Why Has Black-White Skill Convergence Stopped?

Derek Neal

Chapter 09 in Handbook of the Economics of Education, 2006, vol. 1, pp 511-576 from Elsevier

Abstract: All data sources indicate that black-white skill gaps diminished over most of the 20th century, but black-white skill gaps as measured by test scores among youth and educational attainment among young adults have remained constant or increased in absolute value since the late 1980s. I examine the potential importance of discrimination against skilled black workers, changes in black family structures, changes in black household incomes, black-white differences in parenting norms, and education policy as factors that may contribute to the recent stability of black-white skill gaps. Absent changes in public policy or the economy that facilitate investment in black children, best case scenarios suggest that even approximate black-white skill parity is not possible before 2050, and equally plausible scenarios imply that the black-white skill gap will remain quite significant throughout the 21st century.

Keywords: basic skills; black-white differences; convergence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I2 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2006
ISBN: 978-0-444-51399-1
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (85)

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Working Paper: Why Has Black-White Skill Convergence Stopped? (2005)
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