Showing papers on "Elitism published in 1996"

INEQUITY IN EQUITY: How "Equity" Can Lead to Inequity for High-Potential Students

Abstract: Over the past three decades, the achievement of waves of American students with high intellectual potential has declined as a result of inequity in educational treatment. This inequity is the result of an extreme form of egalitarianism within American society and schools, which involves the pitting of equity against excellence rather than promoting both equity and excellence, anti-intellectualism, the “dumbing-down” of the curriculum, equating aptitude and achievement testing with elitism, the attraction to fads by schools, and the insistence of schools to teach all students from the same curriculum at the same level. In this article we provide recommendations for creating positive change—recommendations that emphasize excellence for all, that call for responsiveness to individual differences, and that suggest basing educational policies on well-grounded research findings in psychology and education. Educational policies that fail to take into account the vast range of individual differences among students—as do many that are currently in use—are doomed to be ineffective.

The Future of the Race

Abstract: The Future of the Race, by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Cornel West. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1996. 1% pp. $21.00, cloth. Reviewed by Larry L. Rowley, University of Virginia. With this contemporary analysis of W. E. B. DuBois's famous 1903 essay, "The Talented Tenth," two of Harvard University's premier professors of African American studies provide a timely testament to the intellectual legacy of a legendary scholar. They also provide a valuable service to those with vested interests in the startling class differentials extant within the African American community today. The purpose of this work, in the authors' words, is to "think through and critique DuBois's challenge of commitment to service that the formally educated owe to all those who have not benefitted from the expanded opportunities afforded by the gains in civil rights ... and its concomitant affirmative action" (pp. xii-xiii). Having said that, Gates and West do not proceed to examine DuBois's essay directly. Instead, they choose to delineate DuBois's themes by way of autobiography, policy analysis, and critical examination of the challenges they and other African American intellectuals face as the contemporary embodiment of the DuBoisian ideal. The book's central theme is developed around Gates and West's analysis of this difficult responsibility. The result is an effective critique of DuBois's thought and a critical examination of the role formally educated Blacks must play in alleviating the suffering of those of their people who have been shut out of the American dream. The format of the book is simple and without pretense. It opens with a preface that both explains the authors' rationale for writing it and outlines their political positions regarding the issues that have contributed to Black people's present demise, specifically, the large numbers of African Americans finding themselves at or beneath the economic poverty line. Gates and West are unequivocal in expressing their frustration with and opposition to present-day conservative public policy initiatives that seek to dismantle affirmative action and other social programs geared toward breaking the cycle of poverty. Likewise, they make clear their commitment to working with other scholars, politicians, and activists who are committed to designing programs that will help to close the economic gap that is causing such large class differentials within the African American community. The preface is followed by two essays, one by each author. Each essay seeks in its own unique manner to assess the role of today's Talented Tenth as it responds to DuBois's challenge. Gates's essay is an autobiographical account of his days as a beneficiary of affirmative action while attending Yale University in the early 1970s. Within that framework, he analyzes some of the complexities that accompany the moral responsibilities of Black leadership. The sincerity with which Gates pays homage to his African American classmates and colleagues at Yale, and his frankness in assessing the rise of his generation to the top of their professional fields, leaves the reader with a sense that the struggle to achieve that status is one worth embarking upon. Likewise, West's rigorous critique of DuBois's thinking serves as a model for objective analysis of heroes of Black American uplift. In his essay, he undertakes an historical, contextual analysis of DuBois's political and philosophical ideas, examining what he terms DuBois's "Enlightenment world-view, Victorian strategies, and American optimism" (p. 57). Although he concludes that this combination of dispositions was generative of bold social thinking and activism, he maintains that it was also responsible for the elitism and detachment that made DuBois unable to truly empathize with the everyday life and suffering of the masses of Black people. Following these two essays is an appendix containing DuBois's original 1903 essay and a reevaluation of that piece which he presented at a gathering of Sigma Pi Phi fraternity in 1948. …

Transcending the Talented Tenth: Black Leaders and American Intellectuals

Abstract: In Transcending the Talented Tenth, Joy James provocatively examines African American intellectual responses to racism and the role of elitism, sexism and anti-radicalism in black leadership politics throughout history. She begins with Du Bois' construction of "the Talented Tenth" as an elite leadership of race managers and takes us through the lives and work of radical women in the anti-lynching crusades, the civil rights and black liberation movements, as well as explores the contemporary struggles among black elites in academe.

