Why Race and Culture Matter in Schools by Tyrone C. Howard

Author:Tyrone C. Howard
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Teachers College Press
Published: 2019-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

CHAPTER 5

* * *

The Role of Race in Learning

When examining the academic achievement gap that exists in U.S. schools, the topic that frequently lies beneath the surface yet rarely is addressed in an explicit, thoughtful, and critical manner is the role of race. The obvious, yet often neglected questions that educators at all levels must ask as part of any detailed analysis of achievement disparities are: How does race play out in academic outcomes? What role, if any, does race play in the achievement gap in U.S. schools? Where are these discrepancies most recognizable? How does race affect the schooling experiences of students of color? What steps can be taken to reduce perennial discrepancies along racial lines? Any detailed analysis of U.S. achievement outcomes usually has some racial implications, but what these implications mean, and more important, how educators address the issue of race, has been a source of consternation, confusion, avoidance, and uncertainty for far too long. The difficulty in examining race—and assessing whether, how, where, and when it is having an impact on the educational outcomes of students—is not a challenge unique to scholars and practitioners (Singleton & Linton, 2006). In fact, the dissonance and discomfort surrounding the topic of race in education are reflective of the larger societal context in which race has been viewed historically and contemporarily in the United States. A more detailed analysis of race, racism, and each of their manifestations is long overdue if viable interventions are to close racial achievement gap in U.S. schools.

DuBois (1903) prophetically stated at the turn of the 20th century that “the problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line, the relations of the darker to the lighter races of men in Asia and Africa, in America and the islands of the sea” (pp. 15–16). Nearly a century later, West (1993) reminded us that even with high levels of education and increased economic mobility and social status, “race matters” (p. 3). In between these two notable works, a plethora of scholars, philosophers, researchers, and practitioners have lamented the way in which we talk (and do not talk) about race, and its manifestations in our everyday lives (Baldwin, 1988; Bonilla-Silva, 2003; Dixson & Rousseau, 2006; Marable, 1992; Solorzano, 1997; Takaki, 1993; Woodson, 1913/1968).

A 21st-century analysis of race would reveal that it remains the elephant in the room, the issue that no one wants to acknowledge. As much as we attempt to ignore it, look around it, over and under it, race remains a constant reality in these United States. Given the complexity of race, the challenges it poses, and our national fixation on it, it has become our ticking time bomb, set to explode on a moment’s notice. Race is our historical lightning rod, equipped with centuries-old baggage, uninformed epistemologies, and sordid axioms that, at its mere mention, quickly can divide people who are seemingly united citizens. Edelman (2008) says that throughout America’s history race has been a noose choking our capacity to soar.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.