Is positive discrimination a good way for universities to increase diversity?
Positive discrimination
It's useful for both students and collage. Students will exposed to different culture, perspectives and social experiences. Universities strengthen the educational experience they provide. Maysa dallaseh
Posted by: AnonymousPositive discrimination can help universities establish diverse student bodies to provide a rich, multi-cultural academic environment.
The academy provides a setting for scholarly discourse. That discourse is fuller, more complete, and has more opportunities for the academic growth of all students if the population is culturally and ethnically diverse. It is in everyone's best interests to have this diverse community of intellectual discourse. Therefore positive discrimination can be very helpful in creating this community.
Posted by: baltuteI believe universities must increase diversity, by any means necessary.
Due to constant discrimination of minorities throughout history, certain people were not given the same advantages as others. Therefore, it is only fair that minorities are given advantages now, so the playing field can be leveled. Also, I believe "positive discrimination" is a poor term for "affirmative action", and it should not be used.
Posted by: NoisyAlva89I believe that there is a line that needs to be drawn.
I believe that there is a clear difference between positive discrimination and negative discrimination. With positive discrimination, you are able to choose for yourself who you will associate with as friends. With negative discrimination, you essentially harbor ill feelings or harmful emotions towards others where you might find out later on that you were in the wrong for even acting negatively towards another. However, since this is about universities positively discriminating to increase diversity, the whole diversity issue should be looked at in views of educational diversity based upon the merits of the individual student[s] not based on race, culture or ethnicity. There is a lot of misunderstanding going on this country about discrimination. I believe the real question should be asked is is this a question of discrimination or prejudice?
Posted by: AnonymousPoor wording...But diversity is important!
We have a "Girls Go Science" day where we bring in women from the more scientific fields to encourage more girls to pursue these fields academically. Is this discrimination against guys? No. It is still not a level playing field out there, if it were our politicians/decision makers would be a LOT more diverse. Like promote like. If you are a bilingual hispanic who doesn't happen to play golf you are less likely to be promoted to manager than your white/male counterpart who can smooze with the boss. And with more like-minded individuals being the ones promoted onto corporate boards, you don't get positive change you just end up with more yes men. Until that "corporate board" can appreciate diversity enough to bring in different mindsets to the table than there remains an uphill struggle. Do you honestly think it would take so many tries to get the Violence against Women's Act passed if D.C. was evenly split between men and women?
Posted by: sissyslimey
Look at the cause, not the result.
If minors get a worse education, their elementary and secondary schools should be improved. If people with low income cannot get enough education to make it into university, again, their schools should be improved. Imagining that a student with little experience in studying is going to magically start in university is ridiculous. They can go to community college first. Putting a band aid on the result only adds fuel to the fire. Quick fixes do not work in the long run. This is a quick fix to make people feel better. Try this out: ask a black friend if he got into university because he is black. What kind of answer do you think that disrespectful question will get? If you can't ask that kind of question in polite society, maybe you shouldn't be supporting a policy that begs that question.
Posted by: AnonymousPositive or negative discrimination is not good way for universities to increase diversity.
No, I totally disagree that positive discrimination is a good way for universities to increase diversity. Any discrimination only creates racism and barriers in the smooth flow of any society, organization or any nation. I feel that universities are places of learning, so there should not be any kind of discrimination.
Posted by: I0rFashionnope
He is more qualified than you but we ned black people and you're black so you're in. All educational institution should only focus on academics!
Posted by: AnonymousI oppose universities to use positive discrimination to increase diversity.
I don't believe there is a such thing as "positive discrimination". Discrimination is a negative attitude and I don't see in any way that it would be considered positive. Discrimination within a university or anywhere else for that matter has been proven to segregate people from each other based on certain beliefs or cultures. Universities should teach students to act together and be unified.
Posted by: 5h4rdMyrI believe someone should be admitted to a university based only on their academic merits, not race.
I believe in equality of opportunity and, as such, I find it hard to swallow that someone is accepted into a university, when their transcripts and extracurricular activities should not qualify them. I go to a diverse public university, and understand the reasoning for doing it this way, but find it unfair for the person who doesn't get accepted, because there isn't enough room because of this.
Posted by: AboriginalKing28Most certainly not.
I completely fail to see how 'positive' this discrimination is in any way. No-one should be able to attend university just because they're a certain minority. It's completely unfair to the students worked very hard to get into university. Everyone - and I mean everyone - should be subject to the same rules.
Posted by: AnonymousNo, because I think the issue should not have to be relevant to begin with.
I get so sick and tired of hearing about discrimination. In my opinion, the matter could be put to rest, if people would stop using it as an excuse for their own needs. Everyone has the same rights in this country and, in my opinion, when programs are put into place for a certain race, then it is discrimination, because it does not allow everyone the same opportunity. How is it still not discrimination when a program only allows one particular race?
