Closing the Achievement Gap for Economically Disadvantaged Students?

Closing the Achievement Gap for Economically Disadvantaged Students? PDF Author: Rolf K. Blank
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 26

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Book Description
A critical state-level indicator of progress in public education is student achievement annual performance and change over time. The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) has been very active in tracking and reporting on student achievement results and using state assessment scores and other data to analyze achievement trends. A central goal of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act was to close the gap in student achievement between students from different social and economic backgrounds. A principal objective of the federal funding mandated under NCLB, the design for program initiatives, and the accountability provisions of the federal law was to reduce the extent of disparity in performance of students from different demographic groups within schools as well as differences in the demonstrated performance of schools, districts, and states. The present report uses two different measures of student achievement--state student assessments and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)--to determine the degree to which achievement gaps have been reduced in the period of implementation of NCLB in states. Three key questions are addressed by this analysis: (1) Has student achievement on state-administered annual assessments in math and language arts improved significantly since NCLB implementation and particularly for students from economically disadvantaged families?; (2) Has the achievement gap for economically disadvantaged students closed since NCLB implementation?; and (3) Are state trends in student achievement on state assessments confirmed by achievement trends on the NAEP math and reading assessments? State education agencies have responsibility under state and federal laws for reporting on the educational progress of schools, and the annual "school report card" is a common method by which states or school districts organize and report selected comparable school statistics on the status and progress of education. Currently, education indicators are centered around measures of education outcomes and particularly student achievement on standardized assessments. With increasing use of integrated data systems by states and districts, student achievement growth can be tracked for multiple years and many states are now using growth models for school accountability. The analyses of achievement trends presented in this paper use achievement scores aggregated at the state level to analyze grade cohort change over time for specific target student groups. An appendix presents tables showing trends for NAEP Proficient level in reading and math. (Contains 8 tables and 4 figures.).

Closing the Achievement Gap for Economically Disadvantaged Students?

Closing the Achievement Gap for Economically Disadvantaged Students? PDF Author: Rolf K. Blank
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 26

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Book Description
A critical state-level indicator of progress in public education is student achievement annual performance and change over time. The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) has been very active in tracking and reporting on student achievement results and using state assessment scores and other data to analyze achievement trends. A central goal of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act was to close the gap in student achievement between students from different social and economic backgrounds. A principal objective of the federal funding mandated under NCLB, the design for program initiatives, and the accountability provisions of the federal law was to reduce the extent of disparity in performance of students from different demographic groups within schools as well as differences in the demonstrated performance of schools, districts, and states. The present report uses two different measures of student achievement--state student assessments and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)--to determine the degree to which achievement gaps have been reduced in the period of implementation of NCLB in states. Three key questions are addressed by this analysis: (1) Has student achievement on state-administered annual assessments in math and language arts improved significantly since NCLB implementation and particularly for students from economically disadvantaged families?; (2) Has the achievement gap for economically disadvantaged students closed since NCLB implementation?; and (3) Are state trends in student achievement on state assessments confirmed by achievement trends on the NAEP math and reading assessments? State education agencies have responsibility under state and federal laws for reporting on the educational progress of schools, and the annual "school report card" is a common method by which states or school districts organize and report selected comparable school statistics on the status and progress of education. Currently, education indicators are centered around measures of education outcomes and particularly student achievement on standardized assessments. With increasing use of integrated data systems by states and districts, student achievement growth can be tracked for multiple years and many states are now using growth models for school accountability. The analyses of achievement trends presented in this paper use achievement scores aggregated at the state level to analyze grade cohort change over time for specific target student groups. An appendix presents tables showing trends for NAEP Proficient level in reading and math. (Contains 8 tables and 4 figures.).

