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EDU109 – ch 12 -The Struggle for Educational Opportunity
How do deficit, expectation, and cultural difference theory
explain disparate academic performance among various
racial, ethnic, and cultural groups?
 Some people believe that being white has a number of
very real, but often invisible, privileges.
When it comes to school, however, most Americans believe
that schools offer equitable educational opportunities to all
children.
Yet, both educators and the public agree that some groups
perform well in school, and some do not.
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 Various reasons are offered for these academic gaps.
Deficit theory
argues that poor academic performance is a result of the
mismatch between group values and school norms.
Expectation theory
asserts that teachers' lower expectations of some groups
becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Cultural difference theory
states that better understanding and communication
between home life and school life can lead to academic
success.
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What major developments have marked the educational
history of Native Americans, Hispanics, African Americans,
Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, and Arab Americans?
 For centuries, the impact of white people on Native
Americans has been one of territorial conquest and
attempts to diminish the Indian culture, often through
schooling.
 Today, less than half of the 2 million Native Americans in
this country live on reservations.
 The education of African Americans during the colonial
period was sometimes illegal, and, when schools were
provided, they were inadequate and under funded.
 The doctrine of” separate but equal" (Plessy v.
Ferguson) legalized segregated schools, but, in 1954
(Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka),"separate but
equal" was declared unconstitutional.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed in an effort to
eliminate continuing discrimination and promote the
desegregation of schools.
 A second-generation of segregation now persists, due in
large part to racially segregated neighborhoods. African
American children are often assigned to special education
programs and tracked into less challenging academic
areas.
 While there has been considerable improvement, African
American students still have lower test scores and higher
dropout rates than do white students.
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 There are more than 35 million Hispanics (or Latinos)
living in the United States today.
The nation's Latinos comprise several major groups,
including Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans. Hispanic
immigration from Central America, including Nicaragua
and El Salvador, is increasing.
 Students from poverty-stricken countries must overcome
psychological trauma, poverty, and language barriers to
succeed in the United States.
The Hispanic dropout statistics are even higher than those
of African Americans.
 Asian is a broad label assigned to several billion people
from a score of nations.
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, especially more
recent immigrants from nations in Southeast Asia, must
overcome trauma and adjust to a new culture and
language, not unlike many Hispanics.
 Other Asian Americans, such as the Chinese and Asian
Indians, are stereotyped as model minorities, a label that
often masks the impact of prejudice on these children.
 Misunderstanding and intolerance have been all-toocommon facts of life for three million Americans of Arab
descent. Many Americans confuse Arabs and Moslems,
mistaking Islam, a religion, with Arabs, a cultural group.
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 Although students of Arab heritage do well in American
schools, teacher training, curricular revision, and a greater
understanding of these cultural and religious issues are
needed if equal educational opportunities are to become a
reality for Arab Americans.
What educational barriers and breakthroughs have girls
and women experienced?
 For much of this nation's history, females were denied
access to schools. Once admitted they were often
segregated into gender-restricted programs and careers.
 Today, researchers find subtle bias in classroom
interactions, curriculum materials, and enrollment
patterns. Some instructional areas, such as computer
technology and vocational programs, remain gender
segregated.
 Title IX of the 1972 Educational Amendments Act
prohibits sex discrimination in schools that receive federal
financial assistance. Progress toward gender equity is
evident by increased female participation in athletics and
improved test scores in math and science. Compliance with
Title IX remains erratic.
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What classroom strategies are appropriate for teaching
culturally diverse learners?
 Teachers can create more equitable classrooms
through a variety of instructional techniques:
ensuring that seating and grouping patterns are not
segregated by gender, race or language,
varying learning activities,
increasing wait-time,
using space and eye contact in a culturally sensitive
manner,
and using materials to meet individual students needs and
interests.
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What impact do changing family patterns and economic
issues have on children and schools?
 Nearly one in six U.S. children lives in poverty, a
condition that frequently short-circuits their educational
promise.
 The traditional family unit of the past has undergone a
radical transformation.
Divorce, remarriage, wage earning, parenting, and
alternative relationships have restructured the family and
the home-school connection.
