Discussion Question
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Contemporary education reforms study on the continuous black-white achievement gap in the public schools, in America. In the book, “Multiplication is meant for White People”: Raising Expectations for Other people’s Children, Lisa Delpit focuses on these reforms and informs educators that education gap does not exist at birth.. Through her experience in the field and as a mother, she gives strategies for raising the expectations of minority or underperforming children especially the blacks. The book has many references of elementary to university success stories of mentioned practitioners.

In part one of the book, she denies common but flawed assumptions made about the gap of racial achievement. The differences in achievement that arise in school are due to poverty. Delpit, however, argues that minority children and those from poor backgrounds are usually not taught in urban classrooms. Many receive a small curriculum such as coloring and seat work. To reverse this trend, teacher should change their beliefs on the children’s potential and capacities. The teachers should also acknowledge and focus on the children’s brilliance and not on their deficiencies. They should also constantly remind them of their rich cultural and intellectual backgrounds. Upon sharing these principles, Delpit focuses on how these strategies can be used in practice.

The second and third parts of the book focus on teaching students who are in elementary school and adolescents who are in the middle and high schools. Illustrative situations of instructions for classrooms involve African and African American literature and history. Mathematical concepts can be connected with issues faced by the community and then related to the home culture of students.

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