Affirmative actions are civic and political strategies aiming at reducing inequality among different identities (black people and white people, women and men, non-heterosexual people and heterosexual people, etc). These actions consist of giving marginalized groups an opportunity to overcome social barriers due to discrimination. Quota laws, which provide special access to education and political representation, are examples of affirmative actions.
Using the following resources, teachers can start a conversation on affirmative actions and delve into the difference between equality and equity.
Harvard University releases class lectures and class discussions about a variety of ethic matters. One of these classes has to do with affirmative action policies. The lecturer usually starts by providing an example of the issue to be addressed, and afterwards, students start giving arguments against or in favor. Also, the lecturer summarizes the arguments presented on the topic and a conclusion.
Teachers can use the video on Affirmative Action to introduce this topic. He or she can stop the video to have students discuss or respond to the arguments Harvard students say (and actually have their own students realize that Harvard students are not smarter than they are). Given the fact that all the content in the video is in English, it’s recommend to use this video with students that have a good level of English. Otherwise, the teacher will need to select fragments of the video and do the appropriate scaffolding so the content is accessible to students (pre-while and post listening activities are a way to guarantee this). |
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The use of race as a factor in the college admissions process has been, and continues to be, a hotly debated topic.
This article provides two perspectives, one of support and another of criticism of affirmative actions, specifically referring to this issue of race in the colleges and universities of the United States of America. In addition, the article also makes an overview of what refers to affirmative actions and what they mean and represent, besides that it also includes a small section explaining the history of affirmative actions and its background in the country. Clearly, teachers can have a fairly meaningful debate on this topic, dividing their class into two groups. The idea would be for each group to adopt a position, either supportive or critical, to carry out the debate. In this way, students can foster their critical thinking, and can improve their communication skills. Before starting the debate as such, the teacher, from a neutral position, must establish the parameters and aspects that students must take into consideration so that not only the structure of the debate is well developed, but also the content of it is develop successfully. Students must take into account the following aspects:
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OTHER RESOURCES FOR FURTHER RESEARCH
Compiled by: Brayan Ramos Ureña and William Andres Cordoba Correal
- Rubin, S. Brown vs Board of Education: A fight for Simple Justice.
- Separate is never equal reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW6jzzIwAQo
- Mellody Hobson: ¿Ciegos frente al color o valientes frente al color? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKtALHe3Y9Q
- Affirmative Action. Khan Academy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0sUJVxSXlk
- Malena Pichot y Martin Rechimuzzi critican la editorial de La Nación en contra de la Paridad De Género: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srcfOMYLIk8
- Momentos sexistas en la política argentina: Paridad de género - Diana Maffía: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=basFPhdRi_E
- Memmott, M (2012). Supreme Court To Hear Affirmative Action Case That Could Be Campaign Issue. Retrived from: https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2012/02/21/147191033/supreme-court-to-hear-affirmative-action-case-that-could-be-campaign-issue
- Schmidt, P. (2011). Federal Appeals Court Hands Setback to Foes of Race-Conscious Admissions. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: https://www.chronicle.com/article/Federal-Appeals-Court-Hands/127957?otd=Y2xpY2t0aHJ1Ojo6c293aWRnZXQ6OjpjaGFubmVsOmdvdmVybm1lbnQsYXJ0aWNsZTphcHBlYWxzLWNvdXJ0LXVwaG9sZHMtcmFjZS1jb25zY2lvdXMtYWRtaXNzaW9ucy1hdC11LW9mLXRleGFzOjo6Y2hhbm5lbDpnb3Zlcm5tZW50LGFydGljbGU6ZmVkZXJhbC1hcHBlYWxzLWNvdXJ0LWhhbmRzLXNldGJhY2stdG8tZm9lcy1vZi1yYWNlLWNvbnNjaW91cy1hZG1pc3Npb25z
- Brown, R. (2011). U.S. Appeals Court Overturns Michigan Ban on Affirmative Action at Public Colleges. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: https://www.chronicle.com/article/US-Appeals-Court-Overturns/128127
- Schmidt, P. (2011). Defenders of Affirmative Action Take Aim at California Ban to Derail Similar Measures in Other States . The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from: https://www.chronicle.com/article/Defenders-of-Affirmative/64210