理解“肯定性行动”

＂肯定性行动＂在美国是一项既有争议又不能被充分理解的政策,文章旨在从＂肯定性行动＂的含义、社会学家对其的贡献、多元文化、＂肯定性行动＂的公正性及负面性、对＂肯定性行动＂的不同态度等方面入手,分析了＂肯定性行动＂在就业及教育领域中的运行机制,讨论其在种族、性别等方面的争议所在。同时,文章从心理学及社会学角度剖析这一政策存在的必要性以及如何能取得最佳效果以实现多元文化从而维持社会正义。     

Introductory Overview to the Special Issue Critical Race Theory and Education: Recent Developments in the Field

What can critical race theory, a movement that has its roots in legal scholarship, contribute to research in education? Plenty, as it turns out. Much of the national dialogue on race relations takes place in the context of education--in continuing desegregation and affirmative action battles, in debates about bilingual education programs, and in the controversy surrounding race and ethnicity studies departments at colleges and universities. More centrally, the use of critical race theory offers a way to understand how ostensibly race-neutral structures in education--knowledge, truth, merit, objectivity, and "good education"--are in fact ways of forming and policing the racial boundaries of white supremacy and racism (Roithmayr, 1999, p. 4).     

Affirmative action effectiveness criteria in institutions of higher education

In the last decade institutions of higher education have received increasing pressure to reduce and/or eliminate any discriminatory actions. Affirmative action programs have been used by these institutions to comply with the letter of the law. Research shows, however, that these programs have not been highly successful in eliminating discrimination. This study was designed to assess the judgment policies of personnel and affirmative action officers in institutions of higher learning regarding the criteria necessary for effective affirmative action programs. The research identified 13 separate potential criteria. The results suggest attitudes and procedures were the most important criteria for effectiveness. Institution type (public versus private) and size (number of students) have no moderating effects.     

Breaking it Down: Engineering Student STEM Confidence at the Intersection of Race/Ethnicity and Gender

It is generally accepted that engineering requires a strong aptitude for mathematics and science; therefore, students’ judgments regarding their competence in these areas as well as engineering likely influence their confidence in engineering. Little is known about how self-confidence in science, mathematics, and engineering courses (STEM confidence) varies at the intersection of race/ethnicity and gender. To fill this gap, this study examined the STEM confidence of multiple groups in undergraduate engineering programs. Results indicated that although some underrepresented groups may have lower STEM confidence overall, this finding no longer applies to all groups after controlling for personal, environmental, and behavioral factors. Specifically, African-American and Hispanic men report higher average STEM confidence than White men after controlling for these associated measures. In addition, White women continue to report lower average STEM confidence than White men after controlling for these measures, while other groups do not differ from White men. Further, many elements of student perception, including student views of professors, comparisons to peers, perceptions of the field as rewarding, and desirability of chosen major are positively associated with student STEM confidence. The changing patterns of significance for race/ethnicity and gender groups between the two models indicate that personal, environmental, and behavioral factors have different relationships with STEM confidence levels for different groups. This study contributes an understanding that gender differences in STEM confidence are not indifferent to racial and ethnic context. Social-cognitive theory provides a valuable framework for studying student academic confidence and would improve future self-confidence research.     

美国高等教育扶持行动的司法争议——对“密歇根诉讼案”及意义的分析

美国联邦最高法院对"密歇根诉讼案"的判决对于美国高等教育具有重要意义。"密歇根诉讼案"是美国高校实施扶持行动计划所引发的争议与矛盾不断激化的必然结果,联邦最高法院在审理中出现了巨大的意见分歧。判决结果一方面为高校实施扶持行动设定了"个体化审查"、"严格限制"等法律原则,一方面加强了对族群倾向性教育政策的限制。美国联邦最高法院对高等教育发展具有重要影响,但由于其特殊性,这种影响的发挥也受到了限制。     

The Confluence of Race,Gender, and Class Among Community College Students: Assessing Attitudes Toward Affirmative Action in College Admissions

