Asbury Park Media Reviews

The Asbury Park educational system has been in the press and on public’s minds a few times during the past few years. Most of the media and blogs written about the town’s school system describe a school where a large percentage of students drop out or are suspended. The rates are significantly higher compared to the NJ averages. Their standardized testing is also lower than the overall NJ scores, where none of the students scored in the advanced categories in math, and scored low on language arts.

Every article and blog I read discussed the money the school district in Asbury park receives and the “dismal “ results that are being output. One blog, written by Paul Mulshine, stated that the district spends $35,000 on per pupil expenditures, and in return have dismal testing results and statistics. The blogger was discussing how this district receives too much NJ aid compared to the amount of students in the school system, and should they be receiving that much money if they are producing good results. The second blog, written by Parth P, I read discussed aspects of the Asbury Park high school. Again, it stated how disappointing the standardized test results were, and how the school had improved in state rankings but a slow and insignificant increase. The football team, other sports, and choir were mentioned but the author thought they were ok but nothing that deserved merit.

On the other hand the two articles I analyzed were different than the blogs in that one only discussed violence in the schools but did not offer any suggestions as to why there is violence in the schools, police patrols are needed, and the other provided the students point of view.  The article that offered the student's point of views , written by Patti Martin from the Asbury Park Press, had a more honest and see through feeling than the others. It also took into account the feelings and thoughts of students and teachers in the community and did not focus solely on the negative aspects such as violence, money, or low test scores. Some of the quotes a couple of the students offered in the article, made me infer that the students are aware of the negative comments being made about the school, but they feel like change is being made for the betterment of them.

Both the blogs and the published articles I reviewed have strong messages they want to communicate to their audience. Every story we hear subconsciously impacts us in a way whether we want it to or not, they shape our understand and shape the way we view and react to things.  Our society and culture determine how we see, hear, and reacts to circumstances. We think that low test scores are fixed by throwing money at the problem, and if money does not fix it, then let's try to take the money away, which was the argument in one of the blogs. The Asbury school system is slowly improving, the data shows it and the students feel it. Society tells us that we should focus more on the scores of standardized testing than the feelings of the students actually attending the schools, which stated in the articles that now they have teachers who care if they succeed.  Society determines what is acceptable, and if as a society we feel that low test scores make a school subservient, it impacts the way we see the school, the teachers, and the students in that school. People pass judgment on them, as if they are less deserving because they are not performing to society's standards which affects they way they begin to see themselves, and could cause them to give up on their education, and stop believing in themselves.