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The Politics of Race and Educational Disparities in Delawares Public Schools
Abstract
Delaware has long played a pivotal role in the nation’s struggle to end school segregation and promote educational equality. This article discusses racial disparities in educational achievement and outcomes by examining the state’s political history and the politics of race in public education. This article explores educational disparities from a socio-political perspective, which takes into consideration the direct and indirect influence of historical, political, socio-economic, and socio-cultural events on educational achievements and outcomes in the state. It finds that Black students in urban areas are influenced more by the politics of race in public education than Black students in non-urban school environments in the state. It also shows that the educational achievement and outcomes of Black students are influenced more by the politics of race than White students. It suggests that the politics of race in public education is influenced by political factors that extend well beyond those associated with the process of educating.
... Ultimately, these schools reproduce many of the hierarchical power differentials found in society across race, gender and class. Davis (2017) argues schools operate as microcosms of the structurally violent environments in which they exist, replicating and reinforcing inequities, particularly for low-income Black students. For instance, Simmons' (2017) study on school failure and mass imprisonment found Black students were pushed out using school rules and labeling practices that branded them as "criminally inclined." ...
This street participatory action research project explored the reflective schooling experiences of street identified Black men and women (ages 18–35) in two small low‐income neighborhoods. Secondary analysis of survey (N = 520) and interview (N = 46) data examined: (1) How are attitudes toward schooling and teachers affected by race, gender and age?; and (2) How do students utilize a street‐identity as a site of resilience inside schools? Overall, street‐identified study participants held positive attitudes toward schooling, but generally performed poorly in schools and had negative experiences with educators. No significance was found as a function of gender and age regarding attitudes toward schooling and attitudes toward teachers. Also, interview results, across gender and age, suggest school‐related structural challenges and poor teacher‐student relationships contributed to severe conflict between students and teachers; and between students. Interviewees argued some Black students internalized a street identity or became disruptive and even engaged in school violence as a protective mechanism to endure hostile schooling environments. Moreover, Street PAR is discussed as a method and intervention to improve student performance and resolve concerns between students and educators.
... Unsafe political conditions, the weak economy, and inadequate schools significantly affect the education of Papuan students. Davis (2017) posited that the political and economic situation influenced the educational achievement and motivation of students. In short, a conducive learning environment greatly affects the meaningfulness of learning for students (Nevison, Drewery, Pretti, & Cormier, 2017). ...
The primary objective of learning engaged in higher education is to build graduate students who have great competence. This study aims to analyze the academic motivation of Papuan students at Sebelas Maret University. Data were collected through questionnaires and interviews. The participants were undergraduate students of Papua and West Papua. The results showed that the extrinsic motivation of the Papuan student is more dominant than is intrinsic motivation. The factors that influenced the low motivation of Papuan students are peers, family, teacher, the background of education, social conditions, economics, and politics. This research is expected to provide information and a basis for lecturers, universities, and policymakers to pay more attention to Papuan student motivation and further increase their learning motivation.
Last summer, the Supreme Court declared voluntary student assignment plans to racially integrate the public schools in Louisville, Kentucky, and Seattle, Washington, unconstitutional by a 5-4 majority. This was a landmark ruling for public school integration and civil rights; the Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 (2007) ruling is likely to affect districts that use race-conscious criteria for assigning students to schools. School personnel and citizens committed to racially integrated schools need to understand this complex decision so they can determine whether their current policy is within the legal precedent. The case is difficult to interpret because the justices' opinions were extremely polarized, and although Justice Kennedy agreed with the majority decision, he agreed with the majority opinion only in part. To participate and provide leadership in school integration policy development, school social workers need to recognize how divided the conservative and liberal factions were in this decision and why the Louisville and Seattle plans failed to pass the strict scrutiny standard according to the majority of justices. In this article, the trend toward resegregated schools is summarized, the recent Supreme Court decision is analyzed, and the implications for school social workers are discussed.
Examines out-of-school suspensions in a large, ethnically-diverse school district by race, gender, school level and infraction type. Key issues of interest; Analysis of pertinent topics and relevant issues; Implications on the education and treatment of children.
This analysis of statewide suspension data from 1995 to 2003 in Maryland investigated disproportionate suspensions of minority students and students with disabilities.We found substantial increases in overall rates of suspensions from 1995 to 2003, as well as disproportionate rates of suspensions for African American students, American Indian students, and students with disabilities.The odds ratios for suspension increased for African American students and American Indian students from 1995 to 2003.The odds ratios for students with disabilities varied by disability category and by race. For most disability categories, students with disabilities had higher odds ratios than students without disabilities. Students with emotional and behavioral disorders had the highest odds ratios for suspensions, especially for African American students. Findings from this investigation are discussed and recommendations are provided for practice and future research.
