Understanding the Basics
Since the beginning of the education system, minorities have struggled with receiving an equality-based education. From the separate classrooms to the dilapidated buildings, school board members assigned minorities the underhand of the deal, expecting them to settle for less than they deserved. Black students were labeled as inferior children who did not have adequate capability to retain knowledge, before they even had the opportunity to present their intellect. Even though the two aspects had no relation, the color of their skin determined the quality of their education, often resulting in a diminishing desire of each individual to live up to his or her full potential.
The chances of a minority succeeding in the today’s system of education have dramatically increased since the initial establishment of schools. No longer do laws exist preventing black children from learning alongside white children. By being able to attend the same school at the same time, it is assumed that each child will receive the same education, yet in many areas of the nation, studies show that a large number of minority students are failing out of school, and/or feel as if they have less of an opportunity to succeed than white students. The results illustrate how black students feel as if they are at a disadvantage in comparison to white students, whether it is the quality of teachers, the accessibility of receiving healthcare, or even the neighborhood where they grow up in. In fact, in a national survey, 59 percent of the respondents agreed that white students have the advantage of playing in violence-free neighborhoods and communities, but only 37 percent said the same for African American students. All of these factors are significant setbacks, distinctively lessening the chance of a minority student to complete school and establish a successful career.
Nice introduction to your blog! I am interested in following your topic, and I feel that you have set up an appealing focus on the issue of inequality in the American education system. I also like that you employ examples of the past to show the progress made in the equalization of the system.
ReplyDeleteHowever, there are a few things in your introduction that has left me puzzled. You introduce your subject as though you are covering all minority groups in the United States. The only group you address here though, is African Americans. Are you homing in just on the African American community in particular?
Another question I have relates to your historical reference. When you are discussing the beginning of the education system, you do not go into great detail regarding the system itself. What education system are you referring to? What time period does its foundation fall under so I can put the subject into historical context? Where are you focusing in regional terms—is this regarding the education system nationwide?
Though I am left puzzled by these questions, I feel certain that your entries will be interesting and I am looking forward to learning more about this problem that we have in the American education system. I am eager to see if you come up with some possible employable conclusions that might help aid in providing minorities a chance to have an equal educational atmosphere.
I found your first post very interesting because it talks about an issue I thought about very often while going through grade school. Despite the efforts made for equality in the education system, there still appears to be a significant difference between the success of minorities and Whites. It has led me to question whether or not our education system really is as equal as we are led to believe. It also makes me wonder what can be done to limit some of these factors hindering the achievement of minority students. Also, I’d like to know how the other minorities outside of African-Americans are faring in the education system and if there are issues plaguing the African-American students that others are not bothered with. How much more needs to be done by the government to provide an environment where all children, no matter the race, can go to school and receive a decent education? Or, should we be asking how much more parents need to do to instill the importance of education into their children? This blog has various directions it can possibly take and it will be interesting to see how you develop it. Hopefully through this blog we will be able to take something back to our communities and apply it for the future.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comments to my blog! I enjoyed reading your opinions and i'm excited to expand my blog in hopes of answering your questions and providing more insight on the issue. As a minority myself, the minority achievement gap hits close to home as I compare my own achievements to those of my friends and peers. Yes, the results from the survey that I used as a reference in my blog included only African-American students, but I am defining a "minority" as African-American and Hispanic students. I also agree that the government should take necessary steps to diminish the significant differences between minorities and whites in education, but the foundation of the change should start at home. Parents are the main influential factors to the way a child learns and values his or her education. Teachers are next in line, followed by the government. All three divisions should work together to provide a more equal-based education in which all students benefit and succeed, uninfluenced by race or social standing.
ReplyDeleteThis was a good introduction and i'm interested in learning more about this topic. I can almost completely agree on everything that you have said in your inro. I have been to high school and I have seen some obvious differences in minorities and the majority. Not as much as a few decades ago when they are looked down upon, I do not think in school they have a disadvantage when it comes to teachers and other stuff like that, but I do think it comes into play when they grow up in a bad neighborhood like you said. Not every student has the same family and the same background and I do see how this could affect the way that someone learns. However, I do not think there is much someone can do about the place they grow up or how their family is. I think that this will always be the way no matter where someone goes. People are always going to have different backgrounds.
ReplyDelete