Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s campaign plan to end New York City’s gifted and talented admissions for kindergartners is only the most prominent effort in recent years to hold back students in the name of “equity.” Similar initiatives include the “detracking” of math courses in San Francisco and Cambridge, Massachusetts. Under Governor Ralph Northam, Virginia’s Department of Education considered ending advanced high school math courses across the entire state. Such efforts are unpopular—Americans oppose ending tracking in public schools more than almost any other proposed Democratic policy, and the Virginia Department of Education had to retreat from its own proposal after facing a public backlash—but they’re far from uncommon. They represent a long, bipartisan tradition of neglecting America’s most talented students. But as science and technology become more important than ever to the national interest, it’s past time for that tradition to end.
For decades, federal education policy has prioritized basic proficiency over other concerns. From George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act to Barack Obama’s Every Student Succeeds Act, presidents and lawmakers have sought to help the lowest-performing students and reduce class and racial achievement gaps. These are admirable goals, but they have diverted attention away from especially bright children.