Among the criticisms of charter schools is their potential to further stratify schools along ethnic and class lines. This study addressed whether Arizona charter schools are more ethnically segregated than traditional public schools. In 1996-97, Arizona had nearly one in four of all charter schools in the United States. The analysis involved a series of comparisons between the ethnic compositions of adjacent charter and public schools in Arizona's most populated region and its rural towns. This methodology differed from the approach of many evaluations of charter schools and ethnic stratification in that it incorporated the use of geographic maps to compare schools' ethnic make-ups. The ethnic compositions of 55 urban and 57 rural charter schools were inspected relative to their traditional public school neighbors.
The present study uses large nationally representative samples of White, Black, Hispanic, Asian American, and American Indian students to examine current patterns and recent trends (1991 to 2005) in racial, ethnic, and gender differences in school discipline. We found that Black, Hispanic, and American Indian youth are slightly more likely than White and Asian American youth to be sent to the office and substantially (two to five times) more likely to be suspended or expelled. Although school discipline rates decreased over time for most ethnic groups, among Black students school discipline rates increased between 1991 and 2005. Logistic regression analyses that controlled for racial and ethnic differences in socio-demographic factors suggest racial and ethnic differences in school discipline do not result from racial and ethnic differences in socioeconomic status. Future research and practice efforts should seek to better understand and to eliminate racial, ethnic and gender disproportionality in school discipline.
Arguing that educators have little control over a dropout's background characteristics, Gary Wehlage and Robert Rutter probe the High School and Beyond data for insights into the characteristics of students' school experiences that may contribute to dropping out and that might be altered through policy interventions.
Using the most comprehensive data set on school dropouts that we have to date, the High School and Beyond study, Ruth Ekstrom, Margaret Goertz, Judith Pollack, and Donald Rock provide an analysis of the salient characteristics of the dropout population.
This study examines the extent of segregation in low performing elementary schools in the Denver metropolitan area from 1984-2007. The combination of state school choice policies and the accountability requirements of The No Child Left Behind Act, have contributed to this segregation. In Colorado, parents have choices regarding what school they want their children to attend. The schools' ratings often influence the choices parents make. The ratings are primarily a reflection of student scores on standardized tests. The racial segregation of students in addition to school funding, and teacher stability, are just some of the issues associated with school choice.
Charter schools embody the theoretical potential to promote integration since they can draw students from across district boundaries that often reflect segregated residential patterns. While a number of studies have examined overall racial composition of charter schools, virtually no attention has been paid to how charter school enrollment patterns may have changed over time--a key for understanding the potential of these schools to exacerbate or ameliorate student sorting. We examine questions of school mix by comparing the integration indices of charter schools over time. The analysis indicates that integration in charter schools has improved slightly in the majority of states but that in several states charter schools are seeing increased segregation.
This study attempted to untangle how two dimensions of school racial/ethnic composition—racial/ethnic diversity of the student body and racial/ethnic matching between children and their peers—were related to socioemotional and academic development after the transition into elementary school. Analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study–Kindergarten Cohort revealed that school racial/ethnic composition was more strongly associated with children’s academic, as opposed to socioemotional, outcomes. Students had higher achievement test scores in more diverse schools, especially when they also had more same-race/ethnicity peers in these diverse schools. These patterns were particularly strong for White students. Having more school peers of the same race/ethnicity, regardless of the overall level of diversity in the school, was associated with positive socioemotional development.
This paper estimates the effect of charter schools on both students attending them and students at neighboring public schools. Using school-level data from Michigan's standardized testing program, I compare changes in test scores between charter and public school students. I find that test scores of charter school students do not improve, and may actually decline, relative to those of public school students. The paper also exploits exogenous variation created by Michigan's charter law to identify the effects of charter schools on public schools. The results suggest that charter schools have had no significant effect on test scores in neighboring public schools.
Supporters of public education have long feared that charter schools will threaten the public system, both by 1) creaming off the most advantaged students and 2) undermining political support for the public system. These fears have not been borne out. Blacks are disproportionately in charters, whites are disproportionately in traditional public schools, and Hispanics are fairly evenly distributed between the two. Looking at class measures, poor students are distributed fairly equally between the two types of schools. And turning to other measures of privilege, the evidence does not point strongly in either direction. My conclusions are not without qualification. The article identifies some domains in which cream-skimming might develop and others where more research is needed. Moreover, the evidence does not support the claims of some charter school advocates that charter schools serve an especially disadvantaged population of students. Regarding the question of public funding, privatization in the education context may have the effect of creating an additional constituency for increased overall education funding. Charter school advocates have moved away from claims that charters will cut costs and instead now focus on securing additional public funding. I argue that the structure of education funding means that charter school efforts to obtain greater public support will likely depend on increasing per pupil spending in all public schools.
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