The Sound of Grass
The story picks up in March of 2021 halfway through the school year as students begin to return to a hybrid model of virtual and in-person learning for the first time since virtual learning was enforc…
The Sound of Grass
The story picks up in March of 2021 halfway through the school year as students begin to return to a hybrid model of virtual and in-person learning for the first time since virtual learning was enforced nationwide due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The audience is introduced to the ESEL mindfulness program in Toby Farms middle school--the only public middle school in Chester Upland School District, a low-income school district under receivership on the brink of becoming a district consisting of only charter schools. Virtual learning is tough on students and teachers alike. Home environments are not always suitable for learning and it can be especially challenging for students who may have unstable or strenuous home lives, further limiting their access to mindfulness instruction while the disparity and stressors from those same challenges build. There are more to the obstacles the community faces as a whole stemming from a distinct lack of funding for education in Chester Upland when compared to neighboring districts. CUSD simply does not receive the targeted funding it needs to serve the children in its schools and has been dealing with this level of disparity for decades since the era of segregation--creating lasting effects that are felt by the people of Chester to this day. With everything the student body is up against in this community, mindfulness techniques are shown to help children recognize strategies to deal with the trauma that has impacted them and find positive outlets. In overcrowded classrooms and understaffed institutions which can't appropriately address the needs of students, the film suggests educators are more likely to use disciplinary measures thereby diverting children to a juvenile justice system and subsequently a criminal adult system. It is explained that the school-to-prison pipeline starts as early as pre-school. Students are six times more likely to be suspended if they are Black than if they are White, and that figure is doubled if the student has a disability. The situation in Chester comes to a head in the summer of 2021 as the CUSD Receiver, Juan Baughn, is proposing privatization of nearly the rest of the entire district in order to secure funding; there is very little community support for the district's proposal. Teachers, parents, and advocates rally together to oppose the proposal for charterization, leading to its rejection. However, stories like this are cyclical, and the situation in Chester-Upland is far from resolved. Teachers the film documented were not able to continue working under these circumstances and left. With so few places to turn, there has never been a greater need for programs that allow students to learn techniques that help them manage their trauma, and lead healthy and proactive futures.
The Sound of Grass
Drama
Film Details
The story picks up in March of 2021 halfway through the school year as students begin to return to a hybrid model of virtual and in-person learning for the first time since virtual learning was enforced nationwide due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The audience is introduced to the ESEL mindfulness program in Toby Farms middle school--the only public middle school in Chester Upland School District, a low-income school district under receivership on the brink of becoming a district consisting of only charter schools. Virtual learning is tough on students and teachers alike.
Home environments are not always suitable for learning and it can be especially challenging for students who may have unstable or strenuous home lives, further limiting their access to mindfulness instruction while the disparity and stressors from those same challenges build. There are more to the obstacles the community faces as a whole stemming from a distinct lack of funding for education in Chester Upland when compared to neighboring districts. CUSD simply does not receive the targeted funding it needs to serve the children in its schools and has been dealing with this level of disparity for decades since the era of segregation--creating lasting effects that are felt by the people of Chester to this day.
With everything the student body is up against in this community, mindfulness techniques are shown to help children recognize strategies to deal with the trauma that has impacted them and find positive outlets. In overcrowded classrooms and understaffed institutions which can't appropriately address the needs of students, the film suggests educators are more likely to use disciplinary measures thereby diverting children to a juvenile justice system and subsequently a criminal adult system. It is explained that the school-to-prison pipeline starts as early as pre-school.
Students are six times more likely to be suspended if they are Black than if they are White, and that figure is doubled if the student has a disability. The situation in Chester comes to a head in the summer of 2021 as the CUSD Receiver, Juan Baughn, is proposing privatization of nearly the rest of the entire district in order to secure funding; there is very little community support for the district's proposal. Teachers, parents, and advocates rally together to oppose the proposal for charterization, leading to its rejection.
However, stories like this are cyclical, and the situation in Chester-Upland is far from resolved. Teachers the film documented were not able to continue working under these circumstances and left. With so few places to turn, there has never been a greater need for programs that allow students to learn techniques that help them manage their trauma, and lead healthy and proactive futures..