with a tour of the school we will be serving; Muchin Prep. We learned more about the school and had an opportunity to ask questions to a teacher from the Charter school. We asked about how students were admitted and found out there is a system similar to the common app and students are admitted by a lottery. We also asked about the public schools and equity issues. We found out that Charter schools in the Chicago area have a big presence because of a lot of public school closures. Charter schools vary widely state to state but this one seems to be making a very positive impact on the students of Chicago. Josie was surprised that the Charter school served so many low income families. Lauren was surprised that the Charter school was so prevalent in the city and the facility was fairly big and offered a lot of clubs. Sally was surprised that the college acceptance rate was so high at 100%. We did a lot of walking around the city...

Hi, my name is Becca Chen. I'm a freshman biological sciences major in the Integrated Life Sciences honors program on the pre-health (undecided) track. I volunteered last semester at Charles Carroll Middle School as a part of my honors program service project, and currently volunteer as a tutor at Northwestern High School. These two experiences have exposed me to education issues in local communities. I'm excited for the opportunity to interact and learn from these students, as well as learn more about charter schools and the root causes of educational disparities. Thanks for reading!

Hello! My name is Lauren and I am a junior at UMD studying Geology and Secondary Education. I am so excited to be able to go to Chicago to learn more about charter schools and the education issues facing our urban populations. I'm hoping to learn a lot of useful information for when I begin teaching. I was able to go to Guatemala last winter with Alternative Breaks as well and I had such an amazing time! I am so happy to get opportunities like this through UMD.  I am from Howard County Maryland and I love to travel. Despite all my traveling I have never been to Chicago so I am also excited to get to know the city better. Some hobbies of mine are video editing, singing, and reading. I hope you enjoy this blog and are able to get a good idea of our trip. Thanks for reading!

Hi! I'm a freshman pursuing a dual degree in biochemistry and economics. On campus, I'm involved in the Gemstone Honors Program, the Maryland Parliamentary Debate Society, and Maryland Discourse, among other activities. In the long term, I'm looking to go into healthcare and patent law to advocate for more equitable access to healthcare and encourage innovation. During my time in high school speech, I often saw the potential of education in underserved communities, and the experience helped to shape my interest in urban education reform on a larger scale. I'm excited for this opportunity to learn from the students we'll be serving, and hope to come away with a deeper understanding of how to create stronger educational outcomes for all students.

Hi, my name's is Alice Wei, and I'm a freshman majoring in Biochemistry. Currently, I am on the pre-med track with hopes of ultimately pursuing medical research in the field of neuroscience. Urban education challenges is a relatively new topic that I've begun to learn about, but inequalities and discrepancies in the education system has been a topic of interest to me for a long time. I think that this will be a unique opportunity to immerse ourselves in the environment of a charter school, and I'm really excited to interact with these students, share my own experiences with them, and learn more the major current issues they face from the experts at the Urban Education Institute.