Kozol Talking Points

Although I sensed a very negative tone from the beginning, Jonathan Kozol’s article was truly eye-opening for me. I had no idea that this racial segregation even existed in schools today. I also could not believe that some of the horrific school conditions Kozol described are still true in the United States. He tells stories of holes in the ceilings of schools where rain comes in, rats living in schools, and district-wide scripted programs being implemented that are so focused on procedures, rubrics, and standards that the teachers aren't able to develop a real connection to their students. And all of these schools are populated by a majority of poor black and Hispanic people. The children from these schools even feel as if they are unwanted.
While I was reading this article, there were many questions that came to mind. I found myself being a bit skeptical of some of the points Kozol made because he did not provide factual evidence for some of his claims. Here are the questions I had:
*Could it be that the reason some schools are dominated by a black and Hispanic population is because the makeup of the general population in the area the schools service is mostly made up of blacks and Hispanics? Kozol says the parents of white students pay for them to go to school elsewhere, but I can't imagine that is true or even affordable for most white families. I'm sure it is true in some cases, but I would have liked to see some numeric facts to back up this claim.
*If the white people in the neighborhood can afford to send their children elsewhere, why can't any of the black people from that same community afford to send their children to another school? And although some may not be able to afford it, I assume the opportunity to attend alternative schools is the same for both white and black students.
*Kozol presents the argument that poor black children are not given the same opportunities for preschool as white children whose parents can afford to pay for two or three years of preschool before they go to kindergarten. While I cannot deny that children benefit from being exposed to a preschool setting before going to kindergarten, I can't imagine that all white people can afford to send their children to preschool either. What about the Head Start programs in these cities? I don't know that all major cities have Head Start programs, but I know many of them do and they are free. Having been part of a Head Start program, I know that these programs are also held to much higher standards than many preschool programs that people pay for.
*Kozol implies that the wealthy children are taught by more experienced teachers and poor children are taught by inexperienced teachers. Is this really true? I did not see Kozol's evidence to support that claim.
Maybe many of my questions are due to my obliviousness that situations like these even existed, but these are just some of his points I found hard to believe.