Education is imparted through instructors who convey knowledge to student by instructing them. However, the attitude of the instructor towards the student has a great influence on the quality of education that the instructor is going to give to the student. Teachers ought to erode any feeling of prejudice that they may feel towards the students. Black students who find themselves in schools where racism is still being witnessed are faced with more obstacle than their white counterparts. For instance, the teacher might give them harsher punishments and give them less chances as compared to the white counterparts. This paper will demonstrate how racisms manifests itself in class discrimination, eventually leading to educational prejudice. It will use the film Lean on me by Clarke in order to demonstrate how racial discrimination has given rise to unprecedented and countless social evils.
Black students are subjected to discrimination in class, which leads them to lack proper education they seek to find. This is also contributed by the fact that the status quo will not allow it. The white have stereotypes that are baseless when it concerns the blacks. This leads to class discrimination. The blacks experience more obstacles as compared to their white counterparts and are therefore less advantaged and are not well off as most of them are below the middle class. Discriminations extends to the economic classes and this discrimination leads to education prejudice. Most of these blacks cannot afford quality education due to their poor financial status.
Those who can afford to go to school are discriminated and receive poor quality education. The blacks have also accepted the fact that they are lesser to their white counterparts. The education system should change so that blacks have the same access to education and are given similar opportunities to their white counterparts . The education system should be such that it will help blacks to conquer discrimination and become better people in the society. The education system should deal with issues affecting the blacks such as drug abuse and violence.
In the film lean on me is a film in which the protagonist Mr. Clarke is a teacher who strongly believes in the power of education. The film starts with the teacher who has taught previously in more than 20 other schools but never really fit because of his strong opinions. Later when he becomes an administrator he has more power to exercise his beliefs. A school that was teaching previously but left after falling out with the principal is in deep trouble. The school has become a source of trouble for the entire town and is associated with violence, drug abuse and it has now become a minority school in the community. Close to no learning takes place in the school and intimidation is a norm. The situation gets out of control and the notorious teacher has to be called back to assist in restoring order in the school. The teacher takes various steps to straighten out the situation . He begins by assembling the entire school and calls out to all drug users in the school and all the other notorious boys and expels them in large numbers. The school walls are full of graffiti which he orders to be removed and all the walls painted afresh. He also takes drastic action by firing teachers and even lashes out at teachers in the presence of students. The teacher runs the school with absolute terror and is concerned a dictator. Despite his unacceptable methods, the teacher manages to get the school under control. The school is finally under control and the teacher has managed to get rid of the drug problem and the performance of the school has improved tremendously. The teacher is consistent with his harsh methods despite the fact that most people are hoping all along that his personality will change with time.
The students have improved in their performance and are taking good grades to their parents. A school that was failing miserably at exams was able to see more than three quarters of the students’ population pass their exams. The teacher is vigilant in taking care of the students even outside the school premises. When a student is beat up by a student who had been expelled earlier on, the teacher takes it upon himself by chaining up the school premises to hinder intruders from entering the school premises. One of the students who was a drug abuser apologizes for his misconduct and pleads with the principal to take him back. The student reforms and resumes his education. The community is however not happy with Clark’s methods, and as a result he lands himself in trouble after a raid. Parents want him out of the school and almost manage to do so. The students however protest and insist that the principal has done the students more good than harm. Mr. Clarke has a positive impact on the students and the entire community. The principal gets rid of the problem of drug abuse and violence which had become a major concern to the community he also helps the students become better people by ensuring that they pass their exams.mr Clarke teaches the students to fight for what they believe in but he also discourages the students against violence.
In conclusion, racial discrimination is associated with drug abuse and violence. Discrimination has led to class discrimination and education prejudice which has resulted to other evils in the society such as violence and drug abuse. The education system needs to be adjusted to ensure that blacks are able to deal with racism and to ensure that they are discouraged against misconduct. The system also needs to be fair to all students and harsh measures taken against racism. Clark’s methods may not have been acceptable to the community, but they bore results.
Works Cited
Ebert, Roger. Hootsuite. 3 March 1989. web. 30 March 2016. <http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/lean-on-me-1989>.
Provine, Doris Marie. Unequal under law : race in the war on drugs. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007. Print.
