Research Proposal: Examining Slavery and Educational Outcomes

This research proposal investigates the complex and often incompatible relationship between slavery and education, particularly focusing on the experiences of African Americans. The paper begins by introducing the historical context of slavery and its impact on educational opportunities, referencing the works of Frederick Douglass and other researchers. It explores how slavery created significant barriers to education, leading to educational inequalities and affecting income disparities. The research methodology relies on secondary sources, including research papers, journals, and books. The findings highlight the negative correlation between slavery and education, emphasizing how the legacy of colonial slavery has contributed to racial and educational disparities. The proposal concludes that the compatibility between slavery and education is poor, underscoring the historical struggles faced by enslaved people in their pursuit of education and the lasting impact of these struggles on society.

research proposal
To determine the compatibility between Slavery and Education

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To determine the compatibility between Slavery and Education
Introduction
The paper will help in understanding the various characteristics and features of the
slavery from which the people suffered in the past and its impact on the education that they got
or did not get. The reasons that made people suffer from slavery and lack of education will also
be discussed after reviewing the history and the literature related to this problem. Also, the level
of education that they desired and the level which they actually got (or did not get) will be
discussed in the paper. It will give an insight to the public and the other researchers about the
slavery that the people faced in the past and the way in which it was related to their education.
The research will try to find why women are generally (statistically) better at school in the
African American community than their male counterparts.
Literature Review
Frederick Douglass has written an autobiography called “The Narrative of the Life of
Frederick Douglass” (Douglass, F., 2000). In that book, he has mentioned clearly that the slavery
and education are incompatible with each other. The reason that he has given for this is that in
his entire life he has constantly been oscillating between an intense desire to become literate and
educated and giving up hope altogether. He felt that slavery was a pit in which he was fallen, and
he could not find a ladder to come out of it. Acquiring education was a constant battle for him
which was very unlike to other people for whom getting educated was no big deal because they
were not the sufferers of slavery. Not only this, but the condition of African Americans was also
very bad in terms of slavery and education. They continuously fought for education because of
slavery in which they were living. This shows that the issue of slavery and education had a great

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impact on our history and it may still be persisting in many societies. Therefore, it needs to be
examined. According to the researchers (Bertocchi, G., 2015), if the government implements
some of the policy measures, then also the educational inequality cannot be eradicated. This is
because the roots of this problem lie in the colonial institution of the slave labour that had been
widespread in the US and Latin America until the nineteenth century. The author has found a
negative relation between slavery and the educational outcomes. In some countries, the historical
slavery has affected the level of education of people, and hence the income inequality persisted
there. Though policies had been implemented, but they aimed to remove the racial, educational
inequalities in the school but, no immediate solution was found. In this article, the writer
(Mahmood, H., 2013) has described the concept of slavery as the ownership of one man by the
other, the tearing of the families apart from each other, dehumanising of the people, and crushing
of the will of many people. One of the authors has mentioned in the article that slavery has
devastating effects all over the world. The author of this article has quoted that, ‘one of the ways
in which slavery has affected the lives of people is in the form of their inability to receive any
form of education’. By quoting this, the author wanted to show the incompatibility between the
two. Further, the author (McMillan, S.T) has described the compatibility between slavery and
education from the personal experiences. The condition of the education of the Africans during
the period of their slavery has been discussed here. When the Blacks suffered from slavery, their
education was based on three principles: the education of the ideals of the Bible and Christianity,
the support of education by the Quakers and the way to get free with the help of education. The
author has described the slavery as a profession in which the Blacks were employed. The author
has quoted that, “for climbing out of that abyss, they required to be educated so that they could
get into good jobs, settle in good houses, but, their education level remained segregated and

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inferior” (Greenberg, J., 2010) . This has been quoted because he wants to tell the readers about
the benefits of education that the people can get and the way in which education can help them in
coming out of their miserable conditions. But, the inferior and segregated education did not let
them come out of their miseries.
Research Methodology
The entire research will be based on the secondary sources that will include research
papers, journals, websites, publications, and books containing the information about the various
groups of people who suffered from the worst form of slavery like the African Americans.
Moreover, the level of education which they wished to have and what they actually got. Further,
the research will be based on the exploratory research because it will help in defining the
problem more accurately.
Findings
The finding is based on the empirical evidence. This shows that slavery and education
are not compatible with each other. The inequality pertaining to racial education can be traced to
the legacy of the colonial slavery. The income inequality and the education are affected due to
the colonial slavery. It has been understood that people move from slaves and Jim Crow
desperately seeking education, to modern-day "too cool for school" embedded in the Legacy of
Slavery and Black Identity. Therefore, the research can be treated as the evident that the
compatibility between slavery and education is very poor.

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Conclusion
It can be understood from the research paper that like many others, the condition of
African Americans was very bad in terms of slavery and education. They continuously fought for
education because of slavery in which they were living. This shows that the issue of slavery and
education had a great impact on our history and it may still be persisting in many societies.
Slavery was a pit in which people fell, and they could not find a ladder to come out of it.
Acquiring education was a constant battle for the slaves which were very unlike to other people
for whom getting educated was no big deal because they were not the sufferers of slavery. It can
be clearly said that people in the past have suffered from the serious problem of slavery, and the
compatibility between Slavery and Education has been poor.

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REFERENCES
Bertocchi, G., 2015. Slavery, racial inequality, and education. IZA World of Labor. Vol 301. Pp.
221-228
Douglass, F., 2000. Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass, an American slave. Random
House Digital, Inc.
Greenberg, J., 2010. Report on Roma education today: From slavery to segregation and beyond.
Columbia Law Review, Vol. 2. pp.919-1001.
Mahmood, H., 2013. Slavery’s Effects on Education: Parallelism in the United States and Benin.
McMillan, S.T., n.d. Slavery, Education and Upward Mobility.