Élitism, populism, and European politics

Abstract: In the 1990s there has been an increasingly widespread sense that the governing elites are losing touch with their peoples. leaders are no longer able to count upon the acquiescence of their citizens to which they were accustomed. The disenchantment has resulted in the loss of public support for the political institutions of both the individual European nation states and of the European Union. Taking elitism and populism as the opposite poles between which the political leaders need to steer, the contributors successively consider why there appears to have been a degeneration in the quality of elite leaders, with civil societies turning against their governments and the elite mediators between the powerless and the powerful. The agenda-setting role of the media, the rival appeals to representation and referendum, the problems encountered by political parties and organised interests, and the tensions between public demand and economic constraints are all discussed. The chapters suggest that the need to lead from the front rather than from behind remains indispensable in elitist democracies.

A Pedagogy of Privilege

Abstract: In this essay, I argue that gifted education is the flip side of the “pedagogy of the oppressed”; that it is a strategy to single out the children of the affluent for training in leadership and dom...

Dragged to Market: Being a Profession in the Postmodern World

Abstract: Under a regime of quasi-markets, UK public sector occupations are having to promote themselves as enterprising and argue their case for a share of public spending. Much of this takes place through the news media. In order to do this effectively, some kind of professional grouping is essential. The paper reviews the failure of non-probation social work to achieve a professional formation thus far. Rejecting explanations rooted in attitudes, values and gender, it argues that the core problem since the early 1970s has been the shifting nature of social services work because of central government policy changes. Now that the profile of social services tasks is more settled, it is time for social workers to abandon their reluctance to claim distinctive expertise and set about developing a more confident set of intellectual skills and thus an effective voice. In a postmodern age of sceptical consumers they need not fear elitism as they will, rather, be judged by their effectiveness.

A Critique of Critiques of Gifted Education

Abstract: The [outnal for the Education of the Gifted and its editor can be congratulated for putting together this special issue devoted to a critical review of the special educational field of educating the gifted child. The critics have taken their task seriously and have produced a series of provocative comments. This task of critiquing the education of gifted students can be seen as the ultimate argument for the constructivist view of knowledge structure. Each presentation has a different perception and grasp of this \"elephant\" of gifted education, no doubt based upon their own differing experiences and value structures. The wide range of comments here can be boiled down to several important questions:

Playing Fair: The Possibilities of Gifted Education:

Abstract: The major criticisms of gifted education from outside the field tend to come from people who are, understandably, concerned less about the effectiveness of gifted programs than about the inequities associated with them [e.g., Berg, 1980; Margolin, 1994; Weiler, 1978). Criticism from within the field, also understandably, tends to address issues of effectiveness of educational practices for the gifted population (e.g., Cox, Daniel, & Boston, 1985;Renzulli, 1977;Stanley, 1974). Internal concern about elitist practices in gifted education usually focuses on identification policies. The perspective of this article is that ineffective practices in gifted education, whether they relate to instruction or to identification'of gifted students, are necessarily inequitable. Consequently, the need to support effective practices arises not only from concern for students identified as gifted but also from concern for all students. Unfortunately, though efficacy is a necessary condition for equitable practice in the field, it is not sufficient to ensure it. A commitment to effective practices that are also equitable forms the basis of our recommendations for change in gifted education. This commitment seems particularly important in an era of increasing polarization of wealth and at a time when apologies for polarization, such as The Bell Curve (Herrnstein & Murray, 1994), draw on some of the same questionable assumptions that underlie many gifted education programs. This commitment also depends on the view that schools' primary mission ought to be to cultivate intellect. By intellect, we refer to thoughtful (principally literate) understandings through which both individuals and cultures make sense of the world. Much, though certainly not all, of the substance of intellect resides in the content and processes of academic disciplines.

Neither elitism nor egalitarianism: Gifted education as a third force in american education ∗

Abstract: This article argues that there are three traditions in American politics that have filtered into American education. The first, Hamiltonian tradition, is essentially elitist, and is based on the idea that there is an upper cognitive or other class that is intrinsically superior to other groups. Those following this tradition seek to identify a class of people in whom to concentrate the resources and power of society. The second, Jacksonian tradition, is essentially egalitarian, and is based on the idea that everyone is equal to everyone else in every way that matters. Those following this tradition seek to equalize not only opportunities, but outcomes, because everyone should be doing comparable work and making equal contributions. These two traditions have battled for dominance in American society, as the polar right and the polar left, and have largely crowded out a third, Jeffersonian tradition, which is neither elitist nor egalitarian. Those following this tradition believe in equality of opportunity ...

