Anyon, Jean. (1997) Ghetto Schooling: A Political Economy of Urban Educational Reform. Reviewed by Tracey Reed

Anyon, Jean. (1997) Ghetto Schooling: A Political Economy of Urban Educational Reform. New York: Teachers College Press. 186 pp. + xix $18.95 (Paper)         ISBN 0-8077-3662-7 $45.00 (Cloth)         ISBN 0-8077-3663-5 Reviewed by Tracey Reed Ohio University February 24, 1998 Schooling is a highly politicized activity. Any substantive look at urban schooling necessarily takes into account the socio-political realities of urban life. Attempts to focus solely on schooling, without regard to the socio-political context within which schooling occurs, are absent the richness that characterizes Jean Anyon’s Ghetto Schooling. In Ghetto Schooling, Anyon explains the current condition of Newark’s public school system by looking at and beyond the case study of the Marcy school. Exploring the condition of the school system, Anyon gives an intricate account of the social and political history of Newark, New Jersey. In Chapter 1, "Cities, Urban Schools, and Current Visions of Educational Reform," Anyon discusses the significance of racial, political and social isolation in urban America. Here, Anyon begins to set the stage for convincing readers of this text that "educational change in the inner city, to be successful, has to be part and parcel of more fundamental social change" (p.13). Given the degree of economic, social and political depravity in America’s urban areas, educational reform efforts that focus primarily on inter-school changes have, to date, failed to change the tenor of schooling. Anyon asks "[i]s fundamental educational change in America’s ghetto schools really going to result from reordered relations among teachers and administrators? Are these and other educational rearrangements going to be powerful enough to overcome the decades of accumulated want and despair that impede students every day?"(p.13). Throughout Ghetto Schooling, Anyon presents evidence to answer these questions with a resounding, "no." Chapter 2, "Social Class, Race, and Educational Reform at Marcy School," describes the social and cultural contexts within which various educational reforms have failed at the Marcy School. Anyon suggests that the failure of these reforms can be attributed to the cultural and social differences between the reformers and the student populations. A very sobering section on relations between teachers and students describes teachers’ attitudes toward students at Marcy School as hostile, with teachers making remarks to students such as: " 'You're disgusting; you remind me of children I would see in jail or something’" (p.29). Anyon was careful to inform the reader that many of the abusive remarks were coming from teachers of the same race and ethnic origin as the students (i.e., Black and Hispanic). The assertion that, when given authority, oppressed people often adopt the abusive attitudes and behavior of their oppressors was made, and the verbally abusive treatment of students of color by teachers of color gives credence the assertion. Chapters 3 through 7 chronicle the decline of Newark, New Jersey. In, "Industrial Strength, Educational Reform, and the Immigrant Poor: 1860 - 1929" Anyon begins by describing Newark’s place as an industrial leader in the 1860s. As was the case in most industrial urban areas, immigration in Newark was significant. "Between 1880 and 1920, more than 200,000 immigrants arrived in Newark" (p.42). Most of the new arrivals were Italians and Russian Jews. By the turn of the century, more than one-half of those working in industrial Newark were foreign born. Growth in the number of city residents contributed to the blight that would come to characterize urban America—over-population and insufficient infrastructure. Those who had the financial means started moving out of the city and settled in suburban enclaves. Despite dense population in Newark, the political power of the state remained in the elite rural areas. In Newark itself, German immigrants controlled governance of the city. Chapter 4 describes Newark after the Great Depression. Significant decreases in the city’s tax base resulted from the exodus of the affluent from the city. This decrease translated into a slow down in central city development as well as decline in city services and infrastructure. The graft which would characterize city politics for decades became manifest in the 1930s. Corrupt political machines contributed to practices that harmed city schools: hiring of ill-prepared school teachers and officials, mismanagement of school funds (so extreme that millions of dollars of federal funds had to be returned to the government). Although only 10% of the population of Newark was African American, federal policies that encouraged racial segregation (i.e. redlining for federal mortgages) began to have an effect on Newark’s neighborhood make-up and on its public schools. In chapter 5, Anyon discusses the increase of African American residents in Newark. The influx of African Americans from the South into Northern industrial cities exacerbated the racial isolation that continues to characterize urban America. Unlike European immigrants, African Americans were not afforded opportunities to benefit from the booming industry in Newark. Whereas European immigrants were hired to fill the growing need for industrial workers, African Americans were not. " '[M]ost companies in the Newark area do not hire Negroes' Of the approximately 4,000 employees in the Essex County banks, for example, only 150 are Negroes and all of these except three or so who are tellers, either hold custodial, messenger, or menial task jobs. [Moreover,] most unions do not admit Negroes. ... 