The Educator's Handbook for Understanding and Closing Achievement Gaps

The Educator's Handbook for Understanding and Closing Achievement Gaps PDF Author: Joseph Murphy
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1412964555
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 305

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Book Description
'Beginning with a remarkably comprehensive and accessible analysis of the gap's causes, the book offers a refreshingly balanced, evidence-based, state-of-the-art outline of productive solutions that should inform the work of all educational stakeholders' - Ken Leithwood, Professor, OISE/University of Toronto 'No one is better positioned than Joseph Murphy to provide lessons for education leaders on this important topic' - Andrew Porter, George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education , University of Pennsylvania 'For too long, the achievement gap has been proclaimed, discussed, and then dismissed as a subject of despair. Seldom has it been systematically defined, placed in historical perspective, or positively addressed. Through thorough scholarship, comprehensive knowledge, and creativity, this book fills that void' - James W. Guthrie, Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Educational Leadership and Public Policy, Vanderbilt University 'While offering no simple pathway to progress, this book reminds us how much more we can do to close achievement gaps' - Michael S. Knapp, Director Center for the Study of Teaching & Policy, University of Washington Distinguished researcher Joseph F. Murphy has gathered and analyzed the most up-to-date research and data to help headteachers understand what the achievement gap is, why it persists, and what teachers can do about it. This comprehensive handbook: - Examines external factors that contribute to achievement gaps, such as socioeconomic status, family environment, racism, and individual differences - Covers internal factors such as instruction, school culture, and school support - Provides strategies for addressing both internal and external factors to make an impact.

Closing the Achievement Gap

Closing the Achievement Gap PDF Author: Micah Ann Wixom
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Academic achievement
Languages : en
Pages : 11

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Book Description


Class and Schools

Class and Schools PDF Author: Richard Rothstein
Publisher: Teachers College Press
ISBN: 9780807745564
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 210

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Book Description
Contemporary public policy assumes that the achievement gap between black and white students could be closed if only schools would do a better job. According to Richard Rothstein, "Closing the gaps between lower-class and middle-class children requires social and economic reform as well as school improvement. Unfortunately, the trend is to shift most of the burden to schools, as if they alone can eradicate poverty and inequality." In this book, Rothstein points the way toward social and economic reforms that would give all children a more equal chance to succeed in school. This book features: a summary of numerous studies linking school achievement to health care quality, nutrition, childrearing styles, housing stability, parental economic security, and more ; aA look at erroneous and misleading data that underlie commonplace claims that some schools "beat the demographic odds and therefore any school can close the achievement gap if only it adopted proper practices." ; and an analysis of how the over-emphasis of standardized tests in federal law obscures the true achievement gap and makes narrowing it more difficult.

The Black-White Test Score Gap

The Black-White Test Score Gap PDF Author: Christopher Jencks
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 9780815746119
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 546

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Book Description
" The test score gap between blacks and whites—on vocabulary, reading, and math tests, as well as on tests that claim to measure scholastic aptitude and intelligence--is large enough to have far-reaching social and economic consequences. In their introduction to this book, Christopher Jencks and Meredith Phillips argue that eliminating the disparity would dramatically reduce economic and educational inequality between blacks and whites. Indeed, they think that closing the gap would do more to promote racial equality than any other strategy now under serious discussion. The book offers a comprehensive look at the factors that contribute to the test score gap and discusses options for substantially reducing it. Although significant attempts have been made over the past three decades to shrink the test score gap, including increased funding for predominantly black schools, desegregation of southern schools, and programs to alleviate poverty, the median black American still scores below 75 percent of American whites on most standardized tests. The book brings together recent evidence on some of the most controversial and puzzling aspects of the test score debate, including the role of test bias, heredity, and family background. It also looks at how and why the gap has changed over the past generation, reviews the educational, psychological, and cultural explanations for the gap, and analyzes its educational and economic consequences. The authors demonstrate that traditional explanations account for only a small part of the black-white test score gap. They argue that this is partly because traditional explanations have put too much emphasis on racial disparities in economic resources, both in homes and in schools, and on demographic factors like family structure. They say that successful theories will put more emphasis on psychological and cultural factors, such as the way black and white parents teach their children to deal with things they do not know or understand, and the way black and white children respond to the same classroom experiences. Finally, they call for large-scale experiments to determine the effects of schools' racial mix, class size, ability grouping, and other policies. In addition to the editors, the contributors include Claude Steele, Ronald Ferguson, William G. Bowen, Philip Cook, and William Julius Wilson. "

