Verbatim Mac

Squo Achievement gap – students with disabilities

Despite recent reforms, the achievement gap remains high—especially for people with disabilities

Pazey, Assistant Professor, Department of Special Education and Department of Educational Administration, The University of Texas at Austin, et al. 2016

(Barbara L., “Incorporating Quality of Life Concepts Into Educational Reform: Creating Real Opportunities for Students With Disabilities in the 21st Century”, Journal of Disability Policy Studies, Hammill Institute on Disabilities, 2016, Vol. 27(2) 96–105, accessed 7/6/17, GDI-JG)

Over the last two decades, educators and policymakers have grappled with ways to better prepare students for suc- cess in a highly competitive, rapidly changing, and tech- nology-driven economy. Manifesting in what are deemed 21st-century skills, public education has been tasked with the responsibility of developing the knowledge and apti- tude in America’s next generation that is necessary for suc- cessful entry into the adult world. A special focus has been placed on college and career readiness to ensure our gradu- ates can compete on a world stage. Indeed, newly intro- duced curriculum standards and learning outcomes for students in public schools reflect this concern (Achieve, 2013a; Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 2010; Bruett, 2006; Equity and Excellence Commission, 2013; P-16 Council, 2012; Partnership for 21st Century Skills [P21], n.d.; Plotner & Mazzotti, 2014; Salpeter, 2003; Trilling & Fadel, 2009).∂ Educational policy and related legislation has created a complex machinery of incentives, backed by punitive sanc- tions to secure support of the reform movement (see, for example, Blueprint for Reform, U.S. Department of Education [USDOE], 2010; Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act [IDEA], 2004; No Child Left Behind [NCLB] Act, 2002). Although the articulated intention and rhetoric of these changes may support success for all, research shows that the achievement gap between students who suc- ceed and those who have been traditionally marginalized in public schools continues to grow (Cole, 2006; McLaughlin, 2010). Many students are still not performing to the standards desired, and for some, the hope of graduating prepared for the challenges of 21st-century living is far from being realized. This shortcoming is particularly apparent for students with disabilities. Despite a strong push to graduate every student college and career ready (Fulton, Gianneschi, Blanco, & DeMaria, 2014; USDOE, 2010), equipped with the necessary 21st-century skills, there has been little discussion regarding how these initiatives can be incorporated to meet the needs of students with disabilities.

Squo Achievement gap – racial and ethnic minority students

SES impacts academic achievement

Reardon, Stanford University Graduate School of Education professor, et al, 17 (Sean F., Demetra, Stanford Center for Education Policy Analysis research associate, Ken, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia with expertise in Educational Theory, Educational Policy, Econometrics, "The Geography of Racial/Ethnic Test Score Gaps", January 2017, http://cepa.stanford.edu/wp16-10, 7-8-17, GDI-EC)

First, racial differences in children’s home environments include differences in opportunities for learning at home—differences in the amount of time parents have to read to their children; in children’s access to computers, libraries, and museums; in parental investments in tutoring and other educational activities; in parental human and social capital; and differences in parental stress and depression. All of these experiences are affected by family socioeconomic status; high-income and highly-educated parents have, on average, more resources to foster and support their children’s academic skills outside of school (Bassok et al. 2016; Bradley et al. 2001; Chin and Phillips 2004; Lareau 2003; Phillips 2011). To the extent that these affect students’ academic achievement, it follows that racial differences in socioeconomic status would then lead to racial differences in academic achievement, net of other factors. Recent studies indicate this is the case; income affects children’s academic achievement (Dahl and Lochner 2012; Duncan, Morris and Rodrigues 2011), though the exact pathways through which these effects operate are not clear. Moreover, racial differences in family socioeconomic conditions explain a large portion of racial achievement gaps present when children enter kindergarten (Fryer and Levitt 2004; Fryer and Levitt 2006; Reardon and Galindo 2009; Rothstein and Wozny 2013). There is less clarity about whether racial achievement gaps grow in ways unrelated to socioeconomic background differences as children progress through school.

Achievement gap – racial and ethnic groups underperforming creates cascading underinvestment in low-income schools

Chen, PhD candidate at Saint Louis University, publishing in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal, 2015

(Amy Yun-Ping, “Educational Inequality: An Impediment to True Democracy in the United States,” Sociology Study, Vol.5 No.5, May 2015, http://www.davidpublisher.org/Public/uploads/Contribute/55f62bc2bf7b8.pdf, accessed 7/10/17, GDI-JG)

