Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-09-11

/ Ihts IS the lost OF rive circles OF
| Meshinstoa public school intesration
tpsychol or anthropologi
Tor biologist has found any re.
search evidence to establish thu
inherent superiority or inferiority
lof either the white or Negro race
las q total group.
] I'VE know, also, that there Il
continuous discussion as to what
intelligence tests actually meas
lure. Some argue that chiefly w
measure the child's absorption
Iof white middle class culture
Other observers say that mos
Eof our tests merely measure yer.
bal competence. .
Background Factor
wherever the technical fact,
lie In this complex Of contro.
Eversy, every teacher Is aware
that academic success Of chill.
|dren correlates quite highly with
the cultural background from
which they come.
i Negro children of educated
parents from homes with cul-
ltural and economic advantages
itend to learn and achieve al
white children from such homes
do.
Negro children from city
slums tend to react in school
like white Stun children.
Children from poorly set UP
schools. white or Negro. or from
backward rural areas with mar
lginal schooling. differ little from
each other in scholastic per-
torrance"
Information Lacking
Washington school officials dc
mot know precisely how the city's
colored and white children COM
pare In ability and achievement
| Uniform tests were not giver
Ito both races until this past
school year, and 1t will take
years. according to officials. be-
fore firm statistical answers car
be obtained.
| Past Negro test statistics In
| cluded many retarded pupils
while white test results generally
excluded such pupils, which
would make the results moi
EXACTLY comparable even II the
same tests had been used.
While average colored !. @
Escores are below white /. @
averages. both white and colored
officials do not put entire stock
in these scores. Educators OF
both races who were questioned
by the writer on this point said
they believe Negro I. @. scores
may be raised as o result Of
improved education. and that
I. Q.s reflect more than native
ability.
Place Of Birth
| It is worth noting that q le48
sampling showed Negro pupils
born in Washington had higher
/. @. scores than those from
Georgia. Virginia and South
| Carolina.
What has been the result 80
far Of bringing together white
and colored pupils. with their
unequal achievement records?
School Supt. Hobart M. Corn
ing q few weeks ago stated that
high standards have been MAN.
| tanned.
| Deputy Supt. Norman J. Mel
son, who has been given specific
responsibility for overseeing the
school systems educational re-
Organization. told this writer:
There Is no objective evil
dence that standards have suf-
fered or any children have been
slowed down because Of integra-
ton"
First Years Work
The writer questioned many
principals and teachers on this
point. Most agreed with Mr..
Nelson's view, as far as the past
year Is concerned. Many, how
ever. expressed uncertainty
about the future.
Achievement in the past school
year, according to ample testi-
mony, was not lopsided. Good
work BY many children Of both
races was reported.
Some colored students at
newly integrated schools fully
measured up to white students.
At Roosevelt High School and
Taft Junior High, former all
white schools with good academic
records. both races were repre-
sented on last June's honor rolls.
One colored Taft student, who
made all As. said his classes
were easier than at the school
he attended last year. although
that happened to be q private
school.
At Mckinley High School,
where Negro newcomers didn't
do as well, Principal Charles e
Bish said he did not get q rep
resentative cross-section Of col
ored students. But he said he
expects better results this COM
ing winter.
Record ut Dunbar
DR.. Corning. pointing up the
fact that even under segregation
outstanding achievement could
be found on both sides Of the
school system, recently released
figures showing that colored
Dunbar High School sent q
greater portion Of its 1853 grad
yates to college than any other
Washington high school. Dun
bars ratio was sos per cent,
compared to 77.6 per cent for
Woodrow Wilson, the highest
ranking white school. Dunbar
also ranked tops a year ago.
Dunbar. recently labeled by a
national Negro magazine "Arner-
ica's best Negro high school, !"