Why Did California Ban IQ Tests for Black Students?

In 1979, a federal judge ruled that California schools could no longer use standardized IQ tests to place Black children into certain special education classes. And the story goes back to one of America’s most influential psychologists. His name was Lewis Terman. In 1916, Terman published the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, an American adaptation of an earlier intelligence test developed in France. But Terman didn’t simply believe intelligence could be measured. He also promoted racist and eugenic ideas about human ability. In his 1916 book, he claimed that intellectual deficiencies were especially common among certain racial and ethnic groups. Those claims were not evidence of innate racial differences in intelligence. Yet Terman’s test became enormously influential in American education. Decades later, California schools were using standardized intelligence tests to classify children. And Black students were being disproportionately placed into classes labeled “educable mentally retarded.” In the late 1960s, Black students made up less than 10% of California’s public school population. But they represented a much larger share of children placed in those classes. Then parents challenged the system. In 1971, a lawsuit was filed on behalf of Black children who had been assigned to those special education programs. The case became known as Larry P. v. Riles. The families argued that the tests were racially and culturally discriminatory and were being used to misclassify Black children as intellectually disabled. And in 1979, federal judge Robert F. Peckham ruled in their favor. The court found that the tests, as used by California schools, discriminated against Black children and violated federal law. The ruling prohibited California from using standardized intelligence tests to place Black students into classes for children classified as intellectually disabled. The decision was later upheld on appeal. But here’s the important distinction. The court didn’t rule that intelligence can never be measured. It ruled against discriminatory testing practices that were being used to determine children’s educational futures. The consequences were enormous. A test score could determine whether a child received a regular academic education or was placed into a separate program with a restricted curriculum. And once assigned, students could struggle to return to mainstream classrooms. The lawsuit exposed a problem much larger than one psychologist or one examination. When a school treats a test score as unquestionable proof of a child’s potential, errors and bias can shape that child’s entire education. The number looked scientific. The court demanded evidence that its use was fair. #LarryPvRiles #BlackHistory #EducationHistory #IQTesting #LewisTerman #SpecialEducation #CivilRights #CaliforniaHistory #AmericanHistory #historytok