ABSTRACT
This chapter describes sociological perspectives on race and education, including some of the ways whiteness in education manifests itself. It explores the ways student identities are racialized and how such educational identities are linked to race and the history of minority education in the United States (US). The chapter discusses on issues, including bilingual education programs, funding disparities, the achievement gap, tracking, and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). It looks at the effect of the NCLB education reform bill on racial minority children. The objectives of NCLB were to raise student achievement levels, close the achievement gap, improve student test scores, provide parents with more educational choices, and guarantee better-qualified teachers in every classroom. While the US led the world in public education, the historical record shows that not all children have been considered equally worthy of the investment.
