Disparities exist in U.S. schools (Martinsvillebulletin - May 5, 2014) #Harlem Education News: Teachers College, Columbia University EXCERPT: STEM is the buzzword in education these days. Education in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math is considered critical for students to succeed in the global marketplace. The [U.S. Department of Education] found that there was a “significant lack of access” to core classes such as algebra, geometry, biology, and chemistry for many students, especially minorities. “A quarter of high schools with the highest percentage of black and Latino students do not offer Algebra II; a third of these schools do not offer chemistry,” the department said. Only a quarter of black and Latino students were enrolled in an Advanced Placement class, which allows high school students to earn college credit, and fewer than one in five got a high enough score generally necessary to get college credit. Even as black and Latino students represent 40 percent of the enrollment in schools offering gifted and talented programs, they represent only a quarter of the students in their schools enrolled in them. Christopher Emdin, a professor of science education at Teachers College, Columbia University, said if a school doesn’t offer advanced math and science classes, students are told they are not expected to take those classes. “These inequities in the availability of science and math classes show young people that not much is expected of them,” Emdin said.
Posted on: Sun, 11 May 2014 17:26:33 +0000
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