Race As A Social Construct Essay
According to the Cambridge dictionary, race is defined as “any group into which humans can be divided according to their shared physical or genetic characteristics.” It is important to know that society focuses on physical characteristics rather than the genetic makeup of these characteristics; for this reason, race exists indeed as a social construct. The impact of social construction of race can be felt in different ways including but not limited to housing, educational experiences and outcomes, employment, income, health and social relationships. It is important to note that education is also one of the many factors that are negatively affected by this construct. Apart from worrying about social relationships and inequalities, one also has to worry about the quality of education one is receiving based on the environment in which they live which is usually based on race and financial stability. In the article, Unequal Opportunity: Race and Education by Linda Darling-Hammond, she explained that “…educational outcomes for minority children are much more a function of their unequal access to key educational resources, including skilled teachers and quality curriculum, than they are a function of
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race. She also went to further say that the United States educational systems is one of the most unequal educational systems in the industrialized world. Financial allocations of funds is also often differ based on geographical area which affects not just the student’s ability to learn but also their ability to participate in extracurricular activities.
Due to difference in the allocation of funds and resources per geographical area, lots of urban schools that cannot afford to have after school programs as opposed to suburban schools. The lack of after school care and program for kids and youth often affect their families as they are forced to make shift arrangements to watch their children. Most children, however, go unsupervised as their parents have to keep working to make ends meet. When children unsupervised, they often get in trouble (this is true for most children regardless of their race and financial status). “Research indicates that children who attend high quality after-school programs have better peer relations, emotional adjustment, conflict resolution skills, grades, and behavior in school than peers who are not in after-school programs. Students who spend one to four hours per week in extracurricular activities are 49% less likely to use drugs and 37% less likely to become teen parents than students who do not participate.”
The topic of race as a social construct and its effects is a rather broad topic that has shown that multiple areas of individual’s lives are still affected by this “segregation”.
The educational systems is proof of this problem. Top performing schools are often allocated more money and resources. Suburban and urban sectors of the education system are radically different due to many reasons; one of which is resource allocation. Funds available are often awarded to top performing schools leaving many low performing school, usually located in the urban areas, to suffer. Even when educational laws are passed to help reduce and possibly eradicate these problems, they often create an inequality: due to overall low performance and impartial favors over one district or
another.
race. She also went to further say that the United States educational systems is one of the most unequal educational systems in the industrialized world. Financial allocations of funds is also often differ based on geographical area which affects not just the student’s ability to learn but also their ability to participate in extracurricular activities.
Due to difference in the allocation of funds and resources per geographical area, lots of urban schools that cannot afford to have after school programs as opposed to suburban schools. The lack of after school care and program for kids and youth often affect their families as they are forced to make shift arrangements to watch their children. Most children, however, go unsupervised as their parents have to keep working to make ends meet. When children unsupervised, they often get in trouble (this is true for most children regardless of their race and financial status). “Research indicates that children who attend high quality after-school programs have better peer relations, emotional adjustment, conflict resolution skills, grades, and behavior in school than peers who are not in after-school programs. Students who spend one to four hours per week in extracurricular activities are 49% less likely to use drugs and 37% less likely to become teen parents than students who do not participate.”
The topic of race as a social construct and its effects is a rather broad topic that has shown that multiple areas of individual’s lives are still affected by this “segregation”.
The educational systems is proof of this problem. Top performing schools are often allocated more money and resources. Suburban and urban sectors of the education system are radically different due to many reasons; one of which is resource allocation. Funds available are often awarded to top performing schools leaving many low performing school, usually located in the urban areas, to suffer. Even when educational laws are passed to help reduce and possibly eradicate these problems, they often create an inequality: due to overall low performance and impartial favors over one district or
another.