Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Readers: Children learn attitudes about race at home - CNN.com

Readers: Children learn attitudes about race at home - CNN.com: CNN) -- The discussion of race is never a black and white issue, and recent 'AC360' and CNN.com reports about young children's attitudes on race became one of the most discussed stories on the site, eliciting more than 4,500 comments.

In the study, white children had an overwhelming bias toward white, and black children also had a bias toward white, but it was not nearly as strong as the bias shown by the white children.

Many users of the site thought parenting was the issue behind the results, some thought the kids were too naive and others thought the testing method was flawed.

Kids' test answers on race brings mother to tears

Margaret Beale Spencer, a leading researcher in the field of child development, designed the pilot study for CNN's 'AC360.' Beale Spencer used a team of three psychologists to implement it: two testers to execute the study and a statistician to help analyze the results.

Her team tested 133 children from schools that met very specific economic and demographic requirements. In total, eight schools participated: four in the greater New York area and four in Georgia.