An excerpt from Market Watch -
‘Males, particularly white males, are persistently overrepresented’: Many kids of color don’t see themselves in the books they read
Researchers used artificial intelligence technology to analyze imagery in children’s books
By Andrew Keshner
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| A new study looks at the images looking back at kids in children's books (PHOTO BY GEORGE FREY/GETTY IMAGES) |
The researchers were not attempting to offer any suggestions on the right amount of demographic and race representation in kids’ books, they said.
Instead, they noted the study showed that with the help of technology, it’s possible to quantify the amount of race and gender representation in children’s books.
“By providing research that expands our understanding about the diversity in content, we can help to contribute to work that aims to overcome the structural inequality that pervades society and our daily lives,” they wrote.
The study comes amid a debate on the presence of critical race theory in the classroom. The theory says race is a social construct. The theory is pointing out that social institutions like the criminal justice system, housing market, healthcare system and more can treat races differently, according to observers like Rashawn Ray, a fellow at the Brookings Institution.
The “scholars and activists who discuss [critical race theory] are not arguing that white people living now are to blame for what people did in the past,” Ray wrote. “They are saying that white people living now have a moral responsibility to do something about how racism still impacts all of our lives today.” (Highlighted by Faye)
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