Discuss the Coleman Report findings in relation to TheBell Curve by Herrnstein and Murray. What claims did each make, and what were its implications? How has sociology responded to these findings?
What will be an ideal response?
Correct answers vary but should include a description of the Coleman Report findings. The report shows that there are differences in student learning that reflect inequalities in school quality and that this quality is not related to school funding or resources. Student achievement was most related to teacher quality and family background, including the racial composition of the students attending the school. Family background was the most important predictor. Herrnstein and Murray's research argued that inequalities were mostly due to "natural" differences in intelligence in the human population rather than in systematic differences in educational opportunities. Specifically, and most controversially, they argued that innate intelligence differed by racial background. The Bell Curve research and the Coleman Report made opposite arguments about the causes of difference in educational attainment outcomes. After Herrnstein and Murray's research was published, other studies raised doubts about its conclusion. The consensus in the sociological community is that there are no grounds for arguing that innate intelligence differs along racial lines.
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The Healthy Food Financing Initiative is designed to do which of the following?
a. increase access to affordable produce b. provide financial support to retailers who increase access for urban and poor communities c. financially penalize retailers who fail to provide access to healthy food d. A & B e. A, B, & C
High income is always associated with high status and high social power.
Answer the following statement true (T) or false (F)
In Great Britain, the government sets health care policies, raises funds and controls the medical care budget, owns health care facilities, and directly employs physicians and other health care personnel. This is an example of a __________
a. universal health care system b. fee-for-service health care system c. socialized medicine system d. managed care system
The pluralist model of power relations in the United States suggests that
A. power is concentrated in the hands of a small group of military, corporate, and political leaders. B. power is held by a group of charismatic leaders. C. power is held by many competing groups that have access to government, so no single group is dominant. D. power is concentrated in the hands of a small group of military, corporate, and political leaders along with a group of highly charismatic leaders.