Closing the Opportunity Gap

Closing the Opportunity Gap PDF Author: Prudence L. Carter
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199983003
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
While the achievement gap has dominated policy discussions over the past two decades, relatively little attention has been paid to a gap even more at odds with American ideals: the opportunity gap. Opportunity and achievement, while inextricably connected, are very different goals. Every American will not go to college, but every American should be given a fair chance to be prepared for college. In communities across the U.S., children lack the crucial resources and opportunities, inside and outside of schools that they need if they are to reach their potential. Closing the Opportunity Gap offers accessible, research-based essays written by top experts who highlight the discrepancies that exist in our public schools, focusing on how policy decisions and life circumstances conspire to create the "opportunity gap" that leads inexorably to stark achievement gaps. They also describe sensible policies grounded in evidence that can restore and enhance opportunities. Moving beyond conventional academic discourse, Closing the Opportunity Gap will spark vital new conversations about what schools, parents, educators, and policymakers can and should do to give all children a fair chance to thrive.

The Education Gap

The Education Gap PDF Author: William G. Howell
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780815736868
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 364

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Book Description
The voucher debate has been both intense and ideologically polarizing, in good part because so little is known about how voucher programs operate in practice. In The Education Gap, William Howell and Paul Peterson report new findings drawn from the most comprehensive study on vouchers conducted to date. Added to the paperback edition of this groundbreaking volume are the authors' insights into the latest school choice developments in American education, including new voucher initiatives, charter school expansion, and public-school choice under No Child Left Behind. The authors review the significance of state and federal court decisions as well as recent scholarly debates over choice impacts on student performance. In addition, the authors present new findings on which parents choose private schools and the consequences the decision has for their children's education. Updated and expanded, The Education Gap remains an indispensable source of original research on school vouchers. "This is the most important book ever written on the subject of vouchers."—John E. Brandl, dean, Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota "The Education Gap will provide an important intellectual battleground for the debate over vouchers for years to come."—Alan B. Krueger, Princeton University "Must reading for anyone interested in the battle over vouchers in America."—John Witte, University of Wisconsin

Student Mobility

Student Mobility PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309153395
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 93

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Book Description
Many low-income families struggle with stable housing and frequently have to move due to foreclosures, rent increases, or other financial setbacks. Children in these families can experience lasting negative effects, especially those who are young and still developing basic learning and social skills. A joint NRC-IOM committee held a workshop in June 2009 to examine these issues, highlight patterns in current research, and discuss how to develop a support system for at-risk children.

Closing the Achievement Gap. Research Brief

Closing the Achievement Gap. Research Brief PDF Author: Mike Muir
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 5

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Book Description
The "achievement gap" is a matter of race and class. Across the U.S., a gap in academic achievement persists between minority and disadvantaged students and their white counterparts. This is one of the most pressing education-policy challenges that states currently face. For decades, policymakers, researchers, and school reformers have sought ways in which schools could address the gap. Strategies have focused on school funding, teacher quality, student interventions and motivation, school organization, management, and climate, market competition, and school accountability to the public. Between 1970 and 1988, the achievement gap between African American and white students was cut in half, and the gap separating Latinos and whites declined by one-third. That progress came to a halt around 1988, however, and since that time, the gaps have widened. "Closing The Achievement Gap: Principles For Improving The Educational Success Of All Students" developed by the ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education briefly reviews the educational policies and practices whose effectiveness in closing the achievement gap has been shown. These policies and practices are presented in this paper. (Contains 15 online resources.).

Combating the Achievement Gap

Combating the Achievement Gap PDF Author: Teresa Hill
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1475826524
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 179

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Book Description
Despite 30 years of school reform, the achievement gap between African American students, Latino students, students in poverty and white middle class students persists. Too often, well-meaning teachers, leaders and policymakers inadvertently contribute to the perpetuation of the achievement gap through daily practices. Teresa D. Hill, a practitioner with experience as a teacher and leader in diverse schools, examines the structures, messages, attitudes and beliefs in schools that perpetuate the idea that failure is a default for African American, Latino, and low-income students. She then discusses the practical actions that educators and leaders can take to end failure as a default in their schools. Combatting the Achievement Gap empowers educators and leaders to make meaningful change in the educational outcomes of African American, Latino, and low-income children by addressing structures, messages, attitudes and beliefs that are within educators’ sphere of influence. It will be of interest to school and district leaders, teachers, and policymakers seeking to address the achievement gap as well as teacher educators and researchers with an interest in education and social justice.