NYT: Education Gap Grows Between Rich and Poor Students: News of the Day
New research suggests that the education achievement gap between high- and low-income children in America is widening. As reported in the New York Times Friday, analyses of long-term data recently published find that the gap between rich and poor students has grown significantly over the past few decades.
Sean F. Reardon, a Stanford University sociologist, recently authored a study that found that the gap in standardized test scores between affluent and low-income students had grown by about 40 percent since the 1960s, and is now double the testing gap between blacks and whites.
In another study, by researchers from the University of Michigan, the imbalance between rich and poor children in college completion — the single most important predictor of success in the work force — has grown by about 50 percent since the late 1980s.
What’s more, the data used in these studies end in 2007 and 2008, before the recession’s full impact was felt. The researchers said that based on experiences during past recessions, the recent downturn was likely to have aggravated the trend.
This new research is disturbing in light of the Committee Republicans decision to advance highly partisan legislation to rewrite ESEA to roll back the federal role in education which is to drive equity in an otherwise unequal system. The Republican bills would allow states and districts to fall behind on their fiscal commitments to schools without consequences by removing what is known as “maintenance of effort” requirements. Additionally the bills would block grant funding streams originally targeted to support underserved populations such as poor children and English Language Learners. The bills would also shift formula funds away from the most impoverished schools.
Concerns have been raised by nearly 40 organizations – representing a broad cross section of civil rights, disability, business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and education organizations – calling the GOP draft legislation a “rollback” that “undermines the core American value of equal opportunity of education.”
In these dire economic times, everyone – children included – is feeling the effects. Nearly 60 years since the Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education, severe inequities in education continue. Recent data demonstrate all too clearly that there remain wide achievement gaps in income, race, gender, disability, and English language learners. House Republicans are wasting one avenue to rectify these inequities is through the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, in its most recent incarnation, known as No Child Left Behind.
Through that process, policymakers cannot forget the important historical civil rights component of our nation’s education law. All kids must have access to a world-class education. Because of No Child Left Behind, the evidence is irrefutable that all kids can learn and succeed despite their zip code or income.
The National Education Association, representing more than 3 million educators across the nation, called the Republican draft proposals a failure in addressing equity issues adequately. The group highlights that the proposals “do not push states enough to narrow achievement gaps; provide equal access to quality education; and ensure that state standards and assessment and accountability systems work for students.”
Indeed, the GOP proposals would not only cut federal funding, but they would divert what is left away from low-income children. Couple these with the education cuts made at the state and local level because of a downturned economy, and education systems nationwide would be helpless in addressing the achievement gap between lower- and higher-income students.
The federal government is uniquely positioned to ensure stability and equity, and now, more than ever, it needs to exercise those powers. There is a tremendous opportunity for doing so in the rewrite of NCLB. As we bring the nation’s education system into the 21st century, policymakers must not lose sight of the important principle of equity underlying NCLB and ensure that all students, regardless of income level, receive a top-tier education.