An article in the N&O reports that a study written by UNC and Duke professors and published in the American Sociological Review challenges the notion that black students initially resist advanced classes because they do not want to appear that they are “acting white.” The researchers found that the “acting quite” stigma, when it occurs, is an outgrowth of a race and class-neutral fear of being labeled a “dork” or “nerd.”
Although I was only able to read the article’s abstract (I did not have $20 plus tax), the conclusion is important.
The data suggest that school structures, rather than culture, may help explain when this stigma becomes racialized…
To some extent, the achievement gap is perpetuated by school structure. The term “structure” is important, because it is not the school “culture” that is at fault. Changing any kind of culture is very difficult, but changing a school structure could be achieved by allowing school choice, for example. Parents could choose a school where no stigma of being a “dork” or “nerd” impedes the education of their child. The fear of “acting white” could be neutralized from the beginning.