This article examines the attitudes of baccalaureate aspiring community college students with regard to affirmative action in college admissions. Using data from UCLA's Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Annual Freshman Year Survey, the study assessed determinants of approval or disapproval of affirmative action for 20,339 community college students. Because students in traditionally disadvantaged groups (e.g., first-generation, racial/ethnic minorities, female, and low-income) are overrepresented at the community college, critical theoretical perspectives concerning social mobility and self-interest were utilized to guide the study. The findings indicate that race/ethnicity and political views were significant predictors of affirmative action attitudes for males and females. The impact of family income and transfer intent significantly contributed to male support for abolishing affirmative action. Age yielded a significant association for support of affirmative action as reported by older African American and white students.     

平权运动误伤亚裔?——当代美国大学招生中的"种族配额"与"亚裔歧视"

平权运动对促进美国少数族裔争取教育平等权利作出了巨大的贡献,但也引起了广泛的争议和不满.近些年,美国亚裔群体认为同样作为少数族裔的他们却被平权运动所伤害,隐形的"种族配额制"成为其子女进入哈佛大学等一流大学的障碍.这引发了亚裔和哈佛大学之间就招生中是否存在歧视的控告和辩驳、亚裔群体内部就平权运动得失的讨论以及美国社会就平权运动存废的新争议.问题的实质是不同群体关于平等内涵及其实现形式的不同理解,以及由此展开的政治博弈,它彰显了美国大学招生中种族政治的复杂性.     

Positional identity and science teacher professional development

The aim of this study was to understand the positional identity of three African American secondary science teachers. Positional identity was operationally defined in terms of race, ethnicity, economic status, gender, religion, and age. Positional identity was posited to inform why diverse teachers with differing knowledge and experiences in science exist. An analysis of the findings suggested that the teachers' positional identity was defined beyond race, ethnicity and gender. Although the three science teachers came from very similar social backgrounds and were members of the same racial/ethnic group (African American), their positionality manifested itself in different ways: meanings of their life experiences; orientations to professional development; and future career goals in science education. Thus they possessed multiple positional identities that intersected in various ways which resulted in them having different perceptions of the world and subjectivities as science teachers. Implications included addressing positional identity and the creation of professional development models that are framed around incorporating teacher identity in addition to furthering teachers' personal and professional advancement within science education. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 45: 684–710, 2008     

State affirmative action bans and STEM degree completions

This paper investigates the effect of statewide affirmative action bans on minority STEM degree completions at US public four-year colleges. The number of minority students completing STEM degrees at highly selective colleges falls by 19% five years after affirmative action bans, while there is no change in the total number of students completing STEM degrees. This indicates that a nontrivial number of minority students only admitted to highly selective colleges because of affirmative action graduate in STEM during periods of race preferences in college admissions. There is no convincing evidence of effects at moderately selective colleges. These findings speak to the recent debate about the extent to which minority students admitted to top ranked colleges due to affirmative action may have higher probabilities of graduating in the sciences if they had attended lower ranked colleges. Results are presented with the caveats that changes in race reporting caused by affirmative action bans may upwardly bias estimated effects, and that estimated aggregate effects may not fully capture all student-level responses.     

STUDENT ATTITUDES TOWARD AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN COLLEGE ADMISSIONS

Using a national sample of over 277,850 collegefreshmen, this study examines attitudes towardaffirmative action in college admissions separately forfour racial/ethnic groups: whites/Caucasians,African-Americans, Asian-Americans, and Mexican-Americans. Foreach group, analyses address the extent to whichopposition to affirmative action is driven by factorssuch as self-interest, political ideology, and attitudes about race/ethnicity. Findings suggest somedifferences in how these factors operate acrossdifferent racial/ethnic groups.     

