Boys’ Latin Charter School in West Philadelphia is encouraging teenage boys to get outside their comfort zones and explore the city through ethnography.
As the school’s co-founder and CEO explains:
“Philadelphia is broken up into a bunch of small, ten-block radius towns, where nobody ventures beyond that area,” he said. “All these insular communities create opportunities for conflict whenever someone comes into that community. So we want to dispel the myth that it has to be that way, and we sent kids all over the place.”
In my experience, this is absolutely right — including among wealthy Philadelphians who may zip from Rittenhouse to the sports stadiums or to faraway cities, but rarely venture into the city’s other neighborhoods.
Kudos to the school and teacher for facilitating this intriguing learning experience.
Like any good social scientist, Marcus Smalls came away from his research with a better understanding of his own environment.
[Teacher Carly] Ackerman also urged her students to observe what goes on in their own homes. Smalls set up shop at the dining room table. […]
During his observations, said Smalls, he noticed for the first time just how busy his mom really is.
“She just loves to do work,” he said. “It made me look up to her. She inspired me, because she doesn’t let anything distract her.”
Overall, this is a lovely article. Check out the photos and audio at the NewsWorks site.
Quibbles: I wish the article didn’t typecast boys with its assumptions about quiet observation and Victoria’s Secret. And I have deep reservations about charter models that rely on young Teach for America grads, often with high turnover.
BetterPHL 
What do you think?