In an ideal world, teacher preparation programs would be filled only by the very best candidates from diverse backgrounds (“New Data Demonstrate That Teacher Preparation Programs Can Be Both Selective and Diverse,” National Council on Teacher Quality, Feb. 16). But when push comes to shove, you can be sure that diversity will win out over all else.
We already see that in the inordinate emphasis placed on race. Teacher preparation programs are not color blind. The usual rationale is that students of color achieve far greater when their teachers are of the same race. I think that generalization refers only to Black and Hispanic students. Asian students consistently outperform all other students regardless of their teachers’ race.
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