Barriers to the Success of Affirmative Consent Initiatives: An Application of the Social Ecological Model

ABSTRACT

In response to evidence that one in five college women are sexually assaulted, institutions of higher education have started adopting affirmative consent policies. Affirmative consent must be voluntarily and explicitly communicated—verbally or nonverbally. A recently published article highlighted barriers to the success of affirmative consent initiatives at the intrapersonal level. To extend this discussion, we identified barriers at each level of the Social Ecological Model. In our commentary, we discuss social determinants that are particularly relevant for campus sexual assault. There are elements in young people's micro-, meso-, exo-, and macrosystems that hinder their adoption of affirmative consent practices. We focus on gender as an aspect of the macrosystem that is a formidable barrier to the success of affirmative consent initiatives, influencing each of the other levels. Finally, we discuss how sexuality education might begin to address the social determinants of sexual assault.     

Blinded to science: gender differences in the effects of race,ethnicity, and socioeconomic status on academic and science attitudes among sixth graders

Little research has examined whether the effects of race or socioeconomic status (SES) on educational attitudes differ by gender, limiting knowledge of unique vulnerabilities occurring at the intersection of multiple social statuses. Using data from 182 sixth-graders, interactions between gender, race/ethnicity, and SES in predicting educational aspirations, persistence, views of science, and educational self-efficacy are examined. African American and Latino boys express more negative attitudes relative to (1) higher-SES boys, (2) White boys, and (3) girls of any race/ethnicity or level of SES. The intersection of multiple inequalities in education across the early life course is discussed.     

Gender,race, ethnicity,and science education in the middle grades

This article examines gender differences in science achievements and attitudes during the middle grade, when our nation's scientific pipeline begins to emerge. It uses data from a large, nationally representative sample of eighth-grade students (NELS-88). The findings show that in these grades female students do not lag behind their male classmates in science achievements tests, grades, and course enrollments. Actually, some female students have higher probabilities of enrolling in high-ability classes than males. However, female students have less positive attitudes toward science, participate in fewer relevant extracurricular activities, and aspire less often to science careers than males. Students' science attitudes and career interests vary according to students' gender as well as their racial or ethnic background. These findings emphasize the need to further examine the interrelationships between gender and race or ethnicity in our efforts to understand the processes leading to women's limited participation in science-related careers.     

Childhood adversity and adult depression among the incarcerated: Differential exposure and vulnerability by race/ethnicity and gender

The relationship between childhood adversity and adult depression is well-established but less is known about the association between childhood adversity and adult depression among the incarcerated. In this paper, we examine differential exposure and vulnerability to childhood adversity by race/ethnicity and gender on adult depression among the incarcerated in the United States. We address three research questions: does exposure to childhood adverse experiences vary by race/ethnicity and gender? Is there an association between these childhood adverse events and depression and does the strength of the association vary by the specific adverse experiences? And does vulnerability to childhood adversity vary by gender and race/ethnicity? Using the 2004 Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities (SI-SFCF), we measure four key childhood adverse events – parental/caretaker substance abuse, physical assault, having been placed in foster care, and sexual assault. We use ordinary least squares regression and a series of interaction effect analyses to examine differential exposure and vulnerability to the four childhood adverse experiences by race/ethnicity and gender. Incarcerated women are more likely to report parental substance abuse, but all inmates/prisoners are similarly vulnerable to this experience. For the other three adverse experiences measured, we find that there are important racial/ethnic and gender differences in both exposure and vulnerability. African American men and women are more vulnerable to the effects of physical and sexual victimization than White and Hispanic men and women. Women are much more likely to be exposed to sexual victimization, but men who report this experience are significantly more depressed. Hispanic women and White men and women are more likely to report foster care, but all inmates/prisoners who report foster care experiences are significantly more depressed than other inmates/prisoners, with the exception of white men. The findings indicate that there are significant differences in exposure and vulnerability to childhood adversity by race/ethnicity and gender. We conclude that in order to effectively design and implement programs to decrease the probability that childhood adversity is a risk factor for adult depression interventions must be targeted toward specific, vulnerable groups according to race/ethnicity and gender.     

The case for affirmative action in higher education

Affirmative action is under attack, and the author responds, explaining affirmative action's historical principles and purposes, dispelling its myths, and discussing why it must remain a part of higher education.     

