The Quiet Crisis: Major Achievement Gaps Between Minority and White High School Graduates
The Quiet Crisis: Major Achievement Gaps Between Minority and White High School Graduates
Researchers studying the nation’s high school dropout rates fight about the gaps in graduation rates between African-American and Latino students and white students, but ignore the huge gaps in achievement among graduates.
Nationally, African-American and Latino 17 year-olds in school perform at the same level as 13 year-old white high school students on the 2004 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading and math tests. So a high school diploma means a lot less for many these students than for white students because they are under-prepared for college:
Only 40.8 percent of African-American and 37.3 percent of Hispanic high school graduates enroll in college, whereas 47.4 percent of whites enroll.
Fewer than half of the African-American and Hispanic students enroll in college will actually graduate.
The crisis in today’s high schools are as much about poor preparation of high school graduates, especially of minority students, as dropout rates. Researchers and the media need to start looking at both issues more intensively.
(Sherman Dorn, EduWonk, and Let’s Get It Right have more.)
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49 Responses to “The Quiet Crisis: Major Achievement Gaps Between Minority and White High School Graduates”
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Bbuuttt we have had no child left behind for three or four years now..did that not fix all the problems..georgie promised it would….
May 26th, 2006 at 4:58 pmYou “mis-dispronounciated” it, #1 - it’s “No WHITE child left behind” - Bushie wouldn’t want them blacks getting an edumacation, now would he? >_
May 26th, 2006 at 5:03 pmJust a simple question: What would make more Hispanic and Blacks enroll in college? Yes it is not free but if you have the imitative to go, there are always ways to pay for it. Hell if you’re a minority and want to attend college they will literally throw money at you. As for performance, that has more to do with the local school board than the government. I mean they have time to conduct die-ins, rallies for illegal immigrants, and gay enlightenment seminars. Maybe it’s time to open say a math, English, or science book and start teaching the kids something useful OUTSIDE liberal academia? Yes I know I must be a Nazi racists for suggesting that people actually take responsibility fro their own life, but that’s just the way I am. Just a quick question for the peanut gallery that haven’t attended college: Why?
May 26th, 2006 at 5:14 pmThe issue goes even deeper , Cindy
Our children learning is not just up to the schools, but the parents AND the kids themselves. It all starts at home and what their parents show them. ( the TV is not a good babysitter )
When the child is young, before they ever go to school is when the child needs to be brought up with a curiosity about the world. Teach them to ask questions and look for their own answers.
From elementary school up, learning has to be made fun for the kids as well.
By the time they are in High School, it is too late, unless the kids themselves decide to make the effort. You can throw facts at them all day, but they learn only if they want to.
It all begins at home.
May 26th, 2006 at 5:14 pmMinority Child Left Behind
May 26th, 2006 at 5:16 pmwould like to hear comments about how to fix this. like to hear from Bill Cosby on the subject, Edward James Olmos, and others as to possible reasons. Is education bad because we have no funding? no doubt in the world and it has to be 99% of the issue. But if people live in poverty, and their schools are starving for attention as well, what the hell are we going to do about it?
may one submit an idea? the old story still sounds pretty good; “what if the air force had to hold a bake sale to get a bomber because the schools were funded to their utmost first, and there just wasn’t enough money?”
May 26th, 2006 at 5:20 pm#3 nice distraction but the question is not why they do not enroll but why they disporportionately are prepared for it. And if you did not have your neo-con post nazi brain ingear you would ask what is going to be the result of undereducating larger and larger segfments of our society given the global competition that China India Brazil and the EU are going to offer the US. Some times spending a little more on their education would result on spending a whole lot less on incarcerating them for decades later. But you repug idiots stgraign pennies todaty not worring about the dollars that will cost later..things like throwing money away for a OPTIONAL war in Iraq instead of fully educating all children…
May 26th, 2006 at 5:22 pmYes I know I must be a Nazi racists …..
Comment by Retired Republican Soldier
Naw, just a bigot.
May 26th, 2006 at 5:23 pmYou just had to add a barb on Gays, when the post had nothing to do with it.
