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SOCIAL BIAS IN PUBLIC EDUCATION.
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Discusses urban and suburban school curricula.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Discusses urban and suburban school curricula. How the bias evolved. Issues of racially segregated schools, government mandated school integration, white flight to the suburbs, economic decline of inner cities. School-district differentials. Problem of the source of educational funding based on property taxes. Impact on curriculum content. Three Figures.
Paper Introduction:
This research examines evidence of social bias between urban and suburban school curricula. The research will set forth the context in which discourse of social bias in public education has emerged in recent years and then discuss how such bias has been identified in studies of various kinds of schools, with a view toward suggesting possible methods by which the problem of bias may be addressed.
Issues of social bias between urban and suburban schools are bound up with the vexed history of racially segregated schools, government-mandated school integration, the economic decline of the inner cities, the growth of suburbs, and so-called white flight from cities to suburbs. The issues are highly charged, highly politicized, and far from resolved. One factor contributing to the politicization of public education is that
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As a group, suburban schools aresituated in economically privileged places, tend to have majority-whitestudents, and are generally well funded, while urban schools are situatedin economically disadvantaged, run-down inner cities, tend to have studentpopulations comprising people of color, and are ill maintained, receivingsignificantly less funding than their suburban counterparts. The flight of property owners from the cities implies adecreasing tax base. Whereas urban and ruraldistricts were found to have spent about $4,5 per student, suburbandistricts in the state spent $6, -$7,5 . (1999, December). Phi Delta Kappan, 82, 2 3-11.Jonas, A.G. (2 , March). Morris continues: Historically, if the push was for black children to attend schools with white children, the chances for black children and their culture to be totally ignored in the curriculum and in the ethos of the school were great. On the other hand, minority studentswho are transported to suburban schools may also suffer learning deficitsbecause of the dearth of minority teachers in suburban schools who canfunction as role models and offer a sense of security and self-esteem tothe students. . This research examines evidence of social bias between urban andsuburban school curricula. (1998, February). Economic bias fosters social bias, in Kozol's view; abundantresources imply a rich curriculum, and lack of resources can starve acurriculum. Source: Longeran, 2 . On the other hand, if one chose the alternative of a black school, there were concerns about the lack of resources, lack of exposure to rigorous academic curriculum, and lack of facilities (Morris, 1999, p. Statistics of state school systems; revenues and expenditures for public elementary and secondary education; and common core of data surveys. Urban Affairs Review, 34, 34 -58.Kozol, J. The Maryland figures are provided as an example that is not untypicalof the national district-by-district picture. The research will set forth the context in whichdiscourse of social bias in public education has emerged in recent yearsand then discuss how such bias has been identified in studies of variouskinds of schools, with a view toward suggesting possible methods by whichthe problem of bias may be addressed. . Busing, "white flight," and the role of developers in the continuous suburbanization of Franklin County, Ohio. Available: http://nces.ed.gov//pubs2 2/digest2 1/ch2.asp#6. . (2 1). A pedagogy of success: Meeting the challenges of urban middle schools. Essence, 28, 188.Secada, W. H. However, there is a "digitaldivide" between urban (poorer) and suburban (wealthier) schools, asindicated in the chart (Longeran, 2 ). ERIC Digest ED46 213. cannot compute withfractions" (Haberman, 2 , p. The issues arehighly charged, highly politicized, and far from resolved. In that regard, Danzer (2 1) recommendsincorporating study of the urban center where a sschool may be located as aculturally relevant social-studies project, on the theory that engagingstudents in matters of local interest may provide them with usefulknowledge that may also increase their "sense of belonging, of community,of stewardship, and of life itself." ReferencesBowers, R.S. No more excuses: The final report of the Hispanic dropout project. (1979). The Clearing House, 73, 235-39.Danzer, G. New York: ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education.Frey, W. New York: ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education.Morris, J.E. Bowers (2 ) cites "culturally relevantteaching," or methods that incorporate an understanding of students'backgrounds, that has improved the conceptual skills of urban students insuch subjects as math and history. Wherethat possibility has existed, the typical response of whites has been tomove out to suburban areas outside the reach of the urban district (Jonas,1998). Accordingly: Because of the current manner in which school districts are funded-- primarily through property taxes--many all-black school districts will continue to suffer from financial inequities; until that situation is remedied, effective schooling will not be possible (Morris, 1999, p. Unequal access to resources, from books to computers to facilities, isseen by Kozol (1991) as the main difference between urban and suburbanschools. Making a community interesting to itself: providing a social education through urban history and neighborhood studies. One minority teacher (Sample, 1997, p. Court-mandated schoolbusing to achieve racial balance enables racial-minority students to attendsuburban schools, although as a practical matter it does not necessarilyoblige white students to attend inner-city schools (Gewertz, 2 2). Educating suburban America. . Hartford Sweetens Deal to Draw Suburban Students to City. Department of Education, 2 2 National Center for Education Statistics. American Sociological Review, 44, 425-48.Gewertz, C. In any case, real-property owners are much more likelyto be found in suburbs than the inner city. Department of Education, 2 2. 