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Full-Text Articles in Education

Affirming The Purpose Of Affirmative Action: Understanding A Policy Of The Past To Move Toward A More Informed Future, Meagan Schantz Oct 2019

Affirming The Purpose Of Affirmative Action: Understanding A Policy Of The Past To Move Toward A More Informed Future, Meagan Schantz

Sacred Heart University Scholar

The application of affirmative action policies to university admissions is a topic of ongoing controversy. This article (ex)amines the debate through an interdisciplinary lens, drawing on the fields of history, law, and ethics. The first section provides historical background on affirmative action policies, tracing how they expanded from the employment sector into higher education. Next examined are legal challenges to affirmative action in admissions, with a focus on the pivotal 1978 Bakke case. The ethical implications of affirmative action are next considered, in particular the question of how affirmative action can be applied in a way that supports disenfranchised groups …


Use Of Academic Resources Among Different Socioeconomic Classes, Kristin Zimmerman Oct 2017

Use Of Academic Resources Among Different Socioeconomic Classes, Kristin Zimmerman

Sacred Heart University Scholar

Access to academic resources is influenced by socioeconomic status. Based on Bourdieu’s concept of economic and cultural capital and Lareau’s theory of social inequality, it is hypothesized that students from high socioeconomic status would access academic resources at a significantly higher rate. This hypothesis was evaluated in a survey of 120 college students. Basic hypothesis testing showed no significant differences. Advanced hypothesis testing, however, found a significant difference for males and undergraduate seniors. The results suggest a trend that students from lower socioeconomic families access academic resources at a higher rate than students from higher socioeconomic families. A more diverse …