Marita's Bargain

"Outliers are those who have been given opportunities- and who have had the strength and presence of mind to seize them."
                                                                 -Outliers, Malcom Gladwell, pg 267

It is a lot to ask of a twelve year old to overcome problems such as those faced by Marita and her fellow KIPP classmates. Marita wakes up at 5:45 every morning in the one-bedroom apartment she shares with her mom in the Bronx, and is in class by 7:25. School will not get out untill 5:00, but leaving the school building does not bring freedom. Marita, a fifth grader, must stay up until 11:00 studying and doing homework. Unlike most American students, KIPP students go to school on Saturdays (9:00-1:00) and over the summer (8:00-2:00 in July). They take Critical Thinking, English, Math, Science, Social Studies, and Music classes and all students participate in the Orchestra. After school brings many activities such as "homework clubs, detention, and sports teams". You would think that the students who get the privilege of attending this school would be the children of elite New Yorkers and the brightest of the public school system, but you would be incorrect. Gaining admittance is a lottery for children who live in the Bronx. Classrooms are filled with low-income children from predominantly black and hispanic homes. They are faced with educational setbacks due to their economic status, but KIPP is their chance to overcome those obstacles. Playtime was over for Marita and her classmates the minute they first walked through the doors at KIPP. They have a lot to accomplish.
        
              One example of a problem faced by Marita and her classmates:
Summer vacation is a wonderful break from a long school year, but it probably does more damage than it does good for some students. Middle to Upper class students can learn a lot over the summer. They go to the zoo, plays and ballets, to museums, and have access to a multitude of learning resources. While students of Lower class families can have just as much fun as those students, they are not presented with the same amount of learning opportunuties. KIPP students like Marita have the chance to hurdle this incredibly unfair obstacle.
         
KIPP works.... Marita's bargain is that she has to mature well beyond her years and work harder than a high school or college student might have to work. In return, KIPP will help her out of the rut that her socioeconomic class is stuck in. According to the KIPP Academy website, over 85% of "KIPPsters" will go on to college. "KIPP Academy’s mission is to teach our students to develop the character and academic skills necessary to succeed in high school and college, to be self-sufficient, successful, and happy in the competitive world, and to build a better tomorrow for themselves and us all." I think that every single school in the U.S.A. should be this committed to the success of the students. Then maybe kids like Marita wouldn't have to be Outliers. I agree with Gladwell. It's not about new laptops, shiny new school buildings, or even about the IQ of the individual students. It's about the fact that KIPP gave Marita a chance to make it in this crazy and often unfair world, and Marita took that chance-and ran with it.

Although this is unrelated to the subject of the blog assignment, as a musican I felt obligated to point this out. KIPP students have music class for an hour twice a week and participate in Orchestra for an hour and a half every week. This means that the administrators and program cordinators of KIPP find music education to be essential to the successful student, which I agree with completely. Actually, it does kind of go with the assignment. I think that all schools across the country should include music classes in their curriculum. So there you go.... :)