Paul Tough Explains Why 'Rich Kids Graduate; Poor and Working-Class Kids Don't'
Regardless of his subject, Paul Tough's work is directly relevant to teaching and learning in high-poverty schools. Tough's New York Times Magazine article, "Who Gets to Graduate?," is no exception.
When teaching high school government, I used to mark up articles by Tough and other great journalists. I underlined key words and circled crucial paragraphs in his narrative. I made photocopies and helped students look up difficult words and write their definitions in the margins.
Most of my inner-city students would read along silently as I would read the article aloud. We stopped frequently to make sure make sure that everyone understood the lesson that Tough was teaching, and had to chance to offer his or her own interpretation of the author's thesis. The students' job was to "read the author's mind," master his argument, analyze and summarize his logic and evidence, and write an essay on it.
Some non-readers just listened, but contributed enthusiastically to the class discussions. Those with the most advanced skills silently read every word of the article, often writing long journal entries on Tough's arguments, and they doubled back to lead the conversation. It took two days to master a NYT Magazine cover story (or a New Yorker article.) But, the students took pride in tackling materials that would generally be considered to be over their heads. That sense of accomplishment motivated students to link Tough's journalism to the state standards of instruction, and to master those college readiness concepts.
Tough's account of the University of Texas' mentoring of college students at risk of academic failure is very consistent with my experience in nurturing at-risk high school students. In contrast to other universities, not to mention under-the-gun Paul Tough Explains Why 'Rich Kids Graduate; Poor and Working-Class Kids Don't' | John Thompson: