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Inequity In Public Education

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Public education is the backbone of American democracy. In the words, of Benjamin Franklin “laying such a foundation of knowledge and ability as, properly improved, may qualify [individuals] to pass through and execute the several offices of civil life, with advantage and reputation to themselves and country” (Jamieson 66). Without public education, democracy would not be able to thrive. In an ideal public education system, everyone is entitled to equal access and equity in order to learn how to be prepared to participate in democratic society. However, inherent inequity in public education system as a result of segregation, both racially and socioeconomically, causes marginalization of groups resulting in the inability to achieve this …show more content…

As seen with the video titled “The Race of Life” students who have both parents in their home are automatically given an advantage in school than those who are raised by single parent households (Section 2/14/18). This inhibits how many students receive education about how to participate in democracy, leaving them unable to engage in even the simplest civics related discussions. Students who are not wealthy receive unfair education to those who are. This inherent inequality is best stated in Richard Rothstein’s piece where he describes the different reasons students can be performing badly in school simply because of the socioeconomic status they were born into. He says “The individual predictors of low achievement are well documented… With fewer family resources, their college ambitions are constrained (Johnson, In Progress)” (Rothstein 2). These problems are ones that plague primarily lower class families causing them to raise children with lesser educations resulting in a vicious cycle of inequality. This disadvantage is one that inhibits the quality of the civics education resulting in students failing to learn how to be prepared to participate in the democratic society. Students are also segregated based on their race with a homogenous mixture of either; african americans or white students attending the school. Predominantly black schools come as a …show more content…

However, inequality runs rampant in this system because of racial and socioeconomic segregation resulting in a worse education for many. This can be changed however. It is necessary for congress to integrate these families using low income housing. With this, it will be possible for families of all different backgrounds to receive the education that they deserve in order to participate in a democratic

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Darling-Hammond broke the article into different sections which made the flow of the paper easier to read and understand when a new topic was introduced. By separating the sections of the article, she allowed a new discussion to occur underneath the overall topic of unequal opportunity with education. The author also used factual information to further back the observations being made. An example of this would be when she started the discussion about the end of legal segregation within the school systems and noted the scores of African-American students Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) to climb 54 points between 1976 and 1994, while the white students remained the same (Darling-Hammond,. 1998). Darling-Hammond brings this statistic into the article because it strengthens her argument that equal opportunity for education causes students to achieve better overall grades and test scores due to the availability of resources.

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Jamelle Bouie’s article titled, Still Separate and Unequal-Why American schools are becoming segregated once again, touches on the history of desegregation in American schools but focuses how statistically minority students are more likely to attend majority- minority schools than in previous generations. This article points out that poverty and segregation play a direct role in the school system. While drawing connections between school segregation, concentrated poverty, entrenched segregation, and housing discrimination it also presents the authors not so optimistic view on future reforms to segregated schools, districts, and educational equality as he states in regard to education equality, “To do this, however, requires a commitment to

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The American education system provides less resources and inexperienced teachers to schools with low-income students, which are said to be mainly African American and Latino. This continuing inequality has detrimental effects on society. In 2013, only 66 percent of African American graduated on time, while 83 percent of White students finished high school in four years. These facts undermine our core beliefs about education and equality. It also undermines our national ability to be competitive in the global

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Other forms of segregation, such as gender and social class segregation, are still prominent throughout numerous schools nationwide, and it is not always intentional. For example, the city of Detroit contains plenty of schools that holds students coming from high-poverty neighborhoods, which significantly barriers their way to achievement. Most of these students are African Americans, and because of the struggle with poverty, it is hard to obtain an acceptable education, therefore, schools become segregated. Because of the class segregation, below poverty line schools have a reputation of notable lower standardized test scores. In addition, some gender segregation in schools may have statistically higher test scores, but this isn’t the case for all gender segregated schools.

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Sixty-two years ago, through Brown v. The Board of Education of Topeka, the Supreme Court determined that separate was not equal and since that decision, “the only tried, tested, and cost-effective solution to unequal and inadequate education is integrated education.” (Black 2013) Armed with the knowledge that ethnic, academic, and economic stratification still exists throughout the educational system in the United States the debate can shift away from whether school choice is good or bad to how we can better meet the goals of public education with broader school choice in place. School choice programs generally focus on the individual rather than society as a whole, potentially undermining the public education goals of social mobility and social cohesion. In order to justify the use

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The idea of segregating racial minorities into crowded residential areas is a reality, which influences lower socioeconomic standings and limits equality to health. Institutionalized racism serves to seemingly brand and constrain upward movements of success in society. Many of the schools, including junior high and high school, located in minority filled communities are limited in their educational merit and do not instill and prepare for higher education and advanced opportunities in employment (Williams & Collins, 2001). Residentially segregated schools are said to fall short in areas of teacher quality and educational resources (Williams & Collins, 2001). The schools themselves have less funds per student and are surrounded in high neighborhood

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America’s school system is lacking in what it can offer its students. The inequality in our society causes lower income families to be treated less than someone of higher class. Unfortunately, this difference in status means a difference in the education a child would receice. Even though there are programs, grants, and other sources of help for these children, why are there still children struggling to gain such a basic need? The educational structure is varied from state to state and country to country.

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For instance, an underdeveloped city invites underdeveloped schooling and education, compared to a rich white suburb which provides safe and beneficial learning facilities to its students. This issue directly contributes to the concept of in-school segregation, meaning that black students attending predominantly African-American schools will have limited resources, and ineffective programs, while white children attending predominantly white schools in the suburbs will be granted the best provisions in order to be most successful. In summary, ongoing segregation in the American school system produces two separate classes of

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As Americans, we view the Constitution as a stepping stone to making the great country we live in today. Yet, we the people of the United States failed to realize another component in order to form a perfect union. Which is to establish and promote equal opportunities for a quality education for all. However, we live in a society where social locators such as class, gender, and race are huge factors in the determination of one’s educational future.

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