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This blog post, from Dr. Patricia Gándara, LPI Senior Fellow and Director of the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles, is part of the Learning Policy Institute series, Education and the Path to Equity. Dr. Gándara discusses the changing demographics of immigrant students and how they’ve been impacted by increased immigration enforcement practices. She also argues for reframing how we think about immigrant students to focus on their assets, which “prime them to be the very best learners in our schools.”
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Fifty years ago, the Kerner Commission issued a seminal report on racial division and disparities in the United States. With this blog by Learning Policy Institute (LPI) President Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond, LPI launched a new blog series, Education and the Path to Equity. With it, we commemorate the release of the Kerner report and examine the persistent struggle to provide an equitable education for each and every student.
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In 1967, President Lyndon Johnson established the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (also known as the Kerner Commission) to examine racial division and disparities in the United States. In 1968, the Kerner Commission released a report concluding that the nation was “moving toward two societies, one black, one white—separate and unequal.” Without major social changes, the Commission warned, the U.S. faced a “system of apartheid” in its major cities. In 2018, 50 years after the report was issued, that prediction characterizes most of our large urban areas, where intensifying segregation and concentrated poverty have collided with disparities in school funding to reinforce educational inequality.
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On September 5, President Trump announced his plan to repeal the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Since it was implemented, the DACA program has ensured that nearly 800,000 children of immigrants—many of whom have no recollection of any country other than the U.S.—can safely attend school, earn degrees, and become contributing members of the country in which they were raised.
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We at the Learning Policy Institute denounce the hatred that motivated recent events, while we mourn for those engaged in peaceful protest who were hurt by the senseless violence and for Heather Heyer, who lost her life. And we remember with respect and deep gratitude the many others over hundreds of years who courageously stood and often gave their lives in the cause of civil rights and social justice.
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Since our November 8th election, educators across the country have been stunned by the increase in racial slurs, bullying, and graffiti featuring swastikas and hate speech on campuses, emulating what children saw and heard in the presidential campaign. While deeply disturbing, the explicitness and widespread public eruption of hate speech of all kinds gives us a direct opportunity to create a curriculum of civility and caring, and to unseat the tacit bigotry that is often under the surface in schools.
Effective school design can support the whole child by providing high-quality academic learning, promoting strong interpersonal relationships, and offering authentic and culturally sustaining instruction.
Evidence shows that adequate and equitable financing of public schools improves a range of outcomes for all students, yet disparities in school funding shortchange many children in the United States.
Research shows that the use of restorative practices improves achievement, reduces disciplinary and achievement gaps, and supports students’ mental health while making schools safer.
Inclusive, well-resourced, high-quality schools that ensure all children have opportunities to learn and thrive are necessary to overcome historical and contemporary social and educational inequities.
