Let controversy fuel solutions
Published 4:05 pm Wednesday, June 16, 2010
The intellectually bankrupt assertion made recently by Marysville School Board member Michael Kundu, that “there is a definitive factor played by racial genetics in intellectual achievement,” may have led to one positive outcome. It has shined a brighter light on the achievement gap — the fact that some groups of minority and low-income students have persistently lagged their peers on test scores and graduation rates.
Kundu’s comments, which gave unwarranted weight to research on race and intelligence that has been widely discredited by experts, were swiftly and appropriately condemned by his fellow board members, the Tulalip Tribes, district parents, the state chapter of the NAACP and a bipartisan group of state legislators.
He now admits he was wrong to characterize the link between race and intelligence as “definitive” and has apologized, saying that he adamantly rejects racism. He also expressed concern that the ongoing dialogue on how to close the achievement gap will be short-circuited if some views are restricted or censored.
That’s not a trivial concern. But leaders like Kundu have a responsibility to think through statements before making them. Kundu failed to do so in this case, as his quick retraction illustrates.
Effective debates must be open to controversial ideas, but when those ideas come from elected leaders, the constituents they serve expect them to have at least a shred of merit. The link Kundu drew between race and intelligence has none.
The achievement gap is a serious problem in the Marysville School District, and throughout the state and nation. The factors behind it — historical, cultural, economic, linguistic — are complicated, and solutions have been elusive. Citing genetics as part of the cause distracts from an effective search for solutions. Worse, it opens the old and lingering wounds of racism, threatening to exacerbate some of the actual historical causes of the racial achievement gap.
That mustn’t be allowed to fester. Rather, the controversy sparked by Kundu’s remarks should serve as a catalyst for a more serious, constructive discussion in the Marysville School District, and beyond, about how to close the achievement gap. It’s a challenge for the entire community, one that requires the commitment of all stakeholders.
Whether such an effort can proceed with Kundu on the school board is a question he needs to consider carefully, with the best interests of the district’s children coming first.
Either way, the achievement gap needs urgent attention. It should be discussed openly, constructively and realistically.
And with intellectual honesty.