'few, if any, Negroes ever have the opportunity to apply for apprentice training'" (Adolph Holmes' testimony before the US Commission on Civil Rights, p. 78). Chapter 6 focuses, mainly, on the corrupt mayoral tenure of Hugh Addonizio. Many of the Addonizio’s appointees were unqualified for the jobs that they would fill. Graft was as apparent in schools as it was in city government. "Despite huge increases in numbers of students, Addonizio did not build any new schools in his first 4 years, yet increased the board of education budget by 75% and raised taxes by more than 200 points" (p. 109). Anyon goes on to describe the complete state of disrepair of the Newark schools, as well as the ineffectiveness of federal policies designed to improve these urban schools. Although Black city leadership is often blamed for the poor condition of Newark schools, the first Black mayor of Newark inherited the debt, appointees, and graft of previous administrations. Chronicling the twenty seven years between 1970 - 1997, Chapter 7 focuses on the ever-increasing disparity in funding between most of New Jersey’s schools and Newark’s city schools. Anyon talks about the New Jersey context, specifically that New Jersey has more school districts than it does municipalities and a strong home rule tradition. New Jersey is one of the most racially segregated states in the nation—with minorities concentrated in urban, poor areas. Anyon explains the court cases regarding disparity in funding to further explicate the extreme conditions in which poor children are schooled in Newark. In Chapter 8, Anyon offers suggestions for remedying what she believes are the true problems of urban schooling. Claiming that the reform ideas that are potentially effective for "other" schools (i.e., rural and suburban schools) are notably ineffective for many urban schools, Anyon dedicates much of Chapter 8 to the lessons learned in her review of Newark’s history: As city residents became more poor and more Black, less money and energy were expended on the public schools. Federal and state policy, as well as local and corporate decision-making exacerbated the racial and social isolation that was taking place in Newark. The inequities in school funding in New Jersey have gotten progressively greater, and efforts designed to alleviate the inequities have benefited the middle and upper classes. School appointments based upon a system of political favors, rather than on efforts to improve the schools, have led to an abundance of poorly qualified school officials. The greatest strength of Ghetto Schooling is its carefully detailed chronicle of the racial, political and social isolation that characterizes urban America. The story of Newark, with varying degrees of similarity, parallels that of many urban centers in America--Detroit, Pittsburgh, Chicago. Anyon did not depend upon social commentary about fairness and equity to make the case for the need for increased investment in urban America. Instead, she allowed the full story of the degradation of a city to carry the message. Anyon showed how Newark public schools—one of the leaders in the common schooling movement—devolved into a completely dysfunctional system. Complicit in this devolution were federal and state government, corporate leaders, and corrupt local leaders—all of whom, to a great extent, divested in the city once the decline began. The overarching premise of the author is that significant investment in racially, socially, and politically isolated urban areas must be made if school improvement (at least) and the success of the American democratic social experiment (at most) are our goals. Investment must come from state and federal government and corporate America because these entities are culpable in the demise of urban America. If poor, urban America is to participate effectively in this democracy, significant steps must be taken to encourage their meaningful involvement. Racial desegregation of public schools in this country is largely a failed experiment. Racial isolation, although rarely expressed explicitly as a goal, has been extremely successful. Respectful of the true conditions of public schooling for children of color, Ghetto Schooling is a text that speaks to the success of racial isolation. Anyon does not suggest that the answer to the problem of ineffective schooling for poor, minority children in Newark is to send them to suburban schools. Rather she explicitly links the mission of improving urban conditions with the mission of improving urban schools. The author should take care not to insinuate that all predominantly Black, poor public schools are ineffective. Reading Ghetto Schooling, which fails to mention that there are high performing schools in predominantly Black, poor neighborhoods, may lead a reader to conclude that all poor, urban, predominantly Black or Hispanic schools are like the Marcy School. This is not the case. There are many schools that triumph over the conditions of poverty and racial isolation and are safe places, where children of color are valued, educated well, and nurtured. Moreover, the author should certainly not imply, as she seems to in Chapter 3, that mistreatment of students at the Marcy School, in the form of verbal abuse of children, is a cultural phenomenon particular to people of color. Care should be taken to attribute the deplorable treatment of children in the Marcy school to conditions of schooling—conditions to which both teachers and students are subjected—not to the culture of either the teachers or the students. Abuse is not cultural. People of color know how to nurture and care for children of color.