Transforming Sociology through Textbooks: Making the Discipline More Inclusive

Abstract: We began by discussing structural differences between professors and students. We suggested that these can be neither denied nor ignored, and ought not be magnified; such tactics can jeopardize the pedagogical task. We argued that ethical teaching presumes acknowledging inequality and meritocratic elitism. It entails making and maintaining clear distinctions between roles. In our opinion, ethical teaching begins with honesty and avoids deceptive conceptions of the student-professor relationship. It requires professors to monitor and manage their relations with students, to regulate degrees of informality, and to discriminate between friendliness and friendship. Ethical professors avoid casting students as peers because of misplaced egalitarian impulses or personal needs for popularity and approval. Ethical professors do not use students, and they guard against the damaging implications of customer-service analogies. We believe that ethical pedagogy requires us to patrol the boundaries of roles-our own and those of students. It may mean that we must instruct students in appropriate role relations. Our point is not to encourage professors to be coldly formal, indifferent, or imperiously superior in their relations with students. We do not intend to discourage the lasting relationships that sometimes occur, nor to deny that relationships can be negotiated within a variety of contexts. Our brief is not for affectless formality, but for a sensitive sociological realism. We recognize that a more reserved stance toward students affirms inequality. We are aware that individuals as self-reflexive actors can refuse to behave in ways that support hierarchy. Within meritocratic organizations, however, that endeavor strikes us as quixotic. So long as professors are obliged to rank and evaluate students, to certify their accomplishments, the relationship is inherently unequal. We think it is disingenuous to act otherwise. REFERENCE

The Dark Side of Liberalism: Elitism vs. Democracy

Abstract: Introduction: Liberalism, Democracy, and Elitism A Note on Democracy and "Mob Rule" Chapters In The History of Modern Liberalism Liberalism and Philosophy Liberalism and the Social Sciences: Weber and Durkheim American Liberalism: Durkheimian Trends American Liberalism: Weberian Trends Recent Development in Liberalism Rorty's Pragmatic Liberslism: Between Miller and Weber Liberalism and Participatory Democracy Liberal Themes Liberalism and Elitism in Perspective Liberalism, Science, and Society Liberalism, Culture, and Education Current Developments On Liberalism, Democracy, and Elitism Today On Democracy, Culture, and Education Today Bibliography Index

The Assault on Equality

Abstract: Preface Introduction The History, Biology, and Psychology of IQ A Meritocratic Social Structure A Biogenetic View of Schools and Poverty Family Matters and Moral Values Race Inequalities The Assault on Education and Affirmative Action The Political Philosophy of Elitism The Assault on Equality Appendix 1: Statistical Methods Appendix 2: The Scholarship of The Bell Curve Bibliography Index

Democratic Elitism and the Autonomy of Elites

Abstract: Commentators have been divided about the degree to which democracy can be reconciled with the existence of elites. Some have seen them as a threat to democracy; others, the “democratic elitists,” have perceived their autonomy as a necessary ingredient of a democratic polity. This article contends that it is not possible to generalize about the attitude of elites to democracy. Some of them, like the military, by virtue of their functions, have values which are unlikely to foster democracy; others have values and procedures which are congenial to the democratic ethos. Elite autonomy cannot be a meta-principle of democracy.

Crowd Psychology and the Theory of Democratic Elitism: The Contribution of William McDougall

Abstract: The social psychology of William McDougall (1871-1938) was once widely influential but now is little referenced, his own writings being eclipsed especially by Freud's few pages of commentary in Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego (1922). Indeed, in some respects his work is best forgotten. This applies particularly to his advocacy of "Nordic" superiority, but also probably extends to certain less incendiary issues like his Lamarckism and his several attempts to provide an exhaustive listing of human instincts, which now seems little more than an inventive ad hocary. At least one aspect of his work, however, the importance of which was never fully appreciated, deserves to be recalled. McDougall is entitled to be considered afounding theorist of the modem doctrine of democratic elitism. In this distinct regard, McDougall's work cannot be dismissed as antiquated. Rather, it contributes to what is still the dominant view of contemporary democracy.

Abgrenzung oder Assimilation. Überlegungen zum Wandel der deutschbaltischen Ideologien 1918-1939 anhand der "Baltischen Monatsschrift"

