Modern Segregation

There is a White child in the class next door. (I'm currently student-teaching first grade in West Philly, as of 2Jan. my fifth placement, third viable, since July.) I stepped in to cover for a minute while H went to the bathroom, and there he was, sitting by himself at a table reading a story. I wasn't prepared for the level of shock I felt at seeing him there. Blonde hair (straight hair, more to the point), pale, the whole nine yards.
Now, I am White myself. Many of the teachers in the building are White. But this is the only unmistakably, unarguably WHITE child I have seen in the entire building in the three weeks I've been there.
At my previous placement in Northeast Philly, there were several White children -- none in my class, but they were there. It was a more diverse school in general, though -- Hispanic children, Black children, Asian children (primarily Chinese), Middle Eastern children -- my class had a substantial representation of each of these groups. Currently, my class is made up entirely of Black children of various shades, (some may have a White parent, but I've yet to meet one) as is the rest of the school. At NES (Northeast Elem School) about 2/3 of my children were registered ESOL (although only five received services at any given time.) I found out quite by accident yesterday at a meeting that WES (West Philly Elem School, where I am now) even HAS an ESOL program. Culture shock, what?
I've been struck more than once, walking the halls of WES, of the absolute and utter failure of school integration efforts. ONE child that I've seen is not Black (and H thinks he's the only one in the school.) There are plenty of White people living in West Philly, but I guess their children all go to the Friends schools. And on the one hand, I can't blame them -- C (my cooperating teacher) mentioned offhand today that 80% of the kids at WES tested at Below Basic on the last round of standardized tests. Most of my class is certainly not up to grade level (I am trying my darnedest to avoid using terms like "low" and "high," they just make me crazy for some not-fully-articulated reason). And I've heard stories about the upper grades.
But on the other hand, I can't bring myself to think that segregating the children is the answer. How will a struggling group improve with no exposure to anyone who isn't struggling? And how will White middle-class children ever understand these children (or vice versa) if they don't get to know them and play with them? Argh.
Much as it speaks to the Inherent Racism of the System (tm) what these neighborhood schools really need is some White parents who are willing to get involved enough in their children's education to actually enroll them in a public school and try to ensure that they actually get a good education out of it. Pissed-off White parents would probably get some results.
I guess the test will be what I do when I have my own children. Or, honestly, what I do when the time comes for job searching. I really want to teach in an urban public school, for the sake of principle and of actually doing something worthwhile, but I just don't know if I can handle it. Honestly, the idea of having a classroom of my own is frightening, and the concept of being steamrollered by a group of preadolescent urban children (whose lives have conditioned them to be much tougher, in as many senses of the word as I can think of, than I am even now) is way too imaginable. First graders I can handle. My previous class of second graders I didn't have much trouble with. But third and up is a worrying idea -- all the more aggravating, because in my previous life as a substitute teacher in suburban DC, I really enjoyed third graders.
Sometimes I wonder if a one-year teacher education program can really prepare someone to teach. On the other side of the coin, of course, is the aggravation and low-grade frustration and boredom I would probably have had to deal with in any longer program. And Penn is a well-respected program, so I suppose they must be doing something right.
Well, we seem to have rambled completely away from the subject. Further bulletins as events warrant.