A Hoodlum's Perspective on Education Reform

Education can change a family's destiny in just one generation. If you are a poor black or latino child growing up in America, your greatest chance to escape and change the cycle of poverty is education. Even if you look at it from an economic perspective, the impact of education on overall earnings is five times greater than any impact race or gender can have on overall earnings.
As a first generation American who grew up with a single mother on welfare in Hell's Kitchen, NY and is now the parent of two children, I've seen the powerful impact education can make on a family and a community.
As the Senior Education Evangelist at Google and one of Tech & Learning's Top 10 Most Influential in edTech, we’re going to talk about education reform without talking about technology as the solution. We will examine what I believe to be the most important elements in education we need to focus on to help students break the cycle of poverty.

Additional Supporting Materials

http://www.slideshare.net/jaimecasap/hoodlums-perspective-on-ed-reform

Questions Answered

What is our current state of education, especially for poor minority students growing up in America?
What is the role of the teacher in the classroom? How do we give teachers the support they need as they battle our most pressing social issues right on the front line?
When you ask poor minority students if effort is related to success, more than 75% disagree. What is the long lasting impact of low expectations? What is the role of setting the right expectations for our students?
What motivates students to do well? How is it different for poor minority students? How do we identify the X factor that can help drive a student to success?
What skills will students need to succeed? What other things do we need to put in place to make education the silver bullet it can be?