Hartog’s Den

by Nalin Ratnayake

I haven’t written anything but technical memos for a long time, so to get back in the zone I’m going to take a transition approach. This is an edited and expanded article that I published some time ago on another blog.

Time and time again I see articles and blog posts, mainly on liberal-leaning sites, lamenting the disparity between white males and everyone else in the workplace. I think these articles by and large miss the point. Certainly, there is a still a troubling disparity between white males and everyone else in acquiring professional positions. But I do not believe the problem lies entirely, or even mostly, in the hands of the institutions doing the hiring.

Read this entire paragraph before reacting. I suggest that perhaps not enough minorities and woman are skilled enough to be hired fairly for these positions. This *not* to promote the idea of an “innate disparity in aptitude” as Harvard President Lawrence Summers seemed to suggest so infamously some years back. Rather I would like to point the finger of blame at the root cause of so many of America’s domestic problems: a flawed and underfunded public education system.

We must remove the social bias that is built into public education to remove the social bias that will form in the mindset of the next generation. For this next generation will be the parents of the generation succeeding them, and parenting is an inextricable part of a child’s education.

I have heard countless stories from my female friends of family and teachers simply assuming (whether subconciously or not) that women do not belong in science and engineering. The general mindset seems to be, “if a woman makes it in the sciences, great; but we won’t encourage it.” This is connected to the dangerous mindset that postulates if women aren’t voluntarily going into the sciences or professional training, they must either not want to be there or they are innately incapable of doing so. It is flawed logic, but much easier to accept than a complete overhaul of the way we think about education.

With minorities on the other hand, often the problem is economic in nature. Minority communities tend to be much poorer on average than whites. Poor families cannot afford private education for their children, and are forced to send thier kids to under-funded public schools; these schools do not have the resources to provide the same education as private institutions, so minorities graduate with skills and knowledge inferior to whites. This in turn prevents them from getting high-paying positions, and the cycle continues.

I’ve said it time and time again, on every blog and general interest website I have ever had. The major domestic issues in this country could be solved, or at least alleviated, by biting the bullet and rethinking public education at a fundamental level. All other solutions only scratch the surface and delay the issue; the root of the problem is simply not addressed in programs like affirmative action and special hiring policies for women.

A national standard for students, teachers, and curriculums alike would be a start. Funding in the form of resources for failing schools and discretionary funds for achieving schools would be an excellent next step. The longer we wait, the further downward this spiral will descend, negatively affecting this country politically, socially, and economically.