Floridaâ„¢s Department of Education has faced a complaint over its race-based education goals which are in violation of civil rights law.
The Southern Poverty Law Center and Legal Aid Society of Floridaâ„¢s Palm Beach County together filed a separate complaint with the US Department of Justice on behalf of public school children.
The stateâ„¢s Department of Education has set Å“severely lower expectations” for black and Hispanic students, the complaint said.
The new achievement goals also Å“violate fundamental civil rights” as under the goals Asians are expected to perform best and blacks the worst, it added.
The complaint asked the federal Department of Justice to look into the standardized testing goals, noting that Florida education officials have set less ambitious test result goals for black and Hispanic students compared to that for white and Asian students.
Jerri Katzerman, deputy legal director of the Southern Poverty Law Center, says; Å“By setting lower expectations … Florida is telling these students it’s their skin color, not their hard work or perseverance that will determine their success in school.”
Robert Burns, a 14-year-old Miami-Dade student says Å“I see no reason for Florida to set lower goals for me.” He added, Å“I feel as though the color of my skin should not or will not determine my future,” according to Miami Herald Schools.
In October 2012, the state adopted reading and math goals for students which varied by race. The new plan is scheduled to go into effect at the beginning of the new school year (2013-14).
Under the plan, 90% of Asian-American students and 88% of white students will read at grade level by 2018 while this for Hispanic and black students is only 81% and 74% respectively.
AT/MA
Republished from: Press TV