Discriminatory education policies
Income-Based School Assignment policy
With this policy, school assignment is carried out by looking at a student's family income and socio-economic status, a measure some people felt would help to reduce racial segregation. However, studies have shown that race-neutral income integration policies will not reduce school racial segregation significantly.
Although the main intention of the policy was essentially to improve the social mobility of racial minority groups in the US, the result has proved otherwise. Schools have started to restrict the number of places given out to those economically disadvantaged students in order to improve their academic performance. As a result, these students would, counterproductively, more likely be pushed to the fringe of the education system and end up in weaker schools instead, further restricting their chances of academic achievement. Because of how this affects their chances of employment in the future, their social mobility is reduced.
This policy tended to widen socio-economic gaps in society, as people who were born into lower socio-economic classes were forced to stay there. Furthermore, since ethnic minorities comprise a larger part of low-income families than whites, minority students would end up being the ones held back by this policy. Hence, the existing ethnic gaps in education and socio-economic status would be reinforced.
Immigrants in education
The video below depicts discrimination towards immigrants in education. Click to watch it.
Income-Based School Assignment policy
With this policy, school assignment is carried out by looking at a student's family income and socio-economic status, a measure some people felt would help to reduce racial segregation. However, studies have shown that race-neutral income integration policies will not reduce school racial segregation significantly.
Although the main intention of the policy was essentially to improve the social mobility of racial minority groups in the US, the result has proved otherwise. Schools have started to restrict the number of places given out to those economically disadvantaged students in order to improve their academic performance. As a result, these students would, counterproductively, more likely be pushed to the fringe of the education system and end up in weaker schools instead, further restricting their chances of academic achievement. Because of how this affects their chances of employment in the future, their social mobility is reduced.
This policy tended to widen socio-economic gaps in society, as people who were born into lower socio-economic classes were forced to stay there. Furthermore, since ethnic minorities comprise a larger part of low-income families than whites, minority students would end up being the ones held back by this policy. Hence, the existing ethnic gaps in education and socio-economic status would be reinforced.
Immigrants in education
The video below depicts discrimination towards immigrants in education. Click to watch it.
Policies to prevent discrimination in education
Head Start
Created in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, it is a federal programme aimed to help children aged three to five from low-income families. It offers free preschool education to the children from poor families and other services, including medical care, meals, social services and education. In this way, it plays a crucial role in laying the basis for future academic success through improving their cognitive, social, and emotional development. Over a million children are served by Head Start programmes every year, including children in every U.S. state and territory as well as in American Indian and Alaskan Native communities.
Head Start is especially important for low-income families who often barely have enough money to make ends meet. Since education is also known as the key to socio-economic mobility, this programme can ensure a minimum level of education for these children from low-income families and possibly increase their chances of socioeconomic mobility. Daya's family is an example of the kind of children this Head Start programme can help by, most fundamentally, providing early education to cement the children's educational foundation. By providing medical and social services, it also offers some respite from the stress of living on a low income.
By offering this aid, Head Start addresses the problem of socio-economic gaps by helping the children disadvantaged by it to achieve better social mobility through education.
President Obama’s call for universal preschool
According to an oft-cited 2003 study by Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley, children of white-collar parents have a greater working vocabulary of 1,116 words while children in working class families know only 749 words and children from families on welfare know merely 525 words. Due to an increasing urgency regarding the need to close the achievement gap between poor and privileged children, there is a national shift in thinking about early childhood education. President Obama has proposed working with states to make high quality preschool education available to every child in America.
Several studies have suggested that preschool education is especially valuable for children from low-income families. These children would less likely end up as convicts of the criminal justice system, earn higher incomes and have a higher chance of being employed. Such education can also help boost graduation rates, reduce teen pregnancy and bring down rates of violent crime.
Like Head Start, this push for universal preschool recognises education, specifically early education, as one of the main tools to overcoming the persistence of socio-economic gaps through generations.
Affirmative action
This refers to policies that give people of colour, women, gender and sexuality and romantic minorities (GSRM), people with disabilities and other (minority) groups facing discrimination consideration on the basis of their under-representation in both education and employment. The concept underlying affirmative action is the acknowledgement of unequal opportunities for these groups throughout history, including acts of discrimination like slavery, racial segregation and histories of violence.
Not only do such policies do a lot for minorities in terms of education and subsequent socio-economic welfare, but the student diversity encouraged also benefits students of majority and minority groups alike. There would be enhanced student dialogues as well as the decrease in racial isolation and stereotypes.
Head Start
Created in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, it is a federal programme aimed to help children aged three to five from low-income families. It offers free preschool education to the children from poor families and other services, including medical care, meals, social services and education. In this way, it plays a crucial role in laying the basis for future academic success through improving their cognitive, social, and emotional development. Over a million children are served by Head Start programmes every year, including children in every U.S. state and territory as well as in American Indian and Alaskan Native communities.
Head Start is especially important for low-income families who often barely have enough money to make ends meet. Since education is also known as the key to socio-economic mobility, this programme can ensure a minimum level of education for these children from low-income families and possibly increase their chances of socioeconomic mobility. Daya's family is an example of the kind of children this Head Start programme can help by, most fundamentally, providing early education to cement the children's educational foundation. By providing medical and social services, it also offers some respite from the stress of living on a low income.
By offering this aid, Head Start addresses the problem of socio-economic gaps by helping the children disadvantaged by it to achieve better social mobility through education.
President Obama’s call for universal preschool
According to an oft-cited 2003 study by Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley, children of white-collar parents have a greater working vocabulary of 1,116 words while children in working class families know only 749 words and children from families on welfare know merely 525 words. Due to an increasing urgency regarding the need to close the achievement gap between poor and privileged children, there is a national shift in thinking about early childhood education. President Obama has proposed working with states to make high quality preschool education available to every child in America.
Several studies have suggested that preschool education is especially valuable for children from low-income families. These children would less likely end up as convicts of the criminal justice system, earn higher incomes and have a higher chance of being employed. Such education can also help boost graduation rates, reduce teen pregnancy and bring down rates of violent crime.
Like Head Start, this push for universal preschool recognises education, specifically early education, as one of the main tools to overcoming the persistence of socio-economic gaps through generations.
Affirmative action
This refers to policies that give people of colour, women, gender and sexuality and romantic minorities (GSRM), people with disabilities and other (minority) groups facing discrimination consideration on the basis of their under-representation in both education and employment. The concept underlying affirmative action is the acknowledgement of unequal opportunities for these groups throughout history, including acts of discrimination like slavery, racial segregation and histories of violence.
Not only do such policies do a lot for minorities in terms of education and subsequent socio-economic welfare, but the student diversity encouraged also benefits students of majority and minority groups alike. There would be enhanced student dialogues as well as the decrease in racial isolation and stereotypes.