Introduction
Social inequalities are a common trend within the education system. Some students are considered better in academics than others based on various assumptions that have been asserted by different researchers concerning the intelligence of diverse people. One of the compelling assumptions that many in the education system place much weight on is the fact that cultural backgrounds and living standards influence the success of a student in class greatly. For a long time, this assumption has proved true, but the certainty of the matter has not yet been established. This essay provides a discussion of social inequality in education.
Body
Payne, a renowned scholar, has published many materials propagating this claim. The abovementioned assumption makes teachers treat children from cultures that are considered inferior different than the rest of the students, thus affecting their results. Therefore, the failure of some students and the success of others do not prove that culture has a significant impact on the intelligence of a person. All that these results prove is that teachers and education policy makers have embraced the assertion that some students are better than others, and that affects how they disseminate information to such groups.
Redeaux, a young teacher handling black students, presents a very compelling claim against the assertion that black students are weak educationally. Redeaux being a black herself has a better understanding of the stereotype about different cultures and how it affects the wellbeing of students. The current education system focuses on making students view life from a focal point rather than allowing the students be themselves. Such stereotype discrimination affects the psychological ability of the students, thus leading to poor results. The fact that Redeaux being a black student succeeded in education is a clear indication that culture does not influence the success of a child, and it is time teachers and other people involved in education dropped discrimination to allow students exploit their academic potential. Redeaux urges the education policy makers to go back to the core purpose of education, which is to enlighten the society, rather than fixing the broken as they perceive them. Children and young people tend to believe what others say. Therefore, changing the language teachers use in the classroom will help reduce social inequalities in schools and, finally, in the society.
Ayers, on the other hand, in trying to approach and resolve the issue of inequality in education argues that, other than trying to make people fit a certain system, education should be focused on embracing the diversities of life. The United States stands for democracy; therefore, the same democracy should be extended in schools where students are embraced the way they are rather than trying to fix them. People have different talents, and not everyone’s success lies in education: some people can only succeed in sports, entrepreneurship or physical activities (Ayers, 2008). The school curriculum should be revised in a way that embraces all these diverse need of students. Additionally, the success of a student in education should not be measured with tests and exams but by how the students have been able to exploit their strengths and deal with their weaknesses.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the education system must change its focus on social differences and embrace different categories of students. This can be attained through changing the perspective of teachers about certain social groups in the society. If teachers viewed all students as equals and in need of the same education standards, poor results related to certain groups would be a thing of the past.