Achievement Gap: African American

Inequality In Schools

All throughout the United States history education has served the purpose of serving social needs and economic needs. We have seen a shift in the education system from what used to be a white privileged environment to what is now a public school open for all individuals-regardless the race. This sounds splendid, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, it is not so optimistic for minority groups. What is supposed to be a learning environment that provides the individual with the fullest possible development to live in a democratic society still favors white students. Some may have thought that because education has expanded to all-in-America Inequality or racism has disappeared, but they couldn’t be more wrong. Today, school is one of the most significant obstacles for many African Americans, and we fail to acknowledge this issue that impacts the future of millions of students. 

So we ask the question, “Why do we see inequalities?” Racism in schools may be traced back to the time when schools were separated, and some of those schools are still segregated now due to the majority of white control in these institutions, “ 80% of the teacher population is White.”(Alvare, 2). Some may claim that racism is a thing of the past and that these are new people who have nothing to do with the educational discrepancies that exist today, however, racism is not static, it changes with time and new generations. The fact is that there are still many racist attitudes and behaviors present in our society. “Critical race theory (CRT) posits that racism is deeply ingrained throughout society.”(Alvare, 2). It is evident that racism is still prevalent in today’s society. Even though it shows up differently than it did in the past, it is still very prevalent.  In all institutional procedures, into the consciousness of people. This merely served to make people feel superior to those with various skin tones. They would not only feel superior, but they would also act on it, resulting in a more difficult war against racism.  They state how the actual reality is far from the

In the article, “ Addressing racial inequalities within schools: Exploring the potential of teacher education” author Melissa A. Alvare a lecturer in the Department of Political Science and Sociology at Monmouth University, discusses how racially biased patterns from teachers and administration serve to maintain inequities in schools while failing to tackle the problem. Alvare goes on to explain how everyone in the school system is inept and how racism is not treated seriously. “Educational institutions endorse color‐blind logic and emphasize meritocracy, offering no encouragement for staff to meaningfully address racial barriers and related issues within schools” (Alvare, 6). Educators would do nothing or very little to assist the discriminated student and reject the matter as unproblematic, they are supposed to be the first line of defense against problematic situations at school, but opting to ignore them merely gives the impression that everything is fine and racism is acceptable, which makes minority groups feel inferior and possibly develop depression, reinforcing Alvare’s suggestion that dramatic transformation is required to improve educational parity. As stated in the article, teachers are expected to support the color-blind ideology, and “endorse the notion that everyone has equal opportunities to succeed academically.”(Alvare,  6), but teachers fail to address anti-semitism within the school and do not want to address racism in their class lesson because of fear of division between classmates. In the article, there’s a research example of a misunderstanding by a white teacher trying to engage in a culturally sensitive practice that was stereotyped.  The black kid who was chosen to choose a story by the white teacher from among the African American folktales was unfamiliar with all of them. Many people, in my opinion, assume that just because someone is a certain color, they automatically belong to the category of “everyone,” but not all black people are African Americans. There is so much diversity on this planet that it might be challenging to educate yourself about each, But presuming that someone is knowledgeable or likes and dislikes something based on race, ethnicity, etc is far worse. This is why teachers should be prepared to acknowledge, respect, and understand each student because within race, class, and ethnicity we find that people are diverse in many ways. To prevent incidents communication is beneficial and it is best to treat each person as an individual. In the article, Alvare contends that the implications of racial identity are unknown to white teachers., “it is not surprising that White teacher candidates—who generally come from predominately White neighborhoods and schools—perceive themselves as race‐neutral and are unreflective about their norms and privileges, but it is certainly problematic.”(Alvare, 9) When this issue is left unresolved, white teachers may imitate colonized educational techniques or think of themselves as “white knights” who fight to protect kids who are perceived as being lower-class or inferior. It could reinforce prejudice since they raise their own opinions above those of others and are not aware of their social hierarchy. There are a few possible outcomes if an instructor believes that one race is inherently superior to others. First, as students of different ethnicities are effectively labeled as unequal, this could lead to more disparity in the classroom. Besides that, there may be occasions when the instructor compares different races in a manner that suggests one is superior to the others. This may limit students’ opportunities for psychological and social growth in school by limiting their exposure to a multicultural environment. Eventually, this way of thinking is destructive and does not promote a friendly or fair, and equal educational environment. The research by Amanda E. Lewis and John B. Diamond exemplifies this claim. 

Lewis and Diamond continue by explaining the demographic difference within the school between “low” and “high” classes, white students are overrepresented in the advanced classes, while African Americans, and Latinos the majority are in low-level classes. In a high school where less than 50% percent of the students are white, they make up 90% percent of the students in AP classes, however, Black and Latinos make up the majority of the basic level classes, a racial barrier that doesn’t allow them to receive the same quality of learning. They continue to show us a database of the different results of test scores between white students that are in high tracks, compared to African Americans and Latinos in low tracks, “Test score outcomes also follow racial patterns. On the 2006 ACT exam, the mean composite score for white students was about 26, while the score for African American and Latina/o students was about 18.”( Lewis & Diamond,XVII) Riverview High School’s graduation rates are high, but African American students are less likely to attend a four-year college than white students. This is due to the achievement differentials between the two groups. African Americans have lower test scores and grades, which makes them less competitive for college admission. In addition, they are more likely to come from low-income families, which can make affording college difficult.

