Haley Scholars Spring 2013 Reading Groups
By Chandra Alford
In the second half of chapter 2, the authors explore the concept of understanding inequality in learning. The statistics in the CLA report reveal that within the first two years of college, there is a major gap in the performance of students from different racial/ethnic backgrounds. Inequality in academic preparation is the claim the authors are making to explain and understand the growing gap in performance between white students and ethnic minorities when it come to applying critical thinking, complex reasoning, and writing skills.
According to the authors, “Equalizing academic preparation between African-American and white students is thus a necessary but not sufficient condition for equalizing their growth in critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing skills during the first two years in college” (50). The authors address an important point here, because they are implying there is more to this problem than what is address by school administrators and government officials.
The inequality in academic preparation may exist due to the structure of the class system in this country, which does not equalize the access to resources to those who are low-income. Consequently, a disproportionate number of African American students reside in low-income areas.
How does the idea of "equalizing academic preparation" or even the idea of "unequal academic preparation" affect your view of high school and collegiate education and success?