Abstract: Although the resettlement of the Germans from Latvia and Estonia in 1939 must principally be regarded as a flight from the expansion of Bolshevism, this decision was facilitated by the fact that until then a large number of them had had difficulties in integrating themselves into the two republics as a minority with equal rights. Besides, Germany-centred views had become more and more dominant, especially during the 1930s. Focusing on the Baltische Monatsschrift (Baltic Monthly), this article examines the ideologies of those German Baltics who increasingly oriented themselves towards Germany in the period between the wars. It can be observed that their views undergo a change, characterized by the endeavour to maintain old Baltic class values in the new situation. In the hierarchical society of the Baltic States, which continued to exist well into the 20th Century, fundamental values such as "class exclusiveness", "aspirations for autonomy", the "sense of Community", "conservatism", the notion of being the "support of civilization" and the "Christian sense of mission" were taken for granted. Under the conditions of the new republics, however, they seemed to be at risk. Retaining these values therefore demanded new ideologies which, functionally equivalent to the class thinking, would guarantee their continuation. At first glance, it may seem that an anational ideology centered around ethnic traditions came closer to the original Baltic patterns of thought than a national one. However, the closeness of older views - such as the concept of the "Eastern outpost", the (initially class-conscious) "feeling of superiority", or the notion of "rootedness" - to the contents of corresponding n a t i o n a l ideologies facilitated the smooth transition to Pan-Germanic nationalism. It seemed capable of taking over functions of the class ideology in so far as it provided a new justification for the preservation of traditional elitism, and furthermore promised the maintenance or renaissance of old values. Liberal concepts such as Paul Schiemann's theory of "the anational State", on the other hand, did not gain acceptance, because they would have resulted in the complete loss of essential Baltic values.

The elitism debate

Abstract: The publication of the "Bell Curve" by Herrnstein and Murray in 1994 provoked many critical reactions, mainly in the United States. They argue that the differences in IQ underlie social differences and class structure. Their pessimistic view of the future is that a small group of intellectual elitists will get and keep the best positions in society. According to them, "smalltown communities" could be a remedy to overcome these negative consequences of elitism. Another publication which touches upon elitism is Henry's, "In Defense of Elitism". He, however, sheds a different light on this issue. There has been an ideological struggle between the values of elitism and of egalitarianism for several decades, with the latter currently having the upper hand. He argues that there is only one logic for all societies which wish to improve, and this logic is that they need the better performers, the better experts, the better thinkers. Thus, elitism is necessary. This ongoing dicussion about the value of and need for high ability is controversial, but also helpful.

Eton Gent or Essex Man? The Conservative Parliamentary Elite

Abstract: As policies and ideology have shifted in response to social and economic change, one aspect of Conservatism apparently remained constant: the social background of the Conservative Party’s Members of Parliament (MPs). Throughout most of the twentieth century the Parliamentary Conservative Party (PCP) has been dominated by men drawn from backgrounds of social privilege, typically old boys of the most exclusive private schools in occupations associated with four main elements: the land, the military, business, and the professions. As one recent commentator has said, ‘Wealth, whether landed, industrial or commercial, or professional (almost exclusively the Bar), was the essence of the pre-1939 House’ (Criddle, 1994). Between the wars the balance shifted towards a wider elite of private school/Oxbridge educated businessmen, although 172 of the 415 Conservative MPs elected in 1935 were aristocrats by birth or marriage (Haxey, 1939). The wider accusation that this elitism undermined British social and economic progress has recently been revived (Ellis, 1994).

Intellectual history and philosophy of science

Abstract: These days few people are happy to be called ‘intellectual historians’. Intellectual history has indeed been in the doldrums since the 1960s. It has been charged with all sorts of vices: with ‘internalism’ and ‘intellectualism’, concentrating on theories and doctrines, ignoring social context, social uses and forms of association of the learned; with elitism, concentrating on great authors, great works, great canonical traditions but paying little attention to local traditions, popular culture, and the reception and criticism of works; with ‘purism’, considering the intellectual content of works as something independent of ways of writing and types of persuasion.

New challenges for a post‐Cold War Japan

Abstract: Najmul Saqib Khan was Pakistan's ambassador to Japan from 1985 to 1988. He says of Japan, “The country made a profound and lasting impact on me. The economic achievements of a resource‐poor country, the retention of cultural identity by a synthesis of tradition and modernity, and the innovativeness and communitarian values of Japanese society were genuinely impressive. Japan showed a virtually untapped potential to play a more active and independent role in the world.” Khan subsequently wrote a book that distilled the lessons that Southwest Asia could learn from Japan.’ He argued that countries undergoing modernization should shed their elitism and concentrate on attaining a high standard of capability for the average citizen. In this essay, he analyzes the challenges facing Japan in the post‐Cold War era.

Greater Discourse or Higher Superstition: Which Path for Higher Education?

Abstract: Two books published nearly three decades apart confront higher education with important questions about knowledge, communication, and community—the building blocks of the academy. Higher Superstition defends the traditional logical positivist approach to science from challenges from alternative interpretive schools that are gaining momentum throughout higher education. Academic Discourse focuses on the gap between teaching and learning at the university. Both books draw attention to the elitism and ethnocentrism that segment the academic community and restrict higher education’s contributions to society.