235), a situation complicated by chaotic familystructures and/or lack of parental involvement in the students' education.Facilities infrastructure is also problematic: "In the 12 largest urbanschool districts (as well as in many smaller cities), there are not enoughtexts to go around," says Haberman (2 ), who adds that "the number ofurban children and youths who arrive each morning without even a pencil farexceeds the number who carry textbooks in their book bags." Maintainingclassroom order rather than teaching lesson-plan content takes up themajority of classroom time. There is a significant body of research showing that whatever thecontent of curriculum in the urban-school setting, the chronic and grindingpoverty of the inner city fosters a sham of education in which achievementis low and "rates of disruptive behavior and absenteeism tend to be high"(Bowers, 2 , p. Issues of social bias between urban and suburban schools are bound upwith the vexed history of racially segregated schools, government-mandatedschool integration, the economic decline of the inner cities, the growth ofsuburbs, and so-called white flight from cities to suburbs. 324). The figures are in Figure 2. Available: http://www.edweek.org/info-epe/copyright.htm.Haberman, M. . Annual Per-Pupil Expenditures in Maryland in the 199 s (in thousands) Source: Secada, et al., 1998. [pic] Figure 3. (2 2, March 6). The amount of funding available for pupils at a given school districtaffects the ability of the school to attract quality teachers and pay themcompetitively. Haberman concludes that debate over curriculum content that focuses onthe Western canon or "a more culturally diverse program" is "just so muchpiffle" because graduates of urban schools by and large remain ignorant offourth-grade-standard curriculum content. Source: U.S. It affects the amount and quality ofcurriculum materials. (1997, September). Even though it is a commonplace of American history of the 195 s and196 s that the Supreme Court decision Brown v. 317). . Even more important is that the main source of educational funding isproperty taxes. . 32 ). The relative richness ofcurriculum content can be inferred, just as social bias is implied. According to the US Department of Education, the per-pupil expenditurein American public schools between 197 and 2 1 has risen by 7 % incurrent dollars and nearly doubled in 2 1 dollars. What makes them relevant tothis research is that they support opinions of social bias in a whole rangeof attributes of public-school systems. Education Week, 21, 11. (1998, November). do notknow the branches of the federal government . One factorcontributing to the politicization of public education is that of unfairfunding patterns. Embedding cultural sensitivity into curriculum content or teachingmethods has been seen as a way of increasing academic success amongdisadvantaged urban schools. Madison: University of Wisconsin.U.S. A report on the alarming dropout rate among Hispanics (Secada,et al., 1998) includes a comment on school-district differentials inexpenditures for public education in Maryland. It also affects curriculum content, which goesdirectly to the issue of social bias. Urban schools--Day camps or custodial centers? Current expenditure per pupil in average daily attendance in public elementary and secondary schools: 197 -71 to 2 - 1. . G., Chavez-Chavez, R., Garcia, E., Muņoz, C., Oakes, J., Santiago-Santiago, I., & Slavin, R. M. Internet access and content for urban schools and communities. A. (2 , November). 188) with experiencein suburban schools reports watching "students of color who are unable torelate personally to their teachers and therefore miss out on supportsystems--counseling or tutoring." She describes outreach programs in suchsettings as either inadequate or nonexistent, with the result that thestudents get "tracked into lower, behavioral and special-education classesbased on the sole recommendation of a teacher." In other words, the lower-level curriculum they experience becomes an exercise in social bias ratherthan academic insight. New York: Crown.Lonergan, J. Board of Education mandatedthe desegregation of public schools, and even though such measures as court-ordered busing of students and the creation of special-subject-emphasismagnet schools have been implemented to redress racial imbalance, there isstill a visible racial divide between inner-city and suburban schools, withthe former drastically less funded than the latter. Phi Delta Kappan, 81, 316-24.Sample, I.W. [pic] Figure 1. At first glance, that does not seem to be a valid issue,as Figure 1 suggests. (2 ). Savage inequalities. ERIC Digest Number 157. Central-city white flight: Racial and non-racial causes. . It affects whether students at a school have access tocomputers and/or the Internet. [pic] Figure 2. (1991). cannot explain what causes the seasons . Multimedia and the Interent are features of computer use in classroomsand may add variety to curriculum content. They "have never read a book allthe way through . That is reflected inFigure 1.Such expenditures may seem impressive, but the aggregate figuresdo not capture the differences in per-pupil spending in different schooldistricts. What is the future of predominantly black urban schools?: The politics of race in urban education policy. That is why Kozol calls for school-budget reforms thatdistribute cash payouts to school districts on a more equal basis.
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