Are AP-type classes racist?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a teacher in a school system that does have significant racial inequities. My observation is that the problem isn't that "AP-type classes (are) raciest" as much as it is that the pathway to get to AP classes begins with TAG selection in elementary grades, and the TAG identification process is without a doubt racist and inequitable.

This.
We keep identifying problems yet refusing to address root causes. You can’t fix inequity in HS, college, or beyond by putting on band aids.
Dumbing down AP classes helps no one. Neither does taking them away. You want more kids to be ready for AP? Fix early education.

My (white) kids went to Title I schools that were majority-minority for elementary and middle school and I agree. Two of the problems we saw -- lower-income kids move around a lot. They may not go to the same school for more than a year or two in a row, so they spend a lot of time getting re-assessed, and the principals can't assign them to classes with teachers who will be a good fit, and they don't form relationships with counselors or others who look out for them....all the things that middle-class kids from stable households experience.

Also, the teachers in Title 1 schools don't last long either, if they have the chance to move to a different school many of them move on. Our elementary school went through four principals over the 10 years my kids attended. So again, even for the kids who do stay in the neighborhood long-term, they don't have the consistency that lets people really learn their strengths and weaknesses and provide the supports and programs they need to help them.

It's always stop-and-start, and all those breaks add up. Combined with less support at home for many of them, particularly the ones whose parents have limited education, and it means they are significantly behind middle class kids by the time they get to high school just because they haven't had a consistent, intensive focus on their development from all of the adults in their lives that wealthier kids in more affluent schools experience.

My kid was at a similar elementary and I pulled him out the soonest I could.
Can’t imagine staying past elementary.

That is really just “white flight.” And it’s racist.

If White families leave, it’s white flight. If they move in/stay, it’s gentrification or you get a podcast called Nice White Parents about how you’re imposing white culture on non White kids. Can’t win.

It’s not racist to want better for your child.

Perhaps - instead of spending so much energy on judging other parents, it would be more productive and beneficial to work on providing better opportunities in a race blind manner.

[Anonymous]

Many African Americans with means also leave Title I schools as soon as they can.

It’s as much a class thing as a race thing.

Trying to shut down discussion of root causes by blaming it all on race is counterproductive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a teacher in a school system that does have significant racial inequities. My observation is that the problem isn't that "AP-type classes (are) raciest" as much as it is that the pathway to get to AP classes begins with TAG selection in elementary grades, and the TAG identification process is without a doubt racist and inequitable.

Our school district (not DMV) does not offer TAG or similar programs in elementary school. Differentiation is spotty at best. Despite a push toward equity, the district is well known nationally for disparities in outcomes between white kids and kids of color. The middle school offered an advanced math track (Math 6/7 > Algebra > Geometry), which has recently been eliminated.

Resources for the advanced math program will now be reallocated for early childhood education, targeting underserved kids. New math and literacy curricula have been adopted which supposedly raise the bar for all kids in the classroom. I believe this is the right thing to do and sincerely hope it works.

At the same time, I am so grateful that my DC was in that last group of kids admitted to the advanced math track. He despised math in elementary school, but has absolutely thrived in Algebra 7 and for the first time declares math his favorite subject. It is clear to me now he was not appropriately challenged in the earlier years.

Whatever the answer is, I hope that giving everyone the opportunity to take part in advanced material, if they desire, is part of the equation.

[Anonymous]

Now that Covid in ending, the school board needs to seriously address the lack of equity in AAP, and consider appropriate action - including the elimination of classes that won’t / don’t comply.

[Anonymous]

This post is very interesting. I went to private elementary/middle and then went to high school. I was in the IB program. I honestly never understood why I should be in it. I knew the classes were a bit tougher, but I really don't think this impacts my life today. I guess it's great I got into college, but I feel like you can get into schools fairly easily with decent grades. Idk maybe it's been a while. I'm black.

[Anonymous]

Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

OMG this is a completely racist stereotype of Asians and Indians; can you not see that??!?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

OMG this is a completely racist stereotype of Asians and Indians; can you not see that??!?

Let’s ask Harvard

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So the takeaway for all of this is that some black kids are basically doomed because unless we can take them away at birth then there's no amount of intervention that's gonna be enough to close the gap caused by poor parenting?

That sounds like an awful problem. And it sounds like the solution to that awful problem is not to dumb down education for everyone to fit the lowest performing students.

Agree.

I never understood why our government doesn’t intervene in at-risk households. Each at-risk family should get a mentor. Free parenting classes. Voucher for preschools. Mommy & me classes. Specialists who can help parents & baby thrive at home.

New poster. Ideally at risk families shouldn’t even have kids. But since kids come with benefits, it becomes a career of sorts for certain households.
The cure? Provide only in kind help to at risk kids. Including free daycare where they will hopefully encounter someone smarter than their teenage parents from multi generational poverty background.

That's eugenics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

This might be true in public school districts but not private. The only way to take an AP class at my son's private school is to get an A in the honors class before it or have the high school placement test scores in the top percentiles for the one AP course offered in 9th grade. That's it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

This might be true in public school districts but not private. The only way to take an AP class at my son's private school is to get an A in the honors class before it or have the high school placement test scores in the top percentiles for the one AP course offered in 9th grade. That's it.

And are the AP classes at your private school available to anyone who meets those academic pre-requisites?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

This might be true in public school districts but not private. The only way to take an AP class at my son's private school is to get an A in the honors class before it or have the high school placement test scores in the top percentiles for the one AP course offered in 9th grade. That's it.

And are the AP classes at your private school available to anyone who meets those academic pre-requisites?

DP. But at my kid's private you have to have an A in the honors section and get a teacher recommendation in order to take an AP class. No APs in 9th.

At my other kid's FCPS school, anyone can take an AP class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

OMG this is a completely racist stereotype of Asians and Indians; can you not see that??!?

NP - I would argue that the PP stereotyping but not being racist.

I would agree that this is not a race issue, or an early education problem, but a parental support issue in general. Kids who have parents who care about and support education tend to succeed.

The key is to teach parents of all classes to value education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Now that Covid in ending, the school board needs to seriously address the lack of equity in AAP, and consider appropriate action - including the elimination of classes that won’t / don’t comply.

Trust me, AAP is on its way out. Too many Asians and you know what that means. Adios, AAP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone can take an AP class. You don’t have to “qualify” therefore it isn’t racist that some races are over represented.

This is a parenting and home life problem, not a school problem. School can’t fix and compensate for an unstable home with uneducated parents (or just one, or maybe just grandma). That is the reason for under-representation.

Asian and Indian parents put education as a top, non-negotiable priority. Kids are made to study and do extra work and are taught early on that is the only way ahead, their parents are their coaching them along the way. Other races should take note.

This might be true in public school districts but not private. The only way to take an AP class at my son's private school is to get an A in the honors class before it or have the high school placement test scores in the top percentiles for the one AP course offered in 9th grade. That's it.

And are the AP classes at your private school available to anyone who meets those academic pre-requisites?

Yes. If they have an A as the final grade in the honors class the year before, they can take the AP class. Since course registration occurs in the spring before finals, students are recommended by teachers for AP courses. If they register for an AP course and do poorly on their final exam, they may be switched back into honors in the summer.