FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s largest school system is removing a test question given to a college-level social studies class that equated liberals and conservatives with specific racial and gender demographics.
The question appeared on a test given to students of an AP Government class at Fairfax County Public Schools’ Online Campus.
The multiple-choice question asked students, “Which of the following is an accurate comparison of liberals versus conservatives?”
The potential answers for “liberals” included “Young, white males;” “Middle aged, urban lesbian;” “College-educated black male professional” and “White, upper-middle class suburban male.”
The potential answers for “conservatives” included “East Coast, Ivy League educated scientists;” “Southern male migrant laborer;” “Catholic, midwestern middle-aged male” and “West coast, Hispanic teacher. ”
Rory Cooper, a Fairfax County parent and school system critic who posted the question on Twitter, said it is offensive.
“It’s one thing for adults to analyze demographic trends,” he said. “It’s another to tell students that their identity defines their political philosophy.”
The school system said in a statement that the question will be removed from future tests because it “did not meet the division’s high expectations.” It also said all test questions administered to students in the AP Government Online Campus class will now be reviewed.
The statement said the question was “designed to assess 12th graders’ understanding of American political ideology.”
The test is part of an AP, or Advanced Placement, class that allows high-school students to earn college credit if they score well on a final exam.
While the question was part of an AP class, it was not created by the College Board, which administers the AP program nationally.
In a tweet, the…
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