The achievement gap is something that has been an issue in our country for years. It has plagued the United States across all states. This gap has created a lot of uproar in the education community with different charter schools opening in cities with failed or failing public schools systems. It has also created a new teacher mindset that is focused solely on the test score of any given student rather than focusing on the student as a whole. Not only has the achievement gap created these things in our nation, it has also created it's own form of segregation. The racial achievement gap is not only a gap in academics, but a gap in academics directly related to race. Dating back to the times of slavery, white children were educated more frequently than children of color. Those holes created in education are still seen and felt today. The achievement gap is a major issue for many different reasons. Many schools try to solve the problem on their own, government makes it a major focus for debate, and it is creating a divide in our country that is hurting the future leaders of our nation in more ways than one. Students are given less chances to learn from high quality educators and students are also treated differently depending on the school or type of school they attend.  In schools across America there is an obvious achievement gap between students of all races and backgrounds.

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Along side the racial component of the achievement gap, there is a gap among students from different socioeconomic backgrounds as well. Many of the students, of many races, fit into the middle section of the Venn-diagram of students from low socio-economic status and minority students. Many of the students from low socio-economic status or minority students that have been involved in the studies have shown a lower test score than a white student of their same grade. Socio-economic class can play a major role in the achievement gap because different students from different backgrounds will have access to different resources. Students that come from high socio-economic backgrounds will be able to use resources and tools to help them learn and grow that other students may not be able to afford. The students from a lower socio-economic background can also face some different emotional and psychological needs depending on their home life or the different things they have experienced through their early development.

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The racial achievement gap has been something that has been prominent in education since slavery. African Americans were being educated, but they were breaking the law to do so. African Americans were not allowed to learn how to read or write. In order to find the time to gain an education, African Americans would have to find secret locations in which to hold their school day. They would also only be able to meet for a short period of time. This time was so short because African Americans needed to make it appear as though they were not learning at all. This made it very difficult for African Americans to find the time to educate children. Since their white counterparts were able to have the schooling as frequently as they did, this could have been the beginning of the racial achievement gap. African Americans have had to struggle since being brought to this country as slaves and it has shown, not only in society, but in education as well. They have had to work extremely hard for their students to get the education they deserve.

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Throughout history, African Americans have gone above and beyond to make sure that they were getting education. Different schools were started all throughout the country specifically targeting African American students. If one school was closed down by the government, another school would open to make sure that students were not missing any days, if possible. Even though they were forced, by law, not to learn to read or write, they were still able to find different ways to educate the students in a school setting. African Americans raised “$486.00” to further the cause to educate future African American generations.  Notably, the first Parent Teacher Association (PTA) was formally structured to rally supporters, organize events, and conducted fundraisers.  Ultimately, the Yanceyville school became known as the “largest and most expensive school costing a whopping $4,465.00” (Walker, 1996).

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Fast forward over 100 years and this notion of the racial achievement gap is still very apparent in schools today. With white students outscoring their minority peers in reading and math on standardized tests. As of 2013, the difference in the points between white students and black students was 30 points and the difference in the points between white students and Hispanic students was 21 points in math and 22 points in reading (Lee, 2014). These statistics show that the gap created over 100 years ago may still has a lasting effect on students today. It would appear that due to the lack of access to education African Americans and other minorities faced in the late 1800s and early 1900s may still have an impact on students in the classroom today. Although the laws have been erased preventing any one race or person to be denied the chance at a quality education, there are still areas of work that need to be done to make up for the issues of the past. Creating more appeal for quality teachers to work in schools that are predominately black, finding more quality teachers to work in schools in general, and providing all students with easier access to a better education. All of these factor into a necessity for closing the achievement gap in our country. Although there is not one silver bullet idea, there needs to be something put in place to prevent the gap from growing to a point of no return. Many of the reasons for the racial achievement gap stem from the mindsets of the educators themselves. Many educators have it in their mind that the students they educate are from a certain background and must be stuck in that life or in that lifestyle because they are destined to be, but in fact, if teachers and leaders take a more open-minded approach to education, it could result in the gap starting to close and students across the country from all walks of life finding themselves on the same level as their peers.