Posted by: SlipArnalDiscrimnation, good or bad, is still discriminaition
whether it is good discrimination or bad discrimination, its still discrimination and having that sort of thing at universities wont help it because it will be considered to be truly bad and no university wants a bad reputations from something that was taken wrong, so whether bad or good, it shouldnt be allowed
Posted by: AnonymousNo, because discrimination is never positive.
If anyone is openly allowed to discriminate, for any reason, it defies all laws and regulations against such a thing. If a school is an a prominently white, Mexican, or an area where mostly African-Americans live, then of course those schools may have more of that race enrolled there. To discriminate against a race which may be local, just to diversify your university, is ridiculous. Imagine how one would feel, if they thought they only got into a university because they are the "token white guy" or the "token Mexican". It is absurd. People worry so much about diversity, when instead they should just deal with the applications they have and pick the best ones, period.
Posted by: RodFreakDiscrimination of any kind generally has the opposite effect and reduces diversity.
Rather than change the rules to rectify a perceived injustice, universities should create admission policies that are neutral, giving everyone the same chance to gain admittance. Once you've changed the rules to favor one group over another, there's no end. Every group will demand special treatment, further distorting the admission process. People should be admitted to college based on their ability to do the work and their desire to complete the program and obtain a degree, not because they're a member of one group or another.
Posted by: laceymaryaWe pick up good students, not special students
I believe that we should focus on the academic competence of a student but not his race nor his gender. The school needs to pick up the qualified student for the purpose of education. There's no need to guarantee the "diversity" in order to show that discrimination doesn't exist. We're in a school, not a biological laboratory.
Posted by: AnonymousI oppose, universities should not enforce positive diversity
Students of all kinds should be admitted on standards of qualification, not on what they look like. Creating diversity is far from a negative thing but when a student can be eliminated from a farther education because of it, it makes the process a little more difficult to support.
Posted by: AnonymousSchools should choose students based solely on their grades, test scores, and applications, because basing it on ethnicity, race, or gender is wrong.
It should not matter whether a student is a specific race, ethnicity, gender or social class. They should only get accepted to a university based on their academic or athletic merits. Just because specific minority groups are under-represented at a university, it does not mean they should get priority enrollment. They need to have the academics to back it up, and then they should get accepted, without looking at their gender, race, or ethnicity.
Posted by: TMaciasDiscrimination is wrong all around.
Discrimination of any kind is wrong whether it be positive or negative. Universities should embrace all cultures just as we as Americans must. This country was made up of many cultures and groups and we must not forget that. If universities were to start discriminating it would set a bad example, and who is to say where it will stop.
Posted by: l0nerkatz999Positive discrimination is outrageous
Hand feeding people is not going to fix anything. We should all be assessed equally when it comes to scholarships and university entrance. Giving the Maori or Pacific Island students special criteria is in my eyes completely racist towards non-Maori and PI! If there were Chinese, European or Indian scholarships there would be an uproar!
Posted by: AnonymousVive la Difference!
The only criteria that should apply to universities is universality. All people should be admitted without any discrimination other than intellectual. And I mean all people. This includes left-handers, blondes, blue-eyed, women, tall people and all others who differ only in their genetic make-up.
Posted by: AnonymousAny sort of discrimination is negative, and should not be considered as a method to increase diversity in universities.
There is no such thing as "positive discrimination." Universities do not need to resort to racism to increase diversity. The university staff should be able to come up with a more positive, less racist way to increase diversity.
Posted by: MarIMiIkIt's unfair.
There are students with a great academic standing that deserve to be admitted but many will lose that chance because of a simple requirement. A requirement that is completely unnecessary. This is just showing how different races interact and that is not the purpose of any education. The main purpose is to help students push forward in life and become something.
Posted by: Anonymousdiscrimination is very wrong
Discrimination is bad a person should not be judge based on their race, gender or ethnicity background. Am a black female attending high school a junior and I see how people treat me just because am black.
Posted by: AnonymousNot having a meritocracy is one of the key failings of 21st century society.
In a poll of classmates my senior year in high school, 29/30 students said affirmative action should be abolished in terms of college admissions. The issue is largely rich versus poor, but it is instead framed as a race debate. There's already a large segregation with a "diverse" population at universities, and to deny that would be to fill quotas.
Posted by: PastoralAgustin40I do not believe that positive discrimination is fair because it may exclude some of the best students from the university.
I am against positive discrimination being used in the university admission system. I think that all students should be considered equally and those who meet the academic standards as relate to SAT scores and grade point average should get the benefit of their achievements. It seems that positive discrimination is an anti-equality policy since I believe that equality means that we are all considered under the same rules.
Posted by: R0d0Ferdy