During my fourth semester at Ohio State, I took a Social Stratification course dealing with inequality, race, gender, and class in society. Throughout the semester, we were assigned weekly readings, such as articles and peer-reviewed journals. One week, we were assigned Jonathan Kozol’s novel– Savage Inequalities. This novel is about disparities in the education system between schools and examines the extremes of wealth and poverty while calling into question the reality of equal opportunity in America’s schools. With these readings, we were required to submit 1-2 page reflections summarizing the article(s) or book and reflecting back to our own experience in society.
I very much enjoyed reading Kozol’s book and believe it is an important topic that everyone should be educated on. In my reflection, I conclude that the United States has not made large advances in the public school system. Education is a right and not a privilege that should be offered only to those who can afford to send their children to wealthy and private schools. Every child deserves a quality education. Children have no choice about what conditions they are born into and this should not affect their life outcomes. Public education should be a top priority in the United States, as it is the foundation of a successful society.