{"id":11559602,"date":"2025-07-15T15:30:50","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T19:30:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/?p=11559602"},"modified":"2025-07-15T12:26:59","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T16:26:59","slug":"armstrong-williams-the-cruelty-of-lowering-the-bar-in-the-name-of-equity-staff-commentary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/15\/armstrong-williams-the-cruelty-of-lowering-the-bar-in-the-name-of-equity-staff-commentary\/","title":{"rendered":"Armstrong Williams: The cruelty of lowering the bar in the name of equity | STAFF COMMENTARY"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the quiet corridors of the San Francisco Unified School District, a dangerous experiment in educational equity was launched \u2014 and then quickly rescinded<\/a> under the weight of public scrutiny. Known as \u201cGrading for Equity,\u201d the district proposed removing homework and attendance as factors in students\u2019 final grades, allowing repeated attempts at assessments and altering grading scales so that scores as low as 41% could still earn a passing mark. The rationale? To make the grading process \u201cmore equitable\u201d for disadvantaged students.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s be absolutely clear: This is not equity. This is academic negligence. And worse, it is a veiled form of discrimination masquerading as compassion.<\/p>\n

Policies like these embody what President George W. Bush once rightly condemned as \u201cthe soft bigotry of low expectations.\u201d The idea that poor children \u2014 especially poor children of color \u2014 cannot be held to rigorous academic standards is not only patronizing, it is profoundly unjust. It suggests that these students are incapable of discipline, effort or achievement \u2014 and therefore must be coddled rather than challenged.<\/p>\n

As someone who has spent decades working with underserved communities, I can tell you this: These kids don\u2019t need less structure, fewer expectations or an escape hatch from hard work. What they need is a system that believes in their potential, holds them to the same high standards as everyone else and gives them the tools to meet those standards.<\/p>\n

Removing homework and attendance from grades sends a clear and harmful message: Effort doesn\u2019t matter, showing up is optional and mediocrity is acceptable. How exactly does that prepare any student for the real world? In what universe does an employer say, \u201cDon\u2019t worry about coming in, we won\u2019t hold it against you\u201d? Or a college professor say, \u201cForget the assignments, we\u2019ll just go off your final exam\u201d?<\/p>\n

This kind of thinking may start in San Francisco, but if left unchallenged, it will spread like a virus through school districts across America. We are normalizing failure under the seductive language of equity, and it is precisely the students we claim to help who will suffer most.<\/p>\n

We should ask ourselves: Who benefits from this policy? Certainly not the working-class Black or Latino student who sees school as their best shot at social mobility. Certainly not the single mother who teaches her child the value of persistence and personal responsibility. And certainly not the teachers, many of whom \u2014 quietly but firmly \u2014 pushed back against this proposal, understanding that real education requires discipline, accountability and yes, consequences.<\/p>\n

If we truly care about closing achievement gaps, we should be investing in early literacy programs, after-school tutoring, mentorship and access to mental health resources. We should be strengthening the bridge between parents and educators. We should be making it easier, not harder, for teachers to inspire excellence and for students to strive for it.<\/p>\n

But we should never, under any circumstances, lower the bar.<\/p>\n

Equity does not mean equality of outcome. It means equality of opportunity \u2014 an opportunity that must be earned through merit, effort and perseverance. When we tell poor children and children of color that we will expect less from them because life is hard, we are not uplifting them \u2014 we are trapping them in permanent underachievement.<\/p>\n

This is not compassion. It is cruelty.<\/p>\n

Every American, regardless of political affiliation, should be outraged by policies that disguise failure as fairness. If we want a just society, we must demand an honest one \u2014 where truth is not softened for the sake of feelings, and where the path to success is paved with rigor, not resignation.<\/p>\n

In the end, the goal of education is not just to pass students \u2014 it is to prepare citizens. And our children, all of them, deserve a system that demands the best of them and supports them every step of the way.<\/p>\n

