Archived: The Educational System in the United States: Case Study Findings

Ethnicity and Access to Equal
Education
Many of the parents and educators whom we interviewed indicated that the racial
gap in achievement in their communities was wide and a source of great friction
and concern. In fact, the gap between racial groups in academic achievement was
a common theme in our discussions about individual differences, and, in spite of
its sensitivity; many talked frankly with us about this issue. At several schools,
administrators indicated that there was a difference in achievement in math and
science among racial groups.
In all of the integrated schools that we visited, minorities were underrepresented
in high-level math and science courses. At King Middle School, where a majority
of students were African-American, one observer counted only two African-Amer-
ican students in the two high-level math classes for eighth-grade students. Similar
proportions were reported in other integrated schools in all three research sites.
Race and Tracking
The existence of racial differences in academic achievement was perceived by
some respondents as a source of tension in schools with heterogeneous student
bodies. One perceived source of tension between administrators and minority par-
ents was tracking practices, which some parents viewed as discriminatory. The
comments of a math teacher at Hamilton High School illustrate this point:
There is certainly a tension in the community over the gap between the low-
ability and high-ability students, which tends to fall along racial lines, and
everyone knows it. It’s glaringly obvious to everybody. I have 1 minority kid
of my 20 calculus kids, and my low-ability classes are primarily black. Everyone
knows that. And that’s a constant source of pain, I think, for all of us. And
we try to do more. We have special programs to ameliorate that. We don’t

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do very well. We do it in fits and starts and it is not working. It’s awfully
tough.
According to an administrator, one proposed solution to racial disparity in aca-
demic achievement has been the reduction of high-level courses in math and
science. One example is King Middle School, which eliminated high-level courses
in all subjects, except math. According to two parents, the administration at King,
led by an African-American educator opposed to tracking, was trying to reduce
the numbers of students in the high-level math class.