The government has put initiatives to ensure that all are at a position of acquiring education. Some of these initiatives are the establishment of a standard curriculum, establishment of lower and higher institutions, enforcing compulsory school for children, and financial subsidies to support the education programs among others. However, the results are not as reflective as they are expected. Despite these efforts, more should be done to control some of the confounding factors. Socioeconomic disparities, ethnic/race discrimination, and gender biases continue to hurt the initiatives placed to uplift quality and access to education. This paper reviews two research journal papers on the inequalities of learners’ with special needs, race, ethnicity, culture, gender, language, and family background to establish how such differences impact on academic performance as well as social life.
Influence of Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Class on Inequalities in Academic and Non-Academic Outcomes among Eighth-Grade Students
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The research paper follows an intersectionality assessment of the impacts of race, ethnicity, gender, and class on inequalities observed in academic performance and non-academic outcomes in eighth-grade students. The purpose is to demonstrate the relation or interplay between race/ethnic, gender and class to the point that the three have an impact on academic and non-academic performance (Bécares & Priest, 2015). Thus, rather than pursuing a single subject such as race or gender independently, the study addresses the three subjects collectively assuming that they all control how kindergarten students perform in curriculum and non-curriculum activities.
Data on previous studies and longitudinal relations from children of kindergarten level were sample through random-multistage sampling techniques. The stages were based on geography, followed by schools, and children within schools. Information on direct children assessment and information provided by parents and school administrators were analyzed (Bécares & Priest, 2015).
According to the study, the findings indicate a strong connection between race/ethnic, gender and class and the disparities in academic and non-academic outcomes among the sampled participants’ data (Bécares & Priest, 2015). Therefore, the three elements have a direct impact on the ability of the students to receive, absorb, and disseminate the knowledge delivered by the teacher and on their responses to non-academic activities such as social interactions, self-concept, and locus of control.
The paper found a high level of discrimination in advantaged class and disparities in performance; the disadvantaged racial groups (black boys and girls and Latina girls underperformed their counterparts white boys) performed poorly in academic tests but performed better in social responses tests than the advantaged groups (Bécares & Priest, 2015). The Latino boys were found to show very little difference in performance as compared to the white boys, especially in science assessments. These findings indicate a strong connection between discrimination based on race, socioeconomic and gender inequalities impact not just the academic performance and social life presently but also the quality of life in the future such as job performance.
Inequality in Teaching and Schooling: How Opportunity Is Rationed to Students of Color in America
Darling-Hammond, (2001) Opportunity presents a case on the wide disparities in the education system. The article analyses the inequalities in education based on tangible and intangible resources by comparing schools attended predominantly by whites versus those attended by races perceived as different and locations of the learning institutions.
On tangible resources, the article presents a great disparity regarding learning materials such as books, computers, and infrastructures such as classrooms and other facilities (Darling-Hammond, 2001). These facilities are found to be at the very low quality in schools attended by minority groups as compared to those attended by predominant whites. The government expenditure on these two categories of schools should be completely different. Ideally, it spends up to 10 times more in predominantly- white institutions unlike those with the minorities inferior (Darling-Hammond, 2001). Again, the spending ratio is found to be 3:1; for every three servings a white receives, the different groups would receive 1 (Darling-Hammond, 2001). Intangible resources such as quality of teaching staff and delivery methods and learning opportunities are inferior in inferior institutions (Darling-Hammond, 2001).
Darling-Hammond (2001) suggests that growing problem is common between the two classes (Darling-Hammond, 2001). The result of such a segregated system is dropout among the different groups and unequal employment opportunity. The article notes categorically that the employment pattern for whites and others is widely different. For instance, when 72% of white graduates are likely to be employed, only 42% among blacks have the chance (Darling-Hammond, 2001). White school dropouts have a higher likelihood of being employed, unlike their counterparts.
Consequently, more women are enlisted in welfare programs while men spend their time in jails (Darling-Hammond, 2001). According to the paper, analysis of court and prison expenditure in the 1980s, expenditure on corrections exceeded 900 %, prosecution and legal services recorded higher than 1000% while the prison numbers shot more than double. Such numbers are attributed to an unequal education system (Darling-Hammond, 2001). It appears the government would spend less on minority group’s empowerment and education programs but spend even double to more than triple of that amount in correction centers.
The education system encounters serious cases of inequality that translates in poor performance among the segregated groups. The government is spending less on supporting institutions attended predominantly by people deemed different. The results of such discrimination are an increasing number of crime-related, poor employment and increased spending on welfare and prisons. If the government spent the money as it is doing presently on prisons and welfare support, the economy would improve as these persons would be productive and contribute to its growth. The society would also be a safer place for all.
References
Bécares, L., & Priest, N. (2015). Understanding the influence of race/ethnicity, gender, and class on inequalities in academic and non-academic outcomes among eighth-grade students: findings from an intersectionality approach. PloSOne, 10(10), e0141363.
Darling-Hammond, L. (2001). Inequality in teaching and schooling: how opportunity is rationed to students of color in America . In The right thing to do, the smart thing to do: Enhancing diversity in health professions –Summary of the Symposium on diversity in health professions in honor of Herbert W. Nickens, MD (pp. 208-233).
