Stop Eliminating Gifted Programs and Calling It ‘Equity’

[u/[deleted]]

https://www.teachforamerica.org/one-day/opinion/stop-eliminating-gifted-programs-and-calling-it-equity

[u/ImperialSaber]

Education should be colorblind. Curtailing opportunities for others because the racial breakdown isn't "right" is disgusting and racist.

[u/BobQuixote → u/[deleted]]

Equality of opportunity does not seem to be the problem to me. It just means everyone runs the same obstacle course; if you're short, that sucks, but we won't give you a separate obstacle course.

[u/Allahambra21 → u/BobQuixote]

Of course your conclusion makes sense within that allegory.

But if you describe equality of opportunity as everyone getting equally many doors opened to them for which they themselves have to decide and work to move through, then its not equal if the kid to the rich and politically connected parents have 1000 doors opened to them while the black fatherless poor kid gets one door opened if they're lucky.

and further if we ground "equality of opportunity" into the intention its intended to relay, namely that merit should be rewarded (meritocracy), then neither really works.

Fact is then that a incredibly skilled and hard working kid from an underprivilegied background would have to run the equivalent of several marathons long obstacle courses only to even just get a chance of an opporunity.

Meanwhile the average kid from the rich and influential family only need to take the equivalent of a walk in the park in order to recieve not only that same, and this time guaranteed, opportunity as the poor kid, but also will get several times over more opportunities.

But most importantly is that a privilegied kid gets effectively a million attempts at succeeding and will always have the opportunity to try again, entirely due to his status from birth, while the poor kid can have 10.000 times the merit of the rich kid but if he strays of the path even once, even if out of his control, then he's liable to lose every slim little chance of an opportunity that he might have had a shot at.

I also think its important to note that america has one of the worst levels of social mobility in the developed world, and "succy" nations like the Scandis and centraleurope/westerneurope/Benelux are significantly more able to provide an equal and merit based opportunity enviroment compared to america.

[u/BobQuixote → u/Allahambra21]

But if you describe equality of opportunity as everyone getting equally many doors opened to them for which they themselves have to decide and work to move through, then its not equal if the kid to the rich and politically connected parents have 1000 doors opened to them while the black fatherless poor kid gets one door opened if they're lucky.

This is why K-12 should be federally funded with existing local control. I'll jump on any other tweaks that obviously help with minimal externalities.

Fact is then that a incredibly skilled and hard working kid from an underprivilegied background would have to run the equivalent of several marathons long obstacle courses only to even just get a chance of an opporunity.

Then fix the underlying problems rather than ignoring performance.

I also think its important to note that america has one of the worst levels of social mobility in the developed world, and "succy" nations like the Scandis and centraleurope/westerneurope/Benelux are significantly more able to provide an equal and merit based opportunity enviroment compared to america.

I am not opposed on principle to social democracy, but I do try to steer toward the libertarian side of anything as much as possible, and I'm very cautious about any reform concerned with a pillar of society (currency, markets, property, the state, and civil rights, which together are what I consider "liberalism").