New research published by the National Bureau of Economic Research has found that children who were educated in small classes during their years in kindergarten through third grade were more likely to enroll in college than students who were educated in schools where the class sizes were larger. This effect was particularly pronounced for Black children. The percentage of Black children who were educated in small classrooms who went on to college was 5.8 percentage points higher than for Black children educated in larger classes.
Children educated in small classes were also found to be more likely to earn a college degree than children who were educated in larger classes during their K-3 years.
What is absolutely clear in all of the research about Blacks in education is that race matters. We need to identify the problem in the education of Black children and Blacks in college so that we are not constantly saying “This effect was particularly pronounced for Black children.” Let’s decide on a specific framework for the education of Blacks and promote that rather than joining in on the chorus of people who research Blacks and end with the inference that the inferior finally did something right. Ladson-Billings would be a start.