When Lewis and Diamond spoke to Maurice Webber, a student from Riverview high school, Webber said, “I think that sometimes the expectations [for black and Latina/o students] are lower.” These expectations get communicated to students in lots of subtle ways. A white teacher described a peer’s recent behavior thusly: “There was a teacher who had a minority student come into their honors class, and, you know, he was your stereotypical baggy jeans, big shirt, hat turned sideways, you know, and she said to him, ‘You know, I think you belong in my next period, you’re too early and assumed that he was a general student. And he’s like, ‘No, no my schedule says I belong here. ” (Lewis & Diamond,98). Many non-white students suffer from the stereotype that baggy jeans, and a wide shirt meant they belong in the lower classes, so it was categorized as “black”. An African American student, Julius, stated in an interview that for him, regardless of being a high-achieving student, he wasn’t able to get into the U.S history AP course because his teacher didn’t like him. Teachers assume that black students don’t care much about school, so they are placed in the basic classes which demotivate African Americans to perform well and overall self-expectations. It is tragic that bright African American students who put in the effort and sacrifice time for their future are lowered to inferior classes in order to maintain racial barriers and are not able to achieve the same levels of success as white students. The reports of African Americans performing worse on tests earlier in the essay may be due to their lack of self-confidence as a result of the preconception that they are not academics and are unable to achieve in the educational system.

There are other factors that apport to the achievement gap and inequality between African Americans and White students. In the article, “The Punishment Gap: School Suspension and Racial Disparities in Achievement” author, Edward W. Morris is an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Kentucky, And Brea L.  Perry, a Professor of Sociology and an affiliated faculty of the Indiana University Network Science Institute, imply that school punishment impairs academic advancement and contributes to racial success discrepancies. They communicate, “Research suggests that African American students are approximately three times as likely as white students to be suspended (Gregory et al. 2010; Wallace et al. 2008). A recent report found that nationwide, one out of six black students has been suspended at least once.”(Morris & Perry, 70) The author suggests that the proportion of suspensions rose in the 1990s as African Americans gradually closed the achievement gaps in math and reading. Although the federal government sent a document to public schools in response to the worrisome number of suspensions, they could not enact change since they had no authority over local disciplinary procedures. Morris asserts that removing students from the classroom environment makes them more hostile and more likely to fail, “suspension does little to improve subsequent student behavior, and may even ,,exacerbate students’ anger or apathy. Exclusionary discipline can weaken school bonds, which may actually increase the likelihood of further deviant behavior.” (Morris & Perry, 79) He further explains that suspension has a correlated relation with academic performance since suspended students are more likely to grade behind than non-suspended. Suspension for nonviolent classroom improper behavior benefits neither the suspended students nor their classmates. People frequently fail to realize that school suspensions involve removing students from the classroom, robbing them of crucial learning time. This results in significant knowledge gaps in the students, which negatively affects their performance on standardized tests.  It’s important to take a closer look at the way students whose misconduct are disciplined in the classroom and find a new instructional and integrative foundation that will hold accountable the students without removing them from their learning environment.

These theories and researchers can all agree that inequality in school has contributed to the social class disparities we see in our society.  Although most people try to avoid the subject, it is clear that it has a significant impact on many people’s lives and that racial segregation in American schools is still a problem today.  There are institutions within institutions that play a part in the racial barriers and as a result of people’s conscious or unconscious choices impact millions of students. Schools should be required to teach in-depth about Racism and other cultures as part of their curriculum to avoid division between race groups in the learning environment.  If racist ideas are passed down, the future will only get worse as more racism is introduced. To avoid this, society must find ways to teach children about racial equality and demonstrate that in today’s world, everyone is equal regardless of skin color. New laws must be created with an emphasis on eliminating inequality in order for students of all races to perform better and receive higher-quality instruction. This includes new school policies that must be reinforced to ensure that everyone has an equal chance to pursue an education.

Overall, the United States must become more aware of the situation and push for reform. We have seen how African Americans and other races have been treated in the past; redlining was a widespread form of racial discrimination in the US that kept African Americans from accessing opportunities. It happened with mortgages and credit cards and it’s occurring now with our school system. Therefore, we must fight for our right to equality in education because talented and enthusiastic students’ potential should not be held back and instead be upwardly mobile.

Source Cited

1. Lewis, Amanda E., and John B. Diamond. Despite the Best Intentions: How Racial Inequality Thrives in Good Schools. Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 2015. https://global.oup.com/academic/product/despite-the-best-intentions-9780195342727?cc=us&lang=en&

2. Morris, Edward W., and Brea L. Perry. “The Punishment Gap: School Suspension and Racial Disparities in Achievement.” Social Problems (Berkeley, Calif.), vol. 63, no. 1, 2016, pp. 68–8 https://academic.oup.com/socpro/article-abstract/63/1/68/1844875?redirectedFrom=fulltext

3. Alvare, Melissa Archer. “Addressing Racial Inequalities Within Schools: Exploring the Potential of Teacher Education.” Sociology Compass, vol. 12, no. 10, 2018, p. e12628–n/a   https://compass.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/soc4.12628