Review of Stuck in the Shallow End: Education, Race, and Computing (Hardcover)

This book is a germinal work for anyone who cares about the critical intersections of education, race, and computing. It is shocking and sad and uplifting and it is essential reading for educators, administrators, parents, community leaders, policy makers, and anyone who cares about the future. Margolis and her team show that when it comes to education and computing, the emperor has no clothes. Schools may be filled with shiny new machines but this is no guarantee that students are learning the high level critical thinking skills they require. The writers also lay bare a pervasive and systemic racism that virtually guarantees that even the best and brightest minority students receive nothing more than rudimentary point and click computing education, severely diminishing their abilities to succeed at the post secondary level and to thrive in the increasingly technological world in which we live. Set all of this in a bureaucratic quagmire where actually educating the students (rather than just managing them) is a near impossibility and one begins to feel as though this is a hopeless situation. But this is where Stuck in the Shallow End actually triumphs. In the midst of grim reality it offers hope, showing how researchers, teachers, and administrators can work together to acknowledge and overcome the ingrained inequalities that keep so many of our students from achieving their full potential. And it should also be mentioned that this is not just a thoughtful book, it is also extremely well-written and accessible, even to the most dedicated non-techie.



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Review of Black Wealth/ White Wealth: A New Perspective on Racial Inequality (Hardcover)

This book is a fascinating study of the differences between the wealth held by Blacks and Whites in the United States.A historical perspective is provided, yet the book makes clear how the momentum of past actions continue though the present.It was this facet of the book that provided the greatest emotional impact.The authors did an excellent job of stressing the differential effects of income and wealth, and how wealth is by far the better measure for examining economic well-being.The data was broken down and explained according to education, income, housing, and many other variables.Case studies helped to put poignant "faces" on the facts to show how Blacks have been impacted by the differing conditions that they experience.

While it is not hard to find examples to the contrary, as I was reading this book, I noticed a growing sense of discomfort with the frequency with which the two races were discussed and compared monolithically.It is not difficult to view one race as victim and the other as oppressor within a historical perspective, but I found myself wanting to believe that it is individuals and groups in the present who decide whether to overcome adversities and utilize opportunities.Unfortunately, this book shows how much further the United States must go to achieve equal opportunities of economic mobility.

Published in 1995, the data within this book is now roughly ten years old.Studies published since then indicate that any changes over the last decade have been subtle at best.This book continues to describe conditions that continue to be both important and relevant.I have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone, regardless of color.



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