In recent decades, education reforms have been sweeping the nation. Dramatically rising demands for accountability have given state and federal governments power to monitor fiscal inputs and determine the measurement of performance in public education (Ravitch 2010). Many states have adopted standardized tests, Common Core curricula, and teaching assessments in order to raise the quality and accountability of public education. Such drives for accountability often result in fiscal deficits and unequal opportunity for minority students (Ravitch 2010; Ravitch 2013; Sleeter 2007). The policies also neglect the actual problems of racial segregation (Lipman 2003). Educational resources are distributed unevenly on the basis of students’ test scores, and without adequate support for education. Black students are hardly able to improve their academic achievement. Lower test scores lead to insufficient resources from the state government, and sometimes schools struggle with losing accreditation or are forced to close their doors due to students’ poor testing performance (Lipman 2003; Pollock 2010; Ravitch 2010). As a consequence, racial inequality results in more complex problems in school environments. The White-Black achievement gap becomes wider. Black students in inner-city schools suffer unequal educational opportunities and are likely to encounter very low expectations for academic attainment (Carter and Welner 2013; MacLeod 2009; Murrell 2008; Putnam 2015; Sleeter 2007).

Economic and Racial Segregated Schools Have Demonstrably Less Resources Than Others—Damaging Students

Folley, AOL News, Social Media News Fellow and Latimer, NBC News, Assistant Producer 16 (Aris and Brian “Public Schools Becoming More Racially Segregated: Report” NBC News 5-18-2016 http://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/public-schools-becoming-more-racially-segregated-report-n576121 7-14-2017 GDI-JIJD)

Racial segregation has been deepening in public education, offering a sobering reminder of the nation’s history when it comes to racial and economic isolation in classrooms, according to a recent report published by the Government Accountability Office Tuesday.¶ Published on the anniversary of the landmark ruling of Brown v. Board of Education, the GAO found evidence of growing racial divides persisting in public education. The number of Black and Latino students enrolled in impoverished K-12 public schools increased 11 percent between 2001 and 2014.¶ These schools were found to be the most poverty-stricken, minority-segregated schools in the country, with more than 75 to 100 percent of Black and Latino students eligible for price-reduced lunch. This parameter is commonly used as an indicator of poverty.¶ These schools were also found to have offered fewer STEM courses and advanced placement, college-prep courses. About 48 percent of high-poverty schools offer AP courses, while 72 percent of low-poverty schools — with 0 to 25 percent of students on free, reduced lunches — offered these college-level courses.¶ These schools have higher rates of students unable to advance from the ninth grade, as well as more students who had been suspended or expelled. Five percent of students at low-poverty schools will received an out-of-school suspension, while 22 percent in high-poverty schools will be suspended more than once.

Statistics prove school segregation is high—that devastates educational attainment and exacerbates economic disparities among racial groups

Chen, PhD candidate at Saint Louis University, publishing in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal, 2015

(Amy Yun-Ping, “Educational Inequality: An Impediment to True Democracy in the United States,” Sociology Study, Vol.5 No.5, May 2015, http://www.davidpublisher.org/Public/uploads/Contribute/55f62bc2bf7b8.pdf, accessed 7/10/17, GDI-JG)

During the school year 2009-2010, one in four Black students and nearly one in five Hispanic students still attended high schools where graduating was not the norm (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES] 2013). Furthermore, a study from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government shows that a mere 11% of Black students and 15% of Hispanic students were well-advanced in math, as opposed to 42% of Whites and 50% of Asians (Love 2011). And in reading, only 13% of Black students and 4% of Hispanic students were proficient, compared with 40% of White students and 41% of Asian students (Love 2011). The data indicate that the racial and ethnic gap in academic achievement represents the significant educational disparities among different populations in the United States. Thus, what are the major factors causing achievement disparities? One of the most important answers is often attributed to race.∂ Throughout the history of the United States, race has existed as a set of interpretative codes and meanings that operate in the interactions of every aspect of life (Kozol 1991; Kozol 2006; Lipman 2003; Murrell 2008; Nieto 2005; Pollock 2010). In spite of the abolition of slavery, the decision of Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, racial segregation and inequality continue to affect the quality of education nationwide (Carter and Welner 2013; Kozol 1991; Kozol 2006; Murrell 2008; Ravitch 2010). Racial categorizing is never a finished product; instead, it functions as a powerful, dynamic, and artificial context that applies to each individual. Public education plays a role in the production of race as a social category through both implicit and explicit lessons and practices. Racial inequality has consistently been a troublesome and disheartening reality in the U.S. education system, and it deprives many children of equal opportunity (Lipman 2003; Nieto 2005; Putnam 2015).∂ Today, numerous states’ public schools remain nearly as segregated as in earlier years, especially in urban communities where Black children are in the majority (Carter and Welner 2013; Pollock 2010). In many metropolitan areas, White children exclusively attend suburban public schools or private academies; by contrast, Black children primarily attend public schools in the city (Holme 2002; Murrell 2008). Continued school segregation leads to divided resources, low taxpayer support, and poor quality of education in these urban schools. Additionally, reformers often ignore racial segregation and accept it as inevitable. The consequences have been devastating for educational attainment and continuing economic disparities between racial groups.