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12.1: The Color of Knowledge

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    324961
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    This chapter examines the complex, systemic relationship between race, ethnicity, and educational inequality in the United States. The education system is not a neutral meritocracy but a central institution through which racial hierarchies are reproduced and contested. Moving beyond simple narratives of achievement gaps, the analysis employs core sociological frameworks—including structural racism, racial formation theory, and intersectionality—to dissect how historical legacies, institutional practices, and contemporary politics create and sustain disparate educational experiences and outcomes for different racialized groups. By focusing on the distinct yet interconnected realities of Latinxs, African Americans, Asian Americans, and Indigenous peoples, this chapter reveals a landscape of persistent inequity in funding, curriculum, discipline, and access, while also highlighting sites of resistance, reform, and the enduring struggle for educational justice. The evidence demonstrates that race remains a “master category” (Allen et al. n.d.) that profoundly shapes who gets taught, what they learn, and the futures available to them.


    12.1: The Color of Knowledge is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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