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WHITERACIALPREFERENCEINEDUCATION

TosaythattheAmericaneducationalsystemisoneinwhichracialpreferencewasingrainedforwhites,historically,wouldbeanunderstatementofmonumentalproportions.Intruth,therewasessentiallynobroad-basedpubliceducationsystemforblacksatalluntilthe192Os,andeventhen,itwasseparateandunequalintheextreme.

Southernstatesforgenerationsmade

illegaltoteachblackslaveshowtoreadEnglish,andevenoutsideoftheSouththerewassimplynoformaleduca-tionalopportunitytospeakofforthevastmajorityofAfricanAmericansuntilthetwentiethcentury.Indeed,contrarytocommonperceptionsthateducationismeanttobethe"great

equalizer.Tallowing

individualstorisetotheleveloftheirabilities,schoolingintheUnitedStateshasalwaysbeenconstructedtomaintainexistinghierarchiesand

WHITERACIALPREFERENCE

EDUCATION

divisions,withregardtonotonlyracebutalsoclassstatus.ItwasThomasJeffersonwhoadvocatedthreeyearsofcompulsoryschoolingforall,to"rakeafewgeniusesfromtherubbish"?(theimplicitassumptionwasthatthebulkofthecitizenrywouldindeedremainatthebottomoftherubbishpile),anditwasWoodrowWilsonwho,aspresidentofPrincetonUniversity,onceexplained,"Wewantoneclassofpersonstohavealiberaleducationandwewantanotherclassofpersons,averymuchlargerclassofnecessityineverysociety,toforegotheprivilegeofaliberaleducationandfitthemselvestoperformspecificdifficultmanualtasks."

Inotherwords,educationwasnotforeveryone.AlthoughwemaythinkthatAmerica'seducationalsystem,howeverunequalitoncewas,nowseekstopromoteequality,nothingcouldbefurtherfromthetruth.First,

shouldbenotedthatdespiteevidencetothecontrary,whiteAmericanshavelong;;believedthenation'seducationalsystemtobeafairandequitableone,evenattimeswhenmosteveryone'todaywouldseetheabsurdityinsuchaclaim.Virtuallyallwouldagreetodaythatthenation'sschoolswereprofoundlyunequalintheearly1960s-thiswasjustafewyearsaftertheSupremeCourthadstruckdownsegregationinthehistoric

Brownv.BoardofEducation

decision,andlongbeforemostschoolsystemshadactuallybeguntoremovethevestigesofseparateandunequaleduca-tion-yet,atthetime,whitesbyandlargefelttherewasnothingwrong.Ashardasitmaybetobelieveinretrospect,in1962,morethannineintenwhitestoldpollstersthatblackshadjustasgoodachanceforaqualityeducationastheydid."Inotherwords,ourfaithinequalopportunityhaslongoutstrippedthereality;Today,althoughourfaithineducationalequityisevenstron-gerthanitoncewas,therearestillquitedeliberatemechanismsbywhichinequalityismaintained.Aseducationreformer,Alfie

AFFIRMATIVEACTION

Kohn,explains,today'semphasisonstandardizedtestingisintendedtoreplicatesubstantialdisparitiesbetweenstudents.Iftoomanystudentsdowell,teachersareaccusedofgradeinfla-tionandtestsareretooledtobemoredifficult.Lowscoresandlargegapsbetweentesttakersarewhatmarktestsaslegitimate,whichmeansthatthepurposeof"tougherstandards,"isreallytoproduceandmaintaininequality.Inotherwords,increased.failureisproofof

success!'

Sincemoststandardizedtestsare

norm-referenced,

meaningtheyarescoredinrelationtothemediantestscore,notanobjective,oruniversalstandardrelatedtothenumberofrightandwronganswers,theoutcomeofsuchtestswillbeguaranteedinequality.Suchtestsaredesignedsothattenpercentofallstudents,forexample,willbeinthetoptenpercentofscorers,andhalfofallstudentswhotakethetestwillfallbelowthemedian.Inotherwords,norm-referencedtestspresumeattheoutsetthatskillsandabilitiesfallalongabell-shapedcurve,withafewstudentsatthetop,afewatthebottom,andmostinthemiddle,eventhoughthereisnoobjectivebasisforthispresumption,especiallyforeachandeveryskilltestadministered.Theproblemwithsuchanassumptionisthatbecausestudentsmustbefitintoslotsrelativetothe"norm,"verysmallgapsinactualknowledgecouldproducelargegapsintestscores,simplytofitwithinthepresetcurve.Inequality,then,ismanufacturedquitedeliberately,regardlessofwhatitmayactuallytellusaboutstudentabilities.And,itshouldbenoted,becausewhite,middle-classstudentstypicallysetthe"norm,"studentsofcolorwillalmostalwaysoperateatadisadvantageinaschoolsystemthatemphasizesthesekindsofcognitivetestinginstruments..Buttheproblemisnotmerelytesting.AnexaminationoftheeducationalsystemintheUnitedStatesrevealsmultiplelevelsatwhichwhiteracialpreferenceisreplicated.Theseincludethehighlyunequalstartingpointsforwhitestudentsversusthose