nostalgia v. reality

Mr. Broad begins by nostalgically describing the past glories of the public schools that he attended. He tells us that he “is old enough to remember when America’s K-12 public schools were the best in the world.” He tells us how proud he was of the schools in his day, and uses words such as “shameful,” “embarrassment,” and “crisis” to describe today’s public schools.

I do not doubt that Mr. Broad attended a fine public school, but the reality of all public schooling in the late 1940s and 1950s does not square with his remembrance.

Two national reports, “Educational Attainment in the United States: 2009” and “120 Years of American Education: a Statistical Portrait,” provide insight into public schooling in the middle of the past century.

* Far fewer students attended and graduated high school when Eli Broad went to school. In 1950, about 32% of all Americans 25 years and over had earned a high school diploma. For those in Mr. Broad’s age group, there was only about a 50% chance of graduating high school.

* Far fewer students attended college as well. In 1950, only 5% of adults over 25 had a college degree. When Mr. Broad received his college degree, he was in an elite group of less than 10%.

* The good old days of Eli Broad were not so good if you were a black student. In 1950, the percentage of the population over 25 who were black and had a high school diploma was about 10%. That is correct — only one in 10. The high school diploma gap between blacks and whites in 1950 was nearly 20 percentage points.

-- wapo