Opinion | The Real Structural Racism
Is it OK that black eighth graders aren’t proficient in math and reading?
www.wsj.com
Ignore much of what you read in the linked article for a moment and simply focus on the test scores. Blacks, tested at the 8th grade level, score abysmally, regardless of how much money is spent. Is it the school's fault? The teachers' unions? The mayors? None of the foregoing.
Given the well-documented difference in IQ between African Americans and the General Population, and given the easily observable cultural phenomenon that Blacks do not generally value formal education has highly as the General Population, one would only expect about a third of Blacks to score up to the arithmetic mean on any test of academic performance, no matter when it is administered (i.e., what grade level). They are a little worse than that, but within reasonable expectations. The questions to be answered are, (1) how can education be structured to obtain the best possible results for African American students, and (2) at what levels can we deem that "success" has occurred?
American educators rail about the "achievement gap," as though, if everything in a given school system were done properly there would be no measurable difference between Black scores and the scores for everyone else. This is preposterous. It will never happen without "cooking the books." But don't exclude that possibility where Leftists are concerned. Witness the recent movements to eliminate the SAT and ACT tests for college admissions. Why do "they" want to do that? Certainly, these tests have been refined for GENERATIONS and indicate exactly what the creators intend it to create - a student's aptitude and potential for higher learning. Leftists want to discount the ACT and SAT because they know, deep down, that those tests will ALWAYS show deficiencies in their pet ethnic groups, so it is better to cover your eyes than to actually face the facts.
The pedagogical solution - the best results - will come from gathering groups of students by IQ, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or any other factor. When grouped by IQ, each grouping will be able to learn at their own speed and to their own extent. In this way, those Blacks with the greatest potential will thrive, rather than be grouped with their racial peers who mock and deride them for their success in academics. Those with the least academic potential can be educated in a different direction; we all have intrinsic worth and can contribute regardless.
I have spoken.
