Case Study 5
Axe 2
Objet d'étude 3
Affirmative Action: better for everyone?
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Work as student journalists!
You're a group of students working for your Ivy League college newspaper. You want to launch a campaign in response to the recent lack of racial diversity on your campus, following the Supreme Court's decision to end Affirmative Action.In your WhatsApp group chat, you discuss your motivations and possible actions to address the issue of diversity and inclusion in colleges.
Harvard Students at a rally in favor of Affirmative Action, July 2023.
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1Getting into college
Prospective students take a guided tour of Columbia University, NYC, August 2023.
Vidéo associée
From 0:00 to 2:19
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Timeline of key moments for Affirmative Action.
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Step 1
1
In your opinion, what motivates future students to study at Columbia University?
2
Watch the beginning of the video and take notes on the day being described and how the students feel about it.
3
Focus on the main interviewee, Michael Wang. Identify the action he decided to take and his motivations for doing so.
4
Take notes in order to be able to explain what Affirmative Action means.
Action!
Your next editorial meeting is scheduled for next week. Prepare a mind map about Affirmative Action in U.S. colleges to present to your co-journalists.
Dépliez pour dessiner le schéma
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2The new face of MIT
Electrical engineering class at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), October 2015.
Vidéo associée
From 0:00 to 1:48
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Step 2
1
Watch the video and note the numbers related
to first-year students at MIT.
2
Focus on the faculty members' point of view.
According to them, what is the impact of the
Supreme Court's decision on MIT?
3
Concentrate on the students being
interviewed. Identify their feelings regarding
racial diversity on campus.
Action!
You're a first-year student at MIT. Write an email to your friend who is studying at a different college to compare your expectations with the reality concerning diversity on campus.
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3Students speak out
ang1-cs5-step3.mp3
Kawsar Yasin, a Harvard sophomore of Uyghur descent, found
the Supreme Court decision last week banning race-conscious college
admissions gut-wrenching.
Jayson Lee, a high school sophomore of Taiwanese descent, hopes the court's decision will open the door for him and others at competitive schools. [...]
Asian Americans were at the center of the Supreme Court decision against Harvard and the University of North Carolina. In both cases, the plaintiffs said that high-achieving Asian American applicants lost out to less academically qualified students. But in the days following the court's ruling, interviews with some two dozen Asian American students revealed that for most of them – no matter their views on affirmative action – the decision was unlikely to assuage doubts about the fairness of college admissions.
“I don't think this decision brought any kind of equalizing of a playing field,” Ms. Tulsiani said. “It kind of did the opposite.” [...]
In a community as large and diverse as the Asian American community, opinions on affirmative action were wide ranging. A recent Pew Research Center poll conveyed the ambivalence of Asian Americans. Only about half of Asian Americans who had heard of affirmative action said it was a good thing; three-quarters of Asian respondents said that race or ethnicity should not be a factor in college admission decisions.
Jayson Lee, a high school sophomore of Taiwanese descent, hopes the court's decision will open the door for him and others at competitive schools. [...]
Asian Americans were at the center of the Supreme Court decision against Harvard and the University of North Carolina. In both cases, the plaintiffs said that high-achieving Asian American applicants lost out to less academically qualified students. But in the days following the court's ruling, interviews with some two dozen Asian American students revealed that for most of them – no matter their views on affirmative action – the decision was unlikely to assuage doubts about the fairness of college admissions.
“I don't think this decision brought any kind of equalizing of a playing field,” Ms. Tulsiani said. “It kind of did the opposite.” [...]
In a community as large and diverse as the Asian American community, opinions on affirmative action were wide ranging. A recent Pew Research Center poll conveyed the ambivalence of Asian Americans. Only about half of Asian Americans who had heard of affirmative action said it was a good thing; three-quarters of Asian respondents said that race or ethnicity should not be a factor in college admission decisions.
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Step 3
1
What do the poll results show about how Asian Americans view Affirmative Action?
2
Pick out quotes expressing different opinions about the Court ruling.
3
What reasons do students give for supporting or opposing the Supreme Court decision?
Action!
Send a DM (direct message) to one of the students in the article. Ask about their opinion on the Supreme Court decision and diversity in college admissions, and imagine how they would reply.
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Ready...
- List the current situation on your campus (recruitment process, statistics before and after the Supreme Court decision, etc.). Be prepared to explain the historical background of Affirmative Action.
Steady...
- Review the current consequences of the Affirmative Action ban and prepare your arguments in favor of diversity on campus. Brainstorm possible actions that could be organized.
Go!
- Discuss the situation with your fellow student journalists in your group chat to decide what action to implement.
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