Equality of Educational Opportunity

Over the years, oppression has been carried out in various ways, one of which is the American education system. This chapter focuses on the issues of race, gender, and special needs. Members of the target groups have sought equal opportunities for education in order to have equal access to power.  As the text explains, discrimination was tolerated for many years, but as a result of many social justice movements, we are moving toward equality.

Even though legislation has been passed in efforts to prevent discrimination, it is apparent that they have not necessarily been effective. As the chapter points out, there are data that supports different races still have unequal access to education. Interestingly, schools are segregated through tracking and zoning more than fifty years after Brown v. Board. Through second-generation segregation, students of color are not exposed to the learning experiences that white students have access to. The fact that there is an over-representation of students of color that are referred to receive special education is evidence of discrimination within schools. Ethnocentrism is present in the culturally biased standardized tests that students are forced to take. There must be steps taken at all levels in order to end oppression through American education. When I was in grade school, I was the only easily identified multiracial student in the class. It is now very common to have several multiracial students in a class at the schools I attended.  Therefore, I believe there will be a shift from racial discrimination to a stronger emphasis on classism, due to the growing gray area. As teachers, we should teach acceptance of differences, and stray from the use of stereotypes.

It was also interesting to read of the different perspectives on inclusion. I have never considered that inclusion may not be beneficial. I seldom saw students with special needs in the classes I took. The schools I attended used tracking, so if I had a class with a special needs student it was an elective, such as art. Until I took a college course that forced me to consider the benefits of inclusion, I didn’t realize that students with special needs have limited access to resources, such as those provided in a science lab. The chapter mentions the Vaughn Occupational High School, which equips students with special needs the skills needed for low level jobs. This type of education aids the oppression of people with special needs. Rather than limiting their options to vocational training, students with special needs should have access to a typical high school curriculum, which may be slightly modified but exposes the students to quality learning experiences that the average high school students have.

From my perspective, sexism is not currently as big an issue as racism, classism, or the discrimination against students with special needs in American education system. There are changes that need to be made at the various levels of the system. Standardized testing is definitely an example of something that has to be altered. There should also be changes made in school districts to provide students with equal access to education. Most importantly, teachers should be modeling appropriate behavior to their students that demonstrates the acceptance of differences, while making an effort to teach students at all levels.