Summary Of Equity In Education By Debra Rohn

Debra Rohn, a middle school math teacher, is the author of, “Equity in Education: The Relationship between Race, Class, and Gender in Mathematics for Diverse Learners”. She is working towards understanding the ways in which race, class, and gender impacts students’ relationship in mathematics. Her article examines the ways in which race, class, and gender have impacted the equity of mathematics education, she includes the views of several theories and ideas from post structuralism. First of all, the author points out that African American and Hispanic students have scored lower than White students on mathematics tests. This is partly due to the fact that race and discrimination have not allowed for African American students to completely partake in mathematics. Math has long been viewed as a White male field of study, which has led to the decline of African American in mathematics. The academically successful African Americans that do show interest in mathematics are often
She claims that 47.5% of White children living with a single mother head of household, are poor. 68.5% of African Americans and 70.5 of Hispanics are poor. Less than 20% of White students mothers failed to graduate high school and overall, 50% of poor children’s mothers did not finish high school. When one or both parents are away working two jobs the children are left unattended to and as a result, they are lacking the foundational skills needed to for their future education. Ultimately, a student’s race can shape their education. Many segregated minority schools offer less access to upper level math courses and often do not even offer courses beyond Algebra II. According to the critical race theory, the quality and quantity of a successful math course offers access to “computers, the internet, graphing calculators, and qualified teachers”, often which many segregated minority schools do not have access