Campus Strategic Action in the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fisher</Emphasis> Case: Organizational Stakeholder Advocacy Across the Field of Higher Education

Using a census sampling, this analysis evaluates the campus structures and practices that are predictive of a campus being affiliated with stakeholder legal advocacy regarding the Fisher Supreme Court affirmative action case of 2013. Findings reveal that a campus utilizing selective admissions operated as a sufficient, but not a necessary, requirement to prompt stakeholders to take a legal position in the case. Also, campuses that enrolled and graduated the largest percentages of nonwhite students were inclined to have stakeholders submit amicus briefs advocating support for UT-Austin and the use of race in selective college admissions.     

The Impact of Design-Based STEM Integration Curricula on Student Achievement in Engineering,Science, and Mathematics

The new science education reform documents call for integration of engineering into K-12 science classes. Engineering design and practices are new to most science teachers, meaning that implementing effective engineering instruction is likely to be challenging. This quasi-experimental study explored the influence of teacher-developed, engineering design-based science curriculum units on learning and achievement among grade 4–8 students of different races, gender, special education status, and limited English proficiency (LEP) status. Treatment and control students (n = 4450) completed pretest and posttest assessments in science, engineering, and mathematics as well as a state-mandated mathematics test. Single-level regression results for science outcomes favored the treatment for one science assessment (physical science, heat transfer), but multilevel analyses showed no significant treatment effect. We also found that engineering integration had different effects across race and gender and that teacher gender can reduce or exacerbate the gap in engineering achievement for student subgroups depending on the outcome. Other teacher factors such as the quality of engineering-focused science units and engineering instruction were predictive of student achievement in engineering. Implications for practice are discussed.     

Implementation of education that is multicultural in early childhood settings: A case study of two day-care programs

An ethnographic case study of two mainstreamed, multicultural day-care centers was conducted over a school year. Children's responses to formal and informal curricula dealing with aspects of human diversity (e.g., race, ethnicity, gender, and exceptionality) were analyzed, as were children's interaction patterns. Although both programs emphasized acceptance of individual differences, few planned activities dealt with race or cultural diversity. Programs were seen as more consistent with a human relations approach and not fully implementing education that is multicultural. The use of nonsexist language and nonbiased materials and teachers' attempts to prevent gender stereotyping were found to have positive, though limited, effects. Children at both centers appeared to accept their mainstreamed peers, with cross-ability interactions improving over the year. Issues in early childhood applications of education that is multicultural are discussed.     

The power of positioning: on the normalisation of gender,race/ethnicity,nation and class positions in a Swedish social work textbook

This article presents a feminist reading of a Swedish social work academic textbook as a case study. We use a discourse analytic approach and positioning theory, focusing on author positions through different story lines. The aim is to make visible how differences are created and positions of the author/reader normalised in terms of gender, race/ethnicity and class. The analysis illustrates how the organisation of the book privileges a particular story line by presenting gender research in a special section of the book and as a perspective. A neutral, unmarked author position is assumed, presented as a common ‘we’ by identifying ‘women researchers’ and ‘feminist’ points of departure as different. If the unmarked author/reader ‘we’ position appears desirable and morally superior, the clients’ gender, ethnicity and class are often openly discussed in relation to social problems, positioning them as ‘the other’. Finally there is also a story line of more critical and ambivalent knowledge positions.     

NEW TRIALS OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN THE TRANSFORMATION OF SOUTH AFRICAN UNIVERSITIES

This analysis explores the implications of affirmative action, in its broadest sense, in the educational sphere of a unique multicultural and multiracial society ‐‐ South Africa. It looks at more conventional approaches such as positive discrimination and preferential hiring, on the one hand, and at the process of institutional transformation, on the other. Elsewhere, discussions of affirmative action commonly dwell on institutional access and on admission. Less qualified people, distinguishable on the basis of ascribed attributes such as race, are too often perceived as having been placed in positions for which they are unprepared. Examples of affirmative action procedures undertaken in South African tertiary institutions will . be examined.