Garfield
High School
Jaime Escalante arrived to teach computer science
at Garfield High School in 1974. There was only one problem. The school had no computers. The equipment had been stolen and there was no money to replace it. Though the school was surrounded by a tall chain link fence to keep students from ditching classes, it had become the local gathering place for neighborhood teenagers, some in gangs, most just just wanting a place to meet and hang out. Past and current students loitered on the lawns, dropouts and kids without jobs flirting, talking, and distracting students from classes. Most students and their teachers saw their classes as
a temporary place to spend time between part time jobs. Many of the teachers had second jobs and spent their time at school promoting their other interests. Nobody arrived early and nobody stayed late.
Jaime Escalante arrived to teach computer science
at Garfield High School in 1974. There was only one problem. The school had no computers. The equipment had been stolen and there was no money to replace it. Though the school was surrounded by a tall chain link fence to keep students from ditching classes, it had become the local gathering place for neighborhood teenagers, some in gangs, most just just wanting a place to meet and hang out. Past and current students loitered on the lawns, dropouts and kids without jobs flirting, talking, and distracting students from classes. Most students and their teachers saw their classes as
a temporary place to spend time between part time jobs. Many of the teachers had second jobs and spent their time at school promoting their other interests. Nobody arrived early and nobody stayed late.
Turning
Garfield Around
Hard work and discipline were Escalante’s heart and soul. When Garfield asked him to teach math instead of computer science he agreed. While a tough new school principal cleared out the school yard and instituted rules, Escalante put in place
a set of rules for the students in his classes. The students were lively and accustomed to fooling around in class,skipping homework, and arriving to class late. Escalante had zero tolerance for tardiness, absences, and would banish a student from class if he caught them marking up their textbooks. Missing even one homework assignment was a serious infraction.
Determination +
Discipline +
Hard Work=
The Way to Success
Garfield students came from poor families and few of their parents had graduated or even attended high school. The emphasis for their children was work to help support the family. School was not a priority for many Garfield students and they often worked long hours and arrived at school tired from no sleep.
For someone like Jaime Escalante however, this was no excuse. He had worked hard—twice—for his education and he did not allow his students to use work as an excuse to avoid homework.
He worked to convince students that not only could they learn the Math he was teaching them, but they could excel at it and it could be the key to their future. He convinced the administration to let him teach Calculus and to prepare the students for the Advanced Placement Exam.
Hard work and discipline were Escalante’s heart and soul. When Garfield asked him to teach math instead of computer science he agreed. While a tough new school principal cleared out the school yard and instituted rules, Escalante put in place
a set of rules for the students in his classes. The students were lively and accustomed to fooling around in class,skipping homework, and arriving to class late. Escalante had zero tolerance for tardiness, absences, and would banish a student from class if he caught them marking up their textbooks. Missing even one homework assignment was a serious infraction.
Determination +
Discipline +
Hard Work=
The Way to Success
Garfield students came from poor families and few of their parents had graduated or even attended high school. The emphasis for their children was work to help support the family. School was not a priority for many Garfield students and they often worked long hours and arrived at school tired from no sleep.
For someone like Jaime Escalante however, this was no excuse. He had worked hard—twice—for his education and he did not allow his students to use work as an excuse to avoid homework.
He worked to convince students that not only could they learn the Math he was teaching them, but they could excel at it and it could be the key to their future. He convinced the administration to let him teach Calculus and to prepare the students for the Advanced Placement Exam.
In fact, the school was so bad that the Downtown
administrators of the Los Angeles Unified School
District were discussing taking away Garfield’s
accreditation and closing the school.
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