Assignment:
Please answer the following question, beginning with a clear thesis statement that identifies the main points you are going to address in your argument, in a paper that is at least 5 pages in length.
Inexplicably, you find yourself in the midst of a conversation about schooling and achievement in the United States. A general consensus is forming around the belief that regardless of background, anyone can be a successful student if they simply work hard and take advantage of the opportunities schooling offers to everyone. To challenge this belief, you proceed to explain how schooling constructs academically successful and unsuccessful students based on racial, ethnic, class, gender, and linguistic differences. In your answer, remember to clearly define concepts and provide relevant findings from course readings to illustrate and explain your claims regarding how structural arrangements and cultural processes and practices contribute to the production of academically successful and unsuccessful students.
Readings:
1. Conundrums of Integration: Desegregation in the Context of Racialized Hierarchy
By Amanda E. Lewis, John B. Diamond
2. ‘‘I'm Not Going to Be, Like, for the AP'': English Language Learners' Limited Access to Advanced College-Preparatory Courses in High School
By Yasuko Kanno
3. The Rise of Class Culture Theory in Educational Anthropology
By DOUGLAS FOLEY
4. Tracking and High School English Learners: Limiting Opportunity to Learn
By Rebecca M. Callahan
5. Asian American Ethnic Options: How Cambodian Students Negotiate Ethnic Identities in a U.S. Urban School
By VICHET CHHUON
6. ‘‘Being'' Black and Strategizing for Excellence in a Racially Stratified Academic Hierarchy
By Carla O'Connor