"The usual amount?"
Posted on 11/09/2010 10:24:07 AM PST by lbryce
An achievement gap separating black from white students has long been documented — a social divide extremely vexing to policy makers and the target of one blast of school reform after another.
But a new report focusing on black males suggests that the picture is even bleaker than generally known.
Only 12 percent of black fourth-grade boys are proficient in reading, compared with 38 percent of white boys, and only 12 percent of black eighth-grade boys are proficient in math, compared with 44 percent of white boys.
Poverty alone does not seem to explain the differences: poor white boys do just as well as African-American boys who do not live in poverty, measured by whether they qualify for subsidized school lunches.
The data was distilled from highly respected national math and reading tests, known as the National Assessment for Educational Progress, which are given to students in fourth and eighth grades, most recently in 2009. The report, “A Call for Change,” is to be released Tuesday by the Council of the Great City Schools, an advocacy group for urban public schools.
Although the outlines of the problem and many specifics have been previously reported, the group hopes that including so much of what it calls “jaw-dropping data” in one place will spark a new sense of national urgency.
“What this clearly shows is that black males who are not eligible for free and reduced-price lunch are doing no better than white males who are poor,” said Michael Casserly, executive director of the council.
The report shows that black boys on average fall behind from their earliest years.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
No, no, no. Ignore and hide the decline by dumbing the tests down so the ignorant appear to be improving.
After all, it’s much more important that our students “feel good about themselves” rather than be able to read, write clearly, and do math.
That kind of attitude is so . . . like you know . . . yesterday, dude (as our student takes another hit off his bong).
"The usual amount?"
Number of neurons per cubic centimeter of brain matter - not genetic.
It's amazing the logical contortions people will attempt when the subject is race.
It sure is. Nature is one factor in athletic ability. The other factors are practice, practice, and more practice.
There is no evidence that they are not.
This has been on ongoing ‘dilemia’ forever. The excuses have been everything from the evil white man to ‘culture’ to A,B & C. It never seems to be the people themselves however. At some point maybe that is something that ought to be considered.
There’s no solid evidence that IQ (in a healthy person who has no disability) is inherent.
Anyway, why would a conservative buy into the notion that any behavior - and academic performance is a result of behaviors (studying, investing time and effort) - is beyond the control of a perfectly healthy person? Especially considering that public schools, public libraries, etc., are available to everyone.
It’s all about lowered standards and expectations. An increasing number of black families homeschool and, like most homeschoolers, do very well.
They’re trap in inner city public schools. They need vouchers!
“The last 25 years they have done everything they could to make all kids, whites too, as stupid as possible.”
You’re right; I find the numbers for whites much more disturbing than that for blacks. We are not allowed to have any expectations of blacks, and give them meaningless degrees and diplomas to keep them in the dark about just how far behind they are, and just how hopeless their plight really is. They are victims (by choice) of the soft bigotry of lowered expectations; I wonder who “expected” that they would be any better off?
This is what the battle with teachers’ unions is all about; the sooner blacks see it as such the better off they’ll be (some are starting to wake up, and demand reform, but usually only in the absolute worst districts). I don’t like the proposed solutions in which only “urban” students get vouchers or choice, while others are stuck in failing schools with overpaid, ignorant, uneducated teachers.
“That’s part of the problem. If the truth were spoken, you would be called a racist.”
Even worse, if your a teacher/professor, and you graded them honestly (as you would a white or Asian student), you would be decried as a racist and lose your job...
“I am sure the numbers are just as low for hispanics if English is not the dominant language spoken at home.”
I very much doubt that is the case.
And, given the current society, why should they assimilate? They get all the perks of nannie government, playing victims (the race card) while snickering and rolling eyes at white people who they see as stupid for letting them get away with it. it. The athletes are a prime example.. the negro culture is ripe in those teams with a majority of negro players...or just be aware of the TV ads which show the white jerk and the brilliant negro, NEVER the other way around I have seen this for years and observed the speech used when negros are in gangs.... that isn't English. That is very crude street talk... and the worse part is that our children are hearing it in schools now and seeing it reinforced by many teachers..... that is upside down education.... going back to the jungle
“I know some teachers who work with kids in that sort of demographic, and some of those kids come from situations the awfulness of which is hair-raising — they’re doing well just to show up; proficiency in reading and math is strictly secondary to just being in a place where they can eat breakfast and not have to hide from mom’s latest “boyfriend”.”
The idea of the libs is to keep them as far away from their “parent(s)” as possible, for as much of the day as possible, costs be damned.
A friend of mine describes having young students (2nd grade) that do not know the word for “book” (although they are American, and know plenty of other words). They literally have never seen one in their home...
Hopeless
Poverty alone does not seem to explain the differences: poor white boys do just as well as African-American boys who do not live in poverty, measured by whether they qualify for subsidized school lunches... "What this clearly shows is that black males who are not eligible for free and reduced-price lunch are doing no better than white males who are poor," said Michael Casserly, executive director of the council.Gotta be the poor nutritional value of those taxpayer-funded lunches. Another way for whitey to keep them down.
“Just assign every black mother a white husband.”
Doesn’t work; I saw a documentary about this. I think it was called the Chappelle Show (and one of the funniest skits I’ve ever seen, modeled after “Trading Spouses”).
There are hundreds of studies to just that effect.
But outside of that, it's absolutely preposterous to think that the brain which is a chemical-mechanical operating organ, just like a heart, is somehow disconnected in its ability from genetics, when it's not even remotely controversial that all the other bodily structures aren't.
That everybody gets the same brain ability, yet wildly different carrying cases, one genetically determined,the other not, is absurd.
“This growing problem (unwed mothers) may be the real trojan horse leading to the downfall of a once thriving nation.”
Well, it certainly spurred welfare reform; once white girls started popping out bastards and showing up for gubmint money, that was it. I can’t tell you how many unwed mothers I know who only have one child; NJ made sure back in the 1990s that additional children didn’t mean additional money.
There are other forces at work, where many bright men (of any race) simply see marriage as a legal arrangement stacked against them; many fear they’ll end up supporting an ex-wife in their home, with a new “boyfriend”, and they’ll be effectively removed from their children’s lives. In many of these cases, the men foolishly become “accidental” unwed fathers because the female knows it will never happen any other way, and she’ll be provided for in any case (by him or Uncle Sam).
T-shirt I saw at the shore: “Why get married? Just find a nasty %&#@* and buy her a house”. Pretty funny...
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