VOA慢速英语2021 美国学校讨论天才班的存留

US Schools Debate Gifted and Talented Programs

American school systems usually have gifted and talented programs for students that show a high level of success.

Such programs have been under much criticism in recent years. Some parents say they worsen racial segregation¹ and inequities in the country's education system.

In early October, the mayor of New York City announced plans to end the gifted and talented programs in the country's largest school system. If it goes forward, that would be a big win for groups supporting an end to similar programs from Boston, Massachusetts, to Seattle, Washington.

From the start, gifted and talented school programs drew worries they would produce an unequal education system in U.S. public schools. Many programs began as efforts to keep white families from leaving racially diverse public schools in urban areas. They were created to compete with high-performing private schools.

School leaders and parents increasingly have to deal with difficult questions over equity². They are trying to find ways to teach strong learners while continuing to help other students succeed. It is a question that is driving the debate over whether to grow gifted and talented programs or end them completely.

"I get the burn-it-down and tear-it-down mentality³, but what do we replace it with?" asked Marcia Gentry⁴. She is a professor of education and the director of the Gifted Education Research and Resource Institute at Purdue University in Indiana.

Gentry co-wrote a study two years ago that followed the racial inequities in gifted and talented programs.

The study found that U.S. schools identified 3.3 million students as gifted and talented. But an additional 3.6 million who should have also been considered gifted were not included in the programs. The study found these students were disproportionately Black, Latino and Native American.

An Associated Press study of recent federal data found that nationwide, 8.1 percent of white and 12.7 percent of Asian American children in public schools are considered gifted. But only 4.5 percent of Hispanic and 3.5 percent of Black students are identified as gifted.

Gifted and talented programs aim to provide more demanding instruction for students who feel limited with the regular program. Critics of the push to end them say it punishes successful students. They say it also cuts off a chance for students to move up, especially for those from poor families without the means to attend private schools.

In Seattle, a former top official of the school system tried to end its gifted and talented program. She blamed it for worsening school segregation. In its own recent study, Seattle public schools found only 0.9 percent of Black children had been identified as gifted, compared with 12.6 percent of its white students.

School leaders have since approved changes to the program. Students will be admitted based on their performance. They are no longer required to take a test to enter the program. The selection⁵ committee will also consider input⁶ from teachers, family and community members.

Rita Green works for the local NAACP office, a racial justice organization. She said the changes do not go far enough. She wanted the schools to help all of the city's 50,000 students, not just the most successful.

"We want the program just abolished," Green said. She added that the program is "inherently⁹ racist¹⁰."

Since the killing¹¹ of George Floyd in Minneapolis, other school systems around the U.S. are also rethinking their gifted and talented programs.

Boston schools voted to expand its program and guarantee placements for top students from poorer areas of the city. A top high school in San Francisco, California removed its entrance exam. As did a top high school in Fairfax, Virginia, where parents recently lost a legal fight to keep the test.

Most gifted and talented programs have used test scores to decide which students to admit. Some wealthier families are able to spend thousands of dollars on instruction to increase their child's scores.

Nowhere has the debate been as heated as in New York City. Mayor Bill de Blasio said last month that he would begin to end the program, calling it "exclusionary¹²."

Eric Adams, likely the city's next mayor, said he does not support ending the program.

But Gentry, the Purdue researcher, agreed that it was time to fix the equity problems of gifted and talented programs. She urged parents and school officials to do the hard work of finding a compromise.

"I know the inequities exist," Gentry said. "I worry that the easy solution is to stop doing it."

Words in This Story

talented — adj. having a special ability to do something well

segregation — n. the practice or policy of keeping people of different races, religions, etc., separate from each other

inequity — n. lack of fairness : unfair treatment

diverse — adj. made up of people or things that are different from each other

mentality — n. a particular way of thinking

disproportionate — adj. having or showing a difference that is not fair, reasonable, or expected : too large or too small in relation to something

abolish⁷ — v. to officially end or stop (something, such as a law) : to completely do away with (something)

inherent⁸ — adj. belonging to the basic nature of someone or something

score — n. the number of points that someone gets for correct answers on a test, exam, etc.

exclusive¹³ — adj. available to only one person or group

1 segregation   

n.隔离，种族隔离

参考例句：

• Many school boards found segregation a hot potato in the early 1960s.在60年代初，许多学校部门都觉得按水平分班是一个棘手的问题。
• They were tired to death of segregation and of being kicked around.他们十分厌恶种族隔离和总是被人踢来踢去。

2 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

3 mentality   

n.心理，思想，脑力

参考例句：

• He has many years'experience of the criminal mentality.他研究犯罪心理有多年经验。
• Running a business requires a very different mentality from being a salaried employee.经营企业所要求具备的心态和上班族的心态截然不同。

4 gentry   

n.绅士阶级，上层阶级

参考例句：

• Landed income was the true measure of the gentry.来自土地的收入是衡量是否士绅阶层的真正标准。
• Better be the head of the yeomanry than the tail of the gentry.宁做自由民之首，不居贵族之末。

5 selection   

n.选择，挑选，精选品，可选择的东西

参考例句：

• We left the selection of the team to the captain.我们把挑选队员的工作交给了队长。
• The shop has a fine selection of cheeses.那家商店有各种精美乳酪可供选购。

6 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

7 abolish   

vt.废除（法律、习惯等），取消

参考例句：

• Do abolish this kind of bad evil.一定要废除这种恶劣习俗。
• The weapons of war must be abolished before they abolish us.在作战武器消灭我们以前，我们应先把它消灭。

8 inherent   

adj.(in)内在的，固有的，生来就有的

参考例句：

• The desire for freedom is inherent in us all.对自由的渴望是我们所有人的天性。
• Weight is an inherent property of matter.重量是物质固有的特性。

9 inherently   

内在的，固有的

参考例句：

• There is nothing inherently improbable in the idea. 这个想法本身没什么不可能的。
• All business activities are inherently risky. 所有的商业活动本质上都有风险。

10 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

11 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

12 exclusionary   

adj.排斥（性）的，排除在外的

参考例句：

• Play not finish, uncle fidgeting, cut exclusionary. 戏未演完，叔父坐立不安，仓皇退席。 来自互联网
• Procecutor: I am asking you to recognize the absurdity of the exclusionary rule. 检察官：我是在请求您认识到这个排除规则的荒谬性。 来自互联网

13 exclusive   

adj.不包括的，不算在内的，独有的，独享的

参考例句：

• The hotel charges 6 pounds a day,exclusive of meals.这家旅馆一天收六英镑，不包括饭钱。
• This bathroom is for the President's exclusive use.这间浴室是总统专用的。