Introduction
The education system is a social institution that helps sustain the existing class relations and reinforces the status quo. These social institutions are controlled by the ruling class, as the power of economic ownership gives the dominant class an advantage because of its ability to control the content of these institutions. It is evident that White people are the ruling class in American societies, while Black people are at the bottom of societal hierarchy. This is reflected in the structure of education, were Black students have been integrated into a system created to their detriment. The Purpose of this paper is to explore how the issue of systemic racism in the Canadian society causes significant barriers for Black academic achievement. This paper argues that the Canadian education system reproduces the oppression of Black students through the streaming process. There are many possible contributing factors: 1) History 2) Negative Racial Stereotyping 3) School Disciplinary Measures.
Historical Context
For the majority of human history individuals were taught basic life skills through their parents or communities. The skills needed for survival did not require formalized learning taught from “school”. It was the growth of capitalism in the nineteenth century that began mass compulsory education. This resulted in a public education system developing to fit the changing conditions of these times. The school system functioned to maintain the order and stability of societies classes. It was seen as the primary agent of socialization that would teach young people what is valued by the dominant culture. Change theorists support this idea, while recognizing that in society there is an unequal disproportion of power, wealth and prestige. In this society, the dominant culture is White, hence socialization in schools exclusively revolves around White supremacy. This form of systemic racism is a huge problem, causing differential treatment of Black students by teachers, administration and other students. The wealth, power and prestige in society is unequally distributed amongst Black people, causing major difficulties in the survival of the structural barriers within the education system.
Negative Racial Stereotyping
Racism today is manifested when the ideology that considers a groups ‘unchangeable’ physical attributes, is directly linked to psychological characteristic while using this basis to distinguish the superior and inferior racial groups. The perception that Blacks are genetically inferior in regards to academics is reinforced in the minds of educators. Within a North American context, current educational practices view Black students as an academic failure, as a result of this it is manifested in discriminatory treatment by teacher, administration and councillors in curriculum and school practices that purposefully exclude Black students. These perceptions are propaganda and rely heavily on racial biological determinist theory. This form of modern day racism occurs when the rules of the dominant culture are imposed on Black students in the name of integration, further insinuating that different races have unequal levels of intellectual, cultural, economic and political progress, rather than different ones. It has been proven through studies that the negative racial stereotypes teachers carry are sufficient enough to place a Black student at risk for negative school outcomes.
Canada is a western society where race continues to be a problem. Yet, in Canada, racism as a social issue continues to exist but is denied. It is known that the psychological effects of racism on the education of Black youth is greatly underestimated. This problem is made worse by the neoconservative thought that ‘racism as an explanation of Black underachievement in no longer viable’ in the twenty first century. Numerous studies have concluded the opposite and proven that racism and other forms of discrimination affect Black students learning. Black underachievement is a ‘complex social phenomenon’ that can be explained within a socio-structural and historical view. Words alone cannot describe the psychological damage, emotional pain and personal humiliation these students endure. Black youth in the school system have to deal with negative societal labelling and stereotyping of Black people. Everyday interactions are loaded with assumptions made by educators and mainstream society about the motivations, integrity and capabilities of Black students. Studies have shown that teachers steer Blacks into roles best suited to their ‘natural ability’. As we know this level of stereotyping is systematic and based on assumptions of separate racialized groups possessing distinct mental and physical abilities.
Black youth are continually disproportionately streamed into low level educational tracks as a result of both individual prejudice with systemic factors. Racial stereotypes that are held by teachers play a huge role in the streaming of these students. Instructors continue to hold racial stereotypes that affect their interactions with Black youth. For instance, Black students in Alberta have expressed concerns that instructors give students of African descent the “silent treatment” or try to discourage these students from higher education by expressing their uncertainty in the students abilities. These youth have reported that they are pressured into adult education, steered away from challenging courses and not encouraged to finish a regular academic track. The streaming phenomena has been well documented in the city of Toronto, were Black students make up thirteen percent of the student body, but only three percent of those who are labelled ‘gifted’. Versus White students who are one-third of the student population, but makeup half of the gifted program.
Streaming students into different paths is without a doubt inequitable, as certain students are rewarded with more resources and a wider range of teaching practices, and others are not. The act itself leaves Black students with low self worth and less future opportunities. The privileged treatment White students are given demonstrates the societal devaluation of Black childhood, as it showcases the lack of empathy on behalf of their instructors. This is the kind of treatment that shapes the experiences and development of Black students and their education. It is more than evident, this lack of support affects more than academic achievement. The Ontario Human Rights commission has stated before that “it is often in relation to their teachers that children begin to develop a perception of themselves and of the world around them,” making it very evident that discriminatory treatment at this age, can have a lasting hindrance on development.
School Disciplinary Measures
As everywhere in society, in schools, race plays a huge role in punishment. Not only are Black students treated as if they are less then, but they are also often treated as if they were criminals within the educational setting. The presence of many Black children and youth has remained unwelcomed in many Canadian schools. School disciplinary measures have helped mold this undesirability of Black students at school. Often treated as ‘suspects’ instead of children, this level of demonetization is extremely harmful to youth in their forming years. As a prison would, their movements are closely monitored and subjected to many corrections. Formal and informal school discipline policies are used to police and criminalize Black youth within schools. With heightened surveillance and disciplinary measures at very disproportionately high rates in comparison to their White peers. Black students are subjected to more extreme forms of disciplinary action in comparison to their White counterparts. In Durham, Ontario, an investigation by the Human Rights commission found that Black students in Ontario school system were almost eight times more likely to face discipline then White students. For youth of African descent across many Canadian cities, being suspended or expelled at extremely high rates is their harsh reality.
In the Toronto district school board, between 2015 to 2016, almost half of the students expelled were Black, and only 10 percent were White. This perfectly exemplifies the functioning of racialized punishment: actions that result in minimal punishment when committed by White youth are taken to extremes when committed by youth that are Black. Black youth are labelled trouble makers, while White students are seen as innocent. As stated in the paragraph above, research and evidence suggest that a teachers encouragement, expectation, evaluations and attitudes primarily influence students perceptions of himself as learners. In fact, a students social class, race or ethnicity is a major factor in how the teachers expectation are determined.These expulsion are the cause of miseducation. Special schools for expelled students are heavily represented by Black youth. These schools further sustain streaming as students are barely able to attain credits, further stopping their ability to progress academically and sustaining streaming.
Conclusion
Legislated as “a fundamental social good,” education is one of the fundamental foundations of Canadian society. However, it was created solely to teach young people what is valued by the dominant culture. This is not in the best interest of Blacks as they are not valued by dominant culture. Hence, schools are places where they are allowed to experience degradation, harm, and psychological violence. The Canadian education system reproduces the oppression of Black students through the streaming process. Streaming has proven to be modernized segregation, as the process uses negative racial stereotypes to categorize Black students, reducing their future opportunities. The experiences of Black children in schools are characterized by neglect, heightened surveillance, and extreme punishment. These youth are not seen or treated as children and schools are their first encounter with the organized and systematic devaluation of Blackness present in society.