Anything less is not equity. It is surrender.<\/p>\n

Armstrong Williams (www.armstrongwilliams.com; @arightside) is a political analyst, syndicated columnist and owner of the broadcasting company, Howard Stirk Holdings. He is also part owner of The Baltimore Sun.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The “Grading for Equity” education plan that San Francisco scrapped in the face of backlash represented academic negligence, writes Armstrong Williams.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":157,"featured_media":9648808,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-07-15T19:31:07Z","apple_news_api_id":"caed7d60-b2f1-4d8d-84c2-f7579691fa17","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-07-15T19:31:07Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/Ayu19YLLxTY2EwvdXlpH6Fw","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"middle","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"subheadline":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[83,96,99],"tags":[24874,24457],"feature":[],"location":[],"type-of-work":[],"coauthors":[24791],"class_list":["post-11559602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-headlines","category-opinion","category-opinion-columnists","tag-armstrong-williams","tag-social"],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"99","primary_tag":24874,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"","print_title":"Armstrong Williams: The cruelty of lowering the bar in the name of equity","print_subheadline":"","print_priority":"","print_placement":"inside","print_planned_ready":"","print_pub_date":"1752638400","print_slug":"TBS-L-ARMSTRONG-0716","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"The \"Grading for Equity\" education plan that San Francisco scrapped in the face of backlash represented academic negligence, writes Armstrong Williams.","print_notes":"","photo_limits":"Photo limits are: 1 featured image, 5 featured gallery images, 5 embedded gallery images and 5 in-article embedded images. Articles that exceed these limits will not export. Please adjust images to reflect these limits.","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":"","print_content":"

In the quiet corridors of the San Francisco Unified School District, a dangerous experiment in educational equity was launched \u2014 and then quickly rescinded<\/a> under the weight of public scrutiny. Known as \u201cGrading for Equity,\u201d the district proposed removing homework and attendance as factors in students\u2019 final grades, allowing repeated attempts at assessments and altering grading scales so that scores as low as 41% could still earn a passing mark. The rationale? To make the grading process \u201cmore equitable\u201d for disadvantaged students.<\/p>

Let\u2019s be absolutely clear: This is not equity. This is academic negligence. And worse, it is a veiled form of discrimination masquerading as compassion.<\/p>

Policies like these embody what President George W. Bush once rightly condemned as \u201cthe soft bigotry of low expectations.\u201d The idea that poor children \u2014 especially poor children of color \u2014 cannot be held to rigorous academic standards is not only patronizing, it is profoundly unjust. It suggests that these students are incapable of discipline, effort or achievement \u2014 and therefore must be coddled rather than challenged.<\/p>

As someone who has spent decades working with underserved communities, I can tell you this: These kids don\u2019t need less structure, fewer expectations or an escape hatch from hard work. What they need is a system that believes in their potential, holds them to the same high standards as everyone else and gives them the tools to meet those standards.<\/p>

Removing homework and attendance from grades sends a clear and harmful message: Effort doesn\u2019t matter, showing up is optional and mediocrity is acceptable. How exactly does that prepare any student for the real world? In what universe does an employer say, \u201cDon\u2019t worry about coming in, we won\u2019t hold it against you\u201d? Or a college professor say, \u201cForget the assignments, we\u2019ll just go off your final exam\u201d?<\/p>

This kind of thinking may start in San Francisco, but if left unchallenged, it will spread like a virus through school districts across America. We are normalizing failure under the seductive language of equity, and it is precisely the students we claim to help who will suffer most.<\/p>

We should ask ourselves: Who benefits from this policy? Certainly not the working-class Black or Latino student who sees school as their best shot at social mobility. Certainly not the single mother who teaches her child the value of persistence and personal responsibility. And certainly not the teachers, many of whom \u2014 quietly but firmly \u2014 pushed back against this proposal, understanding that real education requires discipline, accountability and yes, consequences.<\/p>

If we truly care about closing achievement gaps, we should be investing in early literacy programs, after-school tutoring, mentorship and access to mental health resources. We should be strengthening the bridge between parents and educators. We should be making it easier, not harder, for teachers to inspire excellence and for students to strive for it.<\/p>

But we should never, under any circumstances, lower the bar.<\/p>

Equity does not mean equality of outcome. It means equality of opportunity \u2014 an opportunity that must be earned through merit, effort and perseverance. When we tell poor children and children of color that we will expect less from them because life is hard, we are not uplifting them \u2014 we are trapping them in permanent underachievement.<\/p>

This is not compassion. It is cruelty.<\/p>

Every American, regardless of political affiliation, should be outraged by policies that disguise failure as fairness. If we want a just society, we must demand an honest one \u2014 where truth is not softened for the sake of feelings, and where the path to success is paved with rigor, not resignation.<\/p>

In the end, the goal of education is not just to pass students \u2014 it is to prepare citizens. And our children, all of them, deserve a system that demands the best of them and supports them every step of the way.<\/p>

Anything less is not equity. It is surrender.<\/p>

Armstrong Williams (www.armstrongwilliams.com; @arightside) is a political analyst, syndicated columnist and owner of the broadcasting company, Howard Stirk Holdings. 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