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Although many studies have been done on high school students, that is not the only place you can see the racial achievement gap. The racial achievement gap is also present in middle and elementary schools. In the 2010-11 school year, for example, 6 percent of whites were in high-poverty schools, where more than 75 percent of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a measure the federal government uses to determine poverty. Fifteen percent of Asian students were, too. But 42 percent of black students were in these schools, 38 percent of Hispanics, 31 percent of American Indian/Native Alaskans and 19 percent of Pacific Islanders (Strauss, 2012). Seeing that this high percentage of students not only come from minority families, but also families in poverty The poverty rate for children living with a female parent with no spouse present was 44 percent, broken down, the numbers were 52.8 percent for American Indians; 51.3 percent for blacks; 49.6 percent for Hispanics; 35.1 percent for whites; 33.2 percent for Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders; and 29.3 percent for Asians (Strauss, 2010). Not only were many of the minority students performing lower on standardized tests, but they were also coming from a single parent family. This has shown to be a significant contributor to the achievement gap and the racial achievement gap as well.

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The black-white achievement gap has been something that researchers have been analyzing for years. They have been using data from standardized tests to compare different children across different socio-economic backgrounds and their races as well. Students of different races with similar socio-economic backgrounds enter kindergarten at similar levels, but as they progress through school, it seems that minority students begin to fall behind and enter first grade at a lower level than their white peers (Fryer & Levitt, 2004). When looking at numbers that show there is an obvious decline in the level of academic status among the different races compared to white students, it is difficult to pinpoint one cause or one common theme across all of the scores.  From the beginning of kindergarten to the end of first grade, black students lose 20 percent of a standard deviation (approximately 10 percent of a standard deviation each year) relative to white students with similar characteristics. If the gap were to continue to grow at this rate, by 5th grade the average black student would be half a standard deviation behind his white counterpart–a residual gap similar in magnitude to that found in previous analyses. Hispanic children do not experience this widening test-score gap relative to otherwise similar white students, they systematically close the gap, perhaps because their initial scores are artificially low due to the relative inexperience with the English language among some immigrants and their children (Fryer & Levitt, 2004). This is a different way to approach the analyzing of the data accompanying the achievement gap. The notion that some English language learning students may have less experience with English could contribute to a larger gap being created, but even with those students factored in, there is still a major gap created among the students in school.  

The racial achievement gap has impacted students in all schools. The research done on this topic has shown that in many of these schools the standardized test scores are lower among the minority students versus white students. While much research can be done to find the numbers associated with the racial achievement gap, there is still a large question as to why there is such a different in the scores based on race. If students of different races are coming into kindergarten at the same level, why does one race seem to grow at a higher rate of speed than any other race? Once students enter school, the gap between white and black children grows, even after controlling for observable influences. Speculation suggests that blacks are losing ground relative to whites because they attend lower-quality schools that are less well maintained and managed as indicated by signs of social discord (Fryer & Levitt, 2004). Although there is no actual scientific evidence to back up this claim made, it leaves little to the imagination that could possibly better explain why there is such a large decrease in growth from African American students coming into school from similar backgrounds as their white counterparts. This study made it challenging to understand any real causes for the gap and may create some more questions as to why or how this achievement gap came to be, but it provides some interesting facts about young students and where they find themselves when compared to students of a different race and background.

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Many of the factors of the racial achievement gap can be analyzed and compared with students and families that are born and raised in the United States, but what about students whose parents are immigrants or they themselves have come from another country? Twenty-two percent of the school-age population, or 11.8 million children 5 to 17, spoke a language other than English at home; 2.7 million spoke English with difficulty. The breakdown: 16 percent for Hispanics, 16 percent for Asians, 7 percent for Native Alaskans, 5 percent for Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders; 2 percent for American Indians, and 1 percent for black students and 1 percent for white pupils (Strauss, 2012). The fact that many students in the United States are not speaking English in the home makes for a brand new obstacle for the achievement gap to overcome. Students in school that are learning English as they go are taking tests that may or may not be in their first language, depending on accommodations. These students add an interesting statistic to the racial achievement gap. These students can provide more insight into the racial achievement gap based on race and nationality and what the difference in home life is like between the many different races.

