Racial stereotypes are qualities assigned to groups of people in discriminative aspects according to their racial composition. Racial stereotypes affect our daily ways of life in many different dimensions. There are stereotypes which impact positively in the lives of others while other types of stereotypes have negative influences. The nature of this social act irrespective of the influence it has on the immediate population denies individuals the capacity to act in a sole manner. It is characterized by generalization of individuals without due consideration of the varying abilities each party has. It also neglects the fact that people are talented in diverse areas of life and to varying degrees. In general, it diminishes the individualistic aspect of life. An evaluation, based on one of the negative influences racial stereotypes have in our daily lives, with cases drawn from different American settings as well as other parts of the world dominated by different races living together, demonstrates the effect of this social phenomenon and the social agents that fuel its dominance in admission policies.
Racial stereotypes have adverse implications in college and admissions in other learning institutions. The nature of this social aspect yields pressure in form of stereotype threats. This aspect of racial stereotyping has occasioned a growing concern to studies in social psychology with respect to the effects on student performance. Researchers and psychosocial analysts have conducted studies in real cases to confirm the existence of racial stereotype threat. The magnitude of the stereotype can be measured with respect to how much effect it has on the performance of the student. These facts bring out the most essential implications this social problem has for college admissions. Due to the stereotype threat, standardized test scores and high school GPAs underestimate the true potentials of a score of members of minority groups who are branded with intellectually inferior positions. In essence, it is not automatic that students with the best grades are the most intellectually gifted from the lot.
Therefore, an academic admission policy that takes into consideration the racial aspect of intellectuals does not entirely undermine the merit-based approach, but strives to achieve a more accurate admission policy. Moreover, the threat racial stereotypes impact on the educational needs and performance of students is adverse. Scores of minority students are linked to depressive grades owing to pressures from these stereotypes. The more a student experiences stereotype threat in an academic setting, the worse the student’s grades. This calls for standardization of admission policies and enactment of racial adjustments to provide a racially diverse environment. More so, this will as a result enable minority students feel that their consideration and attention is felt even by the majority. They will feel that their social needs are addressed with the intensity it deserves. For instance, African Americans report that most groups in the United States do not receive equal treatment in comparison to those offered to purely White Americans.
Therefore, an educational institution that aims at providing a level and higher performance for all its students would most likely take race into account as it formulates its admission policies. This would ensure that talents, potential and intellectual abilities of all students irrespective of racial diversity is achieved. For instance, social analysts in America propose that racial stereotypes do not affect a whole class of students but concentrates in varying domains of the same class with different degrees. Moreover, educational institutions have already established that standardized tests and high school grades are useful but not the perfect determinants of college success. This necessitates the need to revise and adjust admission policies to provide a variety of test field and determinants that would best predict a student’s college performance on or during admission.
Affirmative action is an active policy which advocates for actions to ensure that equal opportunities actually exist for both minorities and the majority. This policy involves the analysis and examination of a social situation to establish if actually equality of opportunities exists. If it does not, the policy mandates the formulation of a plan involving diversified measures implemented to eliminate the barriers to equality and make sure that an environment of equality is developed. With respect to racial stereotypes and admission policies, affirmative actions can be employed to examine the admission systems in various educational systems to establish if equal opportunities do exist for students from all races available. If this admission system does not guarantee the policy of equality, affirmative action occasions formulation of measures to be embedded in the admission prospects to ensure that future admissions take into account racial diversities.
Moreover, racial stereotypes also have adverse effects on the performance of minority groups. By affirmative action through examination and evaluation strategies may lead to the formulation of the best approach to synchronize diversified groups and ensure equal educational opportunities are enjoyed by all students. This explains why affirmative action proves to be the best approach in schools in eliminating the effects of racial stereotypes through diversity. Diversity in higher education has accrued many benefits to students and educational facilities. It has enhanced the development of heterogeneous learning environments which widens the students’ scope of learning as compared to homogenous environments. As a matter of fact, Universities with diverse student populations expose individual students to new perspectives and provide the basis for interactions with people of different backgrounds. Confronted with new ideas and beliefs, students engage in deeper and more complex learning rather than automatic learning.
Studies have established that students who experience improved racial diversity in classroom and interactions in other learning environments demonstrate the greatest improvement in intellectual motivation and engagement in academic processes. This shows that diversity helps educational institutions in advancing learning and implementing their set objectives. Moreover, diversity prepares the students for future interactions in a society made up of diverse racial groups. The U.S. Census Bureau has estimated that by the year 2050, non-Hispanic Whites will account for only 52.8% of the United States population (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000), this means that in future, diversity will be of more importance. The existence of diversity in admission policies brings about a social stability in institutions of learning which continues even after graduation in American societies. Analysts insist that objective tests do not guarantee fairness in admissions as compared to subjective tests.
It is also explained from various analytical reports that some practices might be encouraged owing to their appearance in treating everyone in equal grounds while in essence, these practices undermine the talents and interests of marginal groups within. As for the example of admissions on a school which is merit based, students have different talents in different subjects which places them either ahead or backwards depending on the subject structure of the institution’s admission requirements. Additionally, people from diverse races possess varying talents and intellectual capabilities which have brought about racism not only during admissions, but also in the process of learning. Racial discrimination in compact classes results in the development of marginal social groups, which makes the students feel discriminated because of their races. Moreover, it the social structure of the school in racial dimensions as opposed to regular interactions, which should always be the case. This results to disparity in performance which is brought about, not by the actual intellectual ability of each student in the class, but the stereotype waveform created by lack of racial diversification.
Therefore, the effect on racial stereotypes on admission policies can be viewed as a multi-dimensional social factor which has numerous aspects. It is clear though, from the explanations provided above that its consideration in admission policies has numerous benefits to the individual student, the educational institution and the society. This aspect has shaped the admission systems of numerous educational institutions in America and other states. The results of adjusting admission systems in educational institutions have created opportunities for a large number of students to study in various parts of the world without worries of discrimination. This has also seen institutions improve their performance as students are able to interact, share ideas and socialize.
The social nature of education itself makes the existence of racial stereotypes a problem for all, this is why there have been all types of debates on the use of affirmative action to reformulate admission policies to shape learning environment. However, the embedding of affirmative action in admission systems also has potential disadvantages in the social structure of schools and the process of admission. The policy disrupts the ideal social contract of the community. In the case for stereotypes, they alienate themselves from minority groups to protect their self-esteem. Affirmative action destroys this system and forces the members of that social group to mingle with the others hence lowering their self-esteem. Moreover, despite the enactment of affirmative action in admission systems and educational settings, racial discrimination is still evident in schools. The policy of equality together with the fact that people have different degrees of perception and intellectual ability explains why schools have not achieved level grounds of performance or admissions.
In conclusion, racism is indisputably an enemy of social cohesion in America and all parts of the world. However, aspects of its existence shape the development and performance of diversified systems. It has necessitated the formulation of humanitarian groups which advocate for peaceful coexistence between humans without due consideration of their racial backgrounds. Additionally, the discussed effects unveil both positive and negative impacts of the social problem. Therefore, it is recommendable to exercise affirmative action in other areas of interaction like employment zones, churches and entertainment avenues, where people of different races meet for different purposes. The general approach of racism remains negative, owing to its overall effect on the social makeup of every group. However, its control through educational seminars and sensitizations should be promoted to establish a more social platform for interracial interactions.
References
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