Race Report’s Influence Felt 40 Years Later

Legacy of Coleman study was new view of equity

Just before the Fourth of July weekend in 1966, the U.S. Office of Education quietly released a report that would shake the beliefs upon which many educators and social reformers had staked their work.

Titled “Equality of Educational Opportunity,” the mammoth, 737-page study reached the unsettling conclusion that school might not be society’s great equalizer after all.

On the eve of the 40th anniversary of that study, now better known as the Coleman Report, researchers continue to grapple with many of the same questions about how family background contributes to disparities...

This article is available to subscribers only.

To keep reading this article and more, subscribe now or start a 2-week FREE trial.

Already have an account? Please login.


Subscribe to Education Week

You Save 20% or More!

Premium Online + Print


20 issues + Online Access
$39

You Save 20%

SUBSCRIBE NOW

(See details.)

Premium Online


6 Months Online Access
$29

You Save 22%

SUBSCRIBE NOW

(See details.)


Most Popular Stories

Viewed

Emailed

Recommended

Commented