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The Enduring Allegorical Appeal of “Structural Inequality:” Comment on “Racial Inequality in 8th-Grade Math Course-Taking” by Carbonaro, Lee and Langenkamp in American Sociological Review

DOI: 10.4236/sm.2025.152005, PP. 93-104

Keywords: Racial Inequality, Test Scores, Education, Queuing Models

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Abstract:

In a recent article entitled “Racial Inequality in 8th-Grade Math Course-Taking: Between-School Inequality, Local Achievement Queues, and Course Placements,” Carbonaro et al. (2024) argue that African American 8th-grade students are less likely to be enrolled in algebra or geometry courses compared to White students with similar prior achievement levels. Carbonaro, Lee and Langenkamp claim that this racial disadvantage derives from “structural inequality” because “racialized sorting” results in Black students encountering greater constraints due to queuing for “course-taking opportunities.” However, Carbonaro, Lee and Langenkamp’s investigation is not convincing. Their statistical methods do not fit their theory, which is ad hoc and inadequately developed. Their regression equations resemble mis-specified status attainment models rather than queuing models. Their empirical results, in any event, do not provide adequate support for their emphasis on structural inequality in terms of being enrolled in advanced math courses in the 8th grade. Their assertion that “discrimination and structural inequality” are “the primary drivers of racial inequality” does not explain why their findings show that Asian Americans are consistently advantaged over Whites. Sociologists’ enduring interest in structural inequality may be laudable, but Carbonaro, Lee and Langenkamp’s investigation of it is not informative.

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