“We’re Being Left Behind”: A StudentPerspective on Oakland Schools

By Riana Williams, Lodestar x Energy Convertors Fellow

I’ve noticed that as a student in Oakland schools, I’m being taught less than I should be learning.

🔴 When I first got to 3rd grade, I thought everything would be as easy as my previous grades. In earlier years, we learned simple things, and after a short lesson, we went outside to play and eat snacks all day.

But 3rd grade wasn’t like that.

We started learning multiplication, division, and how to write essays. I always made sure to pay attention and understand the lessons on the whiteboard. I asked questions and tried to do my homework, but I still didn’t understand.

I knew what we were being taught at some point, but the teacher wasn’t good at explaining. It felt as if he just threw the paper on the table and left us to figure it out. I didn’t know this kind of work, so how was I supposed to do it on my own?

They pressured us to do homework on the lesson and kept scaring us about 5th grade, telling us that if we didn’t get the work, we wouldn’t be any better off.

I asked my parents for help and got the answers, but I didn't actually understand what they explained to me. They put time into helping me learn the lessons they thought I was being taught at school.

I soon started watching YouTube videos on what I was learning. I watched multiplication and division lessons to learn how to do the work. I remember watching educated men on YouTube teaching how math works and how it’s similar to addition. I never really spent time playing video games because I wanted to do my best to learn what was going on.

🔴 The problem was that I wasn’t understanding what the teacher was trying to explain. It was a silent class.

I had to seek more help from YouTube lessons just to understand the work I was being given. I struggled to understand simple math problems that other kids might have understood within a few weeks. It took me months.

This matters because there are likely more kids like me who are struggling to understand the work put in front of them.

It matters because there are kids who want to seek higher education at a young age to turn their lives around, especially when they see how we — children of color — are being treated and what we are being taught.

Up to 80% of us, children of color, don’t know how to read at grade level. It’s not just me who notices how behind we are in reading, math skills, and how terrible our English writing and grammar are.

They are putting us Oakland students behind while everyone else is ahead.

I cited Google saying that when students from Oakland move to Texas, Florida, or even Korea and go to school there, you can tell the difference. In those areas, students are being taught more than students in Oakland are.

🏆 When I was homeschooled during quarantine, I felt I learned more than I did at school. I became extra good at math. I could divide in my head, and I was writing multiple essays.

I learned to type more quickly and memorized the keyboard keys. I learned Spanish so I could help others who only speak Spanish, when I grew up. I want to make sure everyone understands and learns what they might need help with.

A change that would have helped me in school is teachers making sure we understand the work, helping us realize that we are capable of doing multiplication and division.

I needed extra support from teachers who, when they noticed a student struggling, made sure to help that student and ensure they weren’t confused.

A recommendation for change I have is that our teachers in Oakland help our students, provide us with a higher education, and teach us how to read at our grade levels.

Have an extra teacher on hand who ensures no students are suffering or confused during the lesson. I would recommend that teachers work more slowly to make sure they give every detail a student needs to understand the work.

My story here may be another person’s story in Oakland schools. My story can serve as an example of how we aren’t really being taught well.

Schools can use our stories and voices to make these schools better, rather than ignore them.