Many arguments as to why poor children of color do not succeed as well as White middle class peers is speculation by judgmental people. In “Pushing Past the Achievement Gap: An Essay on the Language of Deficit,” Ladson-Billings discusses some of the assumptions naïve people make about “at risk” students. For example, some people believe that, “these children are not ready” to begin school, and they cannot attend because they are not intelligent and educated enough (Ladson-Billings, 2007). Even if children are not prepared for school, they cannot be expected to just sit at home and do nothing as they fall further and further behind while their peers attend class. School is the perfect opportunity to get students caught up, no matter how far behind they
Many arguments as to why poor children of color do not succeed as well as White middle class peers is speculation by judgmental people. In “Pushing Past the Achievement Gap: An Essay on the Language of Deficit,” Ladson-Billings discusses some of the assumptions naïve people make about “at risk” students. For example, some people believe that, “these children are not ready” to begin school, and they cannot attend because they are not intelligent and educated enough (Ladson-Billings, 2007). Even if children are not prepared for school, they cannot be expected to just sit at home and do nothing as they fall further and further behind while their peers attend class. School is the perfect opportunity to get students caught up, no matter how far behind they