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Aside from the many different factors of race, nationality, language, and socio-economic status is the factor of parental education. Many of the students with lower scores on standardized tests come from a household with a parent or parents that have had a limited amount of education. About 11 percent of children between 6 and 18 lived in a household where neither parent had earned at least a high school credential and the percentage of children ages 6 to 18 whose parents’ highest level of educational attainment was less than high school completion helps tell the achievement gap story. The average percentage was 11 percent for males and females, but 31 percent of Hispanic children had parents who had not completed high school, 11 percent of black kids, 10 percent of Asian males and 9 percent of Asian females (Strauss, 2012).  With these types of numbers, it is easy to ask the question of what is happening at home or how much do these parents value education? But on the contrary, many of the parents had to overcome their own struggles in life that led them to a place of education that was necessary for them at that time in their life. Many of the parents have shown or expressed the importance of education for their children, but it can be difficult if a parent has had less education compared to another student's parents because the content may actually be difficult for the parent to understand and thus creating a bigger gap in achievement because the parents are doing everything they can to learn along with their student.

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Over the years, the achievement gap has shown signs of decreasing, but there is still work to be done. There is a challenge in front of educators that has been growing, aside from the achievement gap. The challenge is working in schools that are predominately black versus schools that are predominately white. Educators in predominately black and Latino schools were paid less than their counterparts in majority white schools and black students were found to be nearly four times more likely than their white counterparts to attend a school where less than 80% of their school’s teachers are certified. Latinos are twice as likely as whites to attend such schools (Lee, 2014). With students going to schools with low numbers of qualified, let alone certified, teachers being mostly black, the racial achievement gap will continue to grow. Aside from the student perspective, the perspective of the educators and the decision they have to choose which school to teach in, creates a different type of gap that students can have no direct impact on, the money gap. With teachers being paid much more highly in schools that are predominately white, the need for quality teachers in all other schools grows based on the simple fact that teachers can get paid more to teach in a predominately white school. It would appear that an easy solution to this problem would be to level the playing field based on salary or actually flip it on it's head and pay teachers more for going to schools that are in much more need and teach predominately black students. While this may be the wrong approach, it could be a possible solution to the racial achievement gap for the short term. With there being such a huge emphasis on education in the United States, it seems that since the dawn of school, the government has had a difference of opinion based on denying people education based on the color of their skin.

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Despite having many odds stacked against all students, there are still things educators can do in an attempt to close the achievement gap. Studies have shown that across the country the achievement gap is closing between the races. Although it is not an extremely large decrease, more minority students are graduating high school and going on to college. Since 2006, the national high school graduation rate has averaged an uptick of 1.3% a year, with major gains by black and Hispanic students. Over that same time period the Hispanic graduation rate has grown by 15% to 68%. The black rate has grown by 9% since 2006 to 68% overall. The rate for whites is 85% (Lee, 2014). This is something positive to focus on as educators, but the more important thing to focus on is the fact that we have to be aware of the achievement gap from all sides, race, nationality, religion, and socio-economic status. With teachers in the classroom being unaware of such things, it will only create a larger gap among the races in the way of achievement. Creating the best learning opportunities for all students to have the best education possible is something that all educators need to have engrained within them in order to create a dent in the achievement gap. Educators and students need to be aware that there are many different factors that come into play when it comes to education and that they all must be accounted for and addressed appropriately.  

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In conclusion, for many years the achievement gap has been studied and researched. No one solution will solve the problem since it exists across all facets of education from race to socio-economic status to parental education. As educators we must remember that all students have the right to good quality education and that no matter what any student's background is, it is crucial that we take the time necessary to teach that student to the best of our ability or we will be finding ourselves in a deeper hole than the one we are currently in. In order to solve this dilemma of the racial achievement gap we must be able to create a way for all students of all ages and of all backgrounds to have access to quality education. More importantly, we need to make sure that there is a focus on the areas of the most need in our country that creates a more challenging gap to overcome. When thinking about this problem facing us, we certainly have our work cut out for us, but it is crucial to remember who this affects the most and who is suffering the most from mistakes that have been made in the past. We have to remain proactive on the education front so we can attempt to rectify any mistake made and prevent us from making any more that are as detrimental as the racial achievement gap has been.
 

Works Cited

 

Anderson, J.D. 1988. The Education of Blacks in the South. 1860-1935. Exploring Constitutional Conflicts. 2016. The Thirteenth Amendment: The Abolition of Slavery.

 

Fryer, Roland G. & Steven D. Levitt. (2004). "Falling Behind: New Evidence On The Black-White Achievement Gap." www.educationext.org.

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Lee, Trymaine. 2014. "Education Racial Gap As Wide As Ever According To NAEP." www.msnbc.com.

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Strauss, Valerie. 2012. "The Achievement Gap: By The Numbers." www.washingtonpost.com

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Walker, V. 1996. Their Highest Potential.  An African American School Community in the Segregated South.