Spatial Categories of Analysis and Educational Inequality in the Postwar Era

Session Submission Type: Symposium

Abstract

This panel proposes to examine spatial patterns of inequality in the history of American education, focusing on the latter twentieth century. The three papers address shared questions about spatial categories in education and their consequences for educational inequality:
what have the labels of “urban” or “suburban” meant for schools historically; what spatial boundaries – between schools, between districts, or between regions - were most meaningful to individuals working to equalize educational opportunity in the post-war U.S.; and how have educational developments at multiple levels contributed to the spatial organization of educational inequality? Utilizing a variety of methodological approaches, including statistical analysis and historical case studies, spatial patterns of educational advantage and disadvantage will be discussed in different parts of the country. In examining a range of contexts and levels of spatial distinction, the proposed panel offers a useful context for considering the question of which geographic dividing lines matter for inequality.

Sub Unit

• Division F - Historical Inquiry in Education

Chair

• Harvey A. Kantor, University of Utah

Papers

• Schools for the Suburbs: Defining Spaces for Education in a Metropolitan District - Ansley T. Erickson, Teachers College, Columbia University

• No Choice but Choice: Eliminating School District Boundaries in the Desegregation Era - Hilary Moss, Amherst College; Rachel optional Stern, Amherst College

• Education and the Changing Geo-Spatial Organization of Inequality: Secondary Attainment in the United States, 1940-1980 - John L. Rury, The University of Kansas; Argun Saatcioglu, The University of Kansas