Gap Analysis: The Achievement Gap

The data is compared to those students come from affluent socioeconomic status and backgrounds. The data is sourced from several diverse locations in order to give the broadest view of the disparities that exist. Howard (2010) compares data in reading, mathematics, SAT results and disciplinary rates. This data is a formidable beginning to the content of the book because it provides context for the reader to better understand the achievement gap.

The achievement gap is defined as the disparity between the performance groups of students, especially groups defined by gender, race/ethnicity, ability and socio-economic status. The achievement gap can be observed through a variety of measures including standardized test scores, grade point averages, drop out rates, college enrollment and completion rates. The Black-White achievement gap is a critical issue in modern society’s education system. Although data surrounding the issue clearly indicates that the racial performance gap exists in areas of standardized tests, graduation rates, dropout rates, and enrollment in continuing education, the causative reasons for the gap are ambiguous—therefore presenting a significant challenge in

the term receivement gap is useful because it focuses attention on educational inputs-what the students receive on their educational journey, instead of outputs-their performance on a standardized test. This refocusing also moves attention away from the students as the source of these disparities, and toward the larger structure and forces that play a role in their education and development (p. 417). Venzant-Chambers (2009) asserted the issue of the Black and White achievement gap must be viewed through other lenses opposed to the single view of Black students cannot perform as well as White students. Venzant-Chambers (2009) offered other avenues by which to examine the achievement gap such as school tracking, examining the

In American education, there is overwhelming evidence that there is an achievement gap between groups of students. In other words, there are measurable differences in the educations and test scores of different groups of students. Some gaps exist between groups or differing gender or socioeconomic status, but the largest gaps exist between groups of different races. America has always been a country with an influx of different cultures through immigration. In schools, these cultures still remain separated. The most noticeable separation is probably that of White and African American students. Although the achievement gap between White and Black students is easily seen there are other clear gaps in the education of Latino and Asian American

Research shows that on average, there is an educational gap between different ethnicities. This gap is called the racial educational achievement gap and is often looked at as the difference in education between black, hispanic, and white students. Even though this gap is not true in all situations, it is a big enough problem that several organizations have taken extensive research to find out exactly what causes the racial achievement gap. Pinpointing the cause however is difficult because many factors contribute to the racial achievement gap. The more outstanding of

The achievement gap is the education gap between the performance group of students in which these groups are usually defined by their social status, race or gender.

The achievement gap is defined as the an unequal or inequitable distribution of educational outcomes and benefits. Researchers have identified a variety of reasons why the achievement gap between whites and blacks continues to persist. Fryer and Levitt (2002) argue that initially there is no difference between equivalent Black and White children upon entering kindergarten. Supsequently as they continue in school they take very different paths due to Black children falling behind their White counterparts. Jencks and Phillips (1998) found that family experiences and preschool are instrumental in creating the achievement gap. They also argue that there is already a significant disparity between Black and White students as they enter kindergarten, which is different than the assertions of Fryer and Levitt.

The achievement gap is often described as the academic discrepancy in the test scores of minority and other low-income students and the test scores in their White and Asian peers. However the gap in scores affect many different groups across many different walks of life in America. Different groups may trail behind their peers at different points in their academic careers. Classic examples are boys in their early years of schooling and girls in high school math and sciences. The differences between students from various backgrounds are more apparent on the large-scale standardized tests. The gaps in test scores more than often lead to longer-term gaps, including high school and college completion and even in the kinds of jobs these

In the literature, the gap is sometimes called an opportunity gap and sometimes it is called an achievement gap. The opportunity gap refers to the undeniable difference that exists between the opportunities for minorities versus their white counterparts. There seem to be several factors that influence this gap. A study by Oakes, Rogers, Silver, Horng, & Goode, (2004), observed that modern day schools in some California cities do not even meet the criteria for the landmark case Plessy vs Ferguson (Oakes et al., 2004). These schools are still segregated and there is an extreme disproportion of funds between the schools that service mainly minorities and those that service mainly whites. The schools that have a white majority usually tend to receive funding from local community members or the parents of the students that attend. While the schools that are made up of minority students, usually tend to be underfunded and the conditions inside the schools are not always the best (Oakes et al., 2004).

“The achievement gap is an aperture of educational measures between the performance of groups of students, especially groups defined by socioeconomic status, ethnicity and gender” (Valerie, http://www.teachability.com/). The imbalance in test scores is a key factor in closing the gap. Presently minority students score lower than European Americans on grammar, pronunciation, literacy and mathematics test on graded test work and on test that measure scholastic aptitude and intelligence.

Achievement Gaps in the United States are tough to define. Currently academia is focusing on racial and ethnic gaps and might be overlooking a subtle fact. There is a trend in ongoing research that shows many of lowest achieving students hail from a low socioeconomic status. Before addressing the racial gaps in achievement, educators must look towards better understanding the effect that low SES has on students. After knowing how much SES impacts achievement, educators and researchers will be better able to address racial achievement gaps without biased factors manipulating their data. Articles by Rolf K. Blank, a case study performed by the Washington Board of Education, and an article by Victoria Risko and Doris Walker-Dalhouse will explore

The achievement gap is an aperture of educational measures between the performance of groups of students, especially groups defined by socioeconomic status, ethnicity and gender (Valerie, http://www.teachability.com/). The imbalance in test scores is a key factor in closing the gap. Presently minority students score lower than European Americans on grammar, pronunciation, literacy and mathematics test on graded test work and on test that measure scholastic aptitude and intelligence.

An achievement gap describes the differences in education growth between a certain minority (African-Americans or Latino-Americans) as compared to white, middle SES students. There is such a drastic gap between black and white students because most black students attend a 48% black population school, where most white students attend a 9% black population school. Achievement is also the lowest in a school with a high population of black students, this is because these schools are usually in low SES urban areas where there aren’t as many resources as mainly white populated schools. These mainly black populated, low SES schools are including families who aren’t as involved in helping their child’s education. In low SES schools, there are more less qualified teachers with less experience who may impact a student’s learning than those teachers who are more experience.

Leadership roles are designed to initiate change quickly in a school district. The leadership team has answer to the community and stakeholders. The challenge for closing the achievement gaps is the responsibility of everyone. We all have a moral and legal responsibility for the future of education. As leaders we have an obligation to continue to ensure that all students are equally educated. Each identity of the education should share in closing the achievement gap. Teachers should reflect on their passion to teach.

Every occupation that exists in the world stems off of education in one way or another, which makes educators the backbone of society’s success. However, educators and those involved in executive decisions about school systems can be the reason some communities are still struggling. One struggle that still exists in the United States is the achievement gap, which is a growing problem in today’s education. According to Cynthia Palmer Mason, the “Achievement gap refers to the observed, persistent disparity of educational measures between the performances of groups of students” (Mason 14). Some scholars argue that the achievement gap just exists and it’s arbitrarily misfortune if someone suffers from its effects. However, research like Mason’s, proves factors such as socioeconomic status, gender, race or ethnicity are among the top defining factors for the gap among students. Although all these factors can be used to measure the achievement gap, race and ethnicity are the largest contributing factors. One race that seemingly is affected more by the achievement gap is African Americans, which has been proven throughout our country’s history. In order for our country to try to minimize the achievement gap, educators must first recognize the issue, the failed attempt to close the gap, and then create a solution for the problem. Educators need to create positive African American role models through personal relationships, examples, and resources being used in the classroom.