Two Approaches at a Baltimore School

National Public Radio’s Morning Edition has been taking a close look at Northwestern High School in Baltimore, Md. for several months. The latest installment in the series looks at the way two veteran teachers approach the start of the semester at the struggling school, which has not met state achievement standards for years. One biology teacher is letting students have some measure of control in her class by having them set class rules and consequences. She hopes to instill enough pride of school in them to make them want to pass the state test. A math teacher takes the opposite approach by enforcing strict order and discipline. The veteran math teacher is someone school leaders hope will be able to help students raise their test scores, but with 38 students in the class, the teacher herself has some doubts.