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TEACHERS NEED MORE SUPPORT TO ENGAGE STUDENTS IN COMMUNITY ISSUES ACCORDING TO LAUSD STUDENT RESEARCHERS

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LAUSD high school students, part of UCLA’s ‘Council of Youth Research,’ present research on teacher-student relationships and civic agency.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

                                                         MEDIA ADVISORY

 

February 3, 2009

Media Contact: 

Arif Shaikh, UCLA’s Institute for Democracy, Education, and Access

(310) 267-4408 office, (310) 351-3931 cell / shaikh@gseis.ucla.edu

 

TEACHERS NEED MORE SUPPORT TO ENGAGE STUDENTS IN COMMUNITY ISSUES ACCORDING TO LAUSD STUDENT RESEARCHERS 

LAUSD high school students, part of UCLA’s ‘Council of Youth Research,’ present research on teacher-student relationships and civic agency. 

 

LOS ANGELES – With support from UCLA IDEA and LAUSD faculty, twenty-six students from high schools across the district conducted research on the curriculum and instruction that youth need to become powerful civic agents; in other words, how can schools help students have a positive voice in improving both schools and civic life?  The students are members of UCLA IDEA’s “Council of Youth Research.”  Interviews with teachers, administrators, and students led to an online survey with185 teachers responding.

 

“This new research on teacher-student relationships and civic agency offers important perspectives for community and school leaders,” said UCLA IDEA Director John Rogers. Some of the key findings from the research include:

 

• Teachers report receiving little support for dealing with urban school conditions (death, drugs, graffiti, gangs, poverty). 

• While teachers care about their students’ development, the majority of teachers feel that it is not their job to get their students actively involved with community issues or school clubs.

• Teachers report that a number of conditions—overcrowding, large class sizes, and lack of administrative support, impede their ability to help students develop personally.

 

Council of Youth Research students will present their research brief on civic agency along with a compelling presentation of data and policy recommendations. Following the presentation, members of the Council of Youth Research will participate in a roundtable discussion with educational leaders. 

 

WHO: Council of Youth Research student researchers from Wilson, Roosevelt, Locke, Manual Arts, and Cleveland high schools 

Professors John Rogers and Ernest Morrell, UCLA IDEA

WHERE: Community Hall of the Los Angeles Expo Center

WHEN: Friday, February 6, 2009

Reception at 5:30 p.m. and presentation at 6:00 p.m. 

 

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