 Latchkey children are those who are left home alone for
a significant portion of the day.
Latchkey children are found throughout society; the more
educated the parent, the more likely there is a latchkey
child at home.
After-school programs attempt to provide a meaningful
(and safe) alternative to being home alone.
 Passage of the 1987 McKinney Homeless Assistance Act,
amended in 1990, was intended to lessen the impact of
homelessness on Americans.
This law protects the rights of children who have no
permanent address to attend school and receive all
necessary services and opportunities.
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How can educators respond to social issues that place
children at risk?
 Today, just over 86 percent of students complete high
school. Poor students, urban students, and students of
color are more likely to drop out than are others. Reasons
for dropping out range from lack of motivation to teenage
pregnancy.
 The mixed messages sent to students in our society have
contributed to an alarmingly high rate of teenage
pregnancy.
Almost one in nine teenage girls becomes pregnant and
many are destined for an early end to their educational
careers, and ultimately poverty.
 Current school responses vary according to community
norms. In some communities, sex education is a major
emphasis; in others, it is minor or missing entirely.
 Fear of AIDS has served as a catalyst for establishing
sex education programs, in hopes of reducing this deadly
disease. The courts, contending that AIDS is a disability,
do not allow schools to discriminate against students or
teachers with HIV.
 Although substance abuse by teens has generally
declined since the 1970s, reports in recent years suggest
drug use (especially of alcohol) may again be on the rise.
Statistics on the extent of the problem are difficult to
quantify and interpret, but, clearly, substance abuse has a
devastating impact on the education and health of those
involved.
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 While the general incidence of suicide has decreased,
the youth rate has tripled in the last quarter century , and
warning signs are difficult to detect.
 Gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth are more likely to
commit suicide than are heterosexual youngsters.
 Guidelines for teachers include taking an active role in
recognizing and confronting homophobia across the school
culture.
 An ongoing debate exists over whether equity and
excellence in education are compatible. Some claim that
efforts for equity drain resources from educational
programs and subvert academic excellence. We believe
that education cannot be excellent unless it is excellent for
all.
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Key Terms
(See related pages)
alternative
families
Family units that differ from the traditional image; examples include foster care
children, single parents, central role of grandparents, and gay couples.
busing
A method for remedying segregation by transporting students to create more
ethnically or racially balanced schools. Before busing and desegregation were
linked, busing was not a controversial issue, and, in fact, the vast majority of
students riding school buses are not involved in desegregation programs.
cultural difference This theory asserts that academic problems can be overcome if educators study
theory
and mediate the cultural gap separating school and home.
de facto
segregation
The segregation of racial or other groups resulting from circumstances, such as
housing patterns, rather than from official policy or law.
de jure
segregation
The segregation of racial or other groups on the basis of law, policy, or a practice
designed to accomplish such separation.
deficit theory
A theory that asserts that the values, language patterns, and behaviors that
children from certain racial and ethnic groups bring to school put them at an
educational disadvantage.
desegregation
The process of correcting past practices of racial or other illegal segregation.
expectation
theory
First made popular by Rosenthal and Jacobson, this theory holds that a student's
academic performance can be improved if a teacher's attitudes and beliefs about
that student's academic potential are modified.
latchkey (selfcare) kids
A term used to describe children who go home after school to an empty house;
their parents or guardians are usually working and not home.
second-generation When a school's multiracial populations are separated through tracking,
segregation
extracurricular activities, and even in informal social events, the school is
considered to be in second-generation segregation.
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separate but
equal
A legal doctrine that holds that equality of treatment is accorded when the races
are provided substantially equal facilities, even though those facilities are
separate. This doctrine was ruled unconstitutional in regard to race.
sex
discrimination
Any action that limits or denies a person or group of persons opportunities,
privileges, roles, or rewards on the basis of sex.
sex-role
stereotyping
Attributing behavior, abilities, interests, values, and roles to a person or group of
persons on the basis of sex. This process ignores individual differences.
stepfamilies
These relationships are created when divorced or widowed parents remarry,
creating a whole set of new relationships, including stepchildren,
stepgrandparents, and stepparents.