Educational thought and research often operates with whole-race ("Black", "White", and "Asian") and whole-class ("low-income") categories. For both explaining disparities and assessing them normatively, it is essential to pay attention to subdivisions within those groups. Regarding affirmative action, on average African and Afro-Caribbean immigrants, and to some extent their offspring, have educational and motivational advantages over, and a distinct normative standing from, African Americans that is masked in the use of "Black" as the operative category in affirmative action. With regard to assessing--both explanatorily and normatively--the performance of "high commitment" charter schools, such as the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP), that make substantial demands on parents of admitted students, compared to traditional public schools serving the same population, it is essential to internally differentiate the relevant race and class categories with respect to the degree of poverty, English language learner status, and parental capital.