#3: I’m actually not in college yet, but that’s because I’m 16. A trifle bit harder it is to get in college before being able to vote, isn’t it? ^_^
May 26th, 2006 at 5:25 pmFor years, studies have shown that SATs and GREs and all other standardized test favor American-born WASP males. Considering the authors of NCLB, it only makes sense that their criteria and tests favor AB WASPs as well.
Though, even if the test were fair for all - there is still a cultural bias in this country that sees minorities and woman as second class citizens. As long as that practice remains, NCLB won’t make any more of a difference than any other American-born WASP male directive…
Time for equal representation in this country!
May 26th, 2006 at 5:32 pmUnfortunately, a HUGE part of the problem are those that want to water down the achievement of non-majority students at ALL levels, accomodating low academic performance, and insisting that they pass their classes, be accepted into post-secondary schools, and given degrees.
The answer to this problem is not to expect less from the most disadvantaged among us — but that is actually what the system does from k-12 and post-secondary schools too. This compounds the problem because schools are never held accountable for working with their neediest stuents and delivering the academic skills that they proclaim are so important.
May 26th, 2006 at 5:35 pmTime for equal representation in this country!
Comment by unbelievable — May 26, 2006 @ 5:32 pm
That means only about 2-3% of the congress can be criminal…boy the repugs won’t like that ,with so many of them already caught, the rest will have top go home, given the culture of corruption that runs rapid in that party
May 26th, 2006 at 5:38 pmNCLB was designed to be a recruiting tool, plain and simple. Once they amassed those first few million phone numbers, they gutted it and refused to pay for the testing, then hired that GOP stooge Williams to tout the gutted version.
Btw, I have some preliminary thoughts up about the Hayden confirmation. I guess when blogger stops being a dink, the majors like this one will post things on it.
May 26th, 2006 at 5:45 pmI was at NIC in Couer d’Alene on Wednesday for my son’s orientation, and the guy leading the parents around, so we wouldn’t hover over our little darlings, said that 92% of freshmen take remedial math. I was floored. The minority thing doesn’t hold water because this is pasty white rice cake Idaho, so maybe it’s just Idaho? Jeebus…
May 26th, 2006 at 5:47 pmMinorities are closing the gap in achievement when it comes to at least science in elementary school, though. It’s not all negative news, it is both positive and negative.
May 26th, 2006 at 6:04 pmThat means only about 2-3% of the congress can be criminal…boy the repugs won’t like that ,with so many of them already caught, the rest will have top go home, given the culture of corruption that runs rapid in that party
Comment by Clif — May 26, 2006 @ 5:38 pm
That would be an added bonus! Can we implement it immediately - say starting November 7th or so? :)
May 26th, 2006 at 6:10 pmIt would make my day in november or right now…
May 26th, 2006 at 6:29 pmI appreciate TP’s hard work but what with bush and the signing statements people seem to have lost focus on these issues because in the end Bush will make another signing statement, he has yet still to this day to veto anything.
May 26th, 2006 at 6:32 pmBob Somerby (The Daily Howler) has written about the NCLB and related issues for some time. One of his themes has been state testing vs. the NAEP results. State test scores have shown recent gains but the national test scores have been flat for 13 years. (10/25/05).
May 26th, 2006 at 7:21 pmFurther,his point is that disadvantaged kids start school behind. Unlike middle class kids who start 1st grade knowing numbers,letters and some reading,minority kids don’t. Quoting the study by the Center for American Progress (12/02/05): “Young low-income and minority children are more likely to start school without having gained important school readiness skills,such as recognizing letters and counting. By the 4th grade,low-income students read about 3 grade levels behind non-poor students.”
It’s no wonder high school minority and poor students have difficulties after graduating,most had difficulties all through school. See Somerby’s series (2/22,2/23,2/24,2/28 and 3/1/06) about the LA Times stories concerning a young girl in an LA school ho left school just short of graduation because she failed Algebra 1,6 times!
A lot of the reduced education in minorities and the poor are also linked with poor nutrition. When the young are malnurished and hungry their attention span is shorter, compound that with extreme working poor, more than one job and a lower education among the parents and more generations are continuing on a recicle path. The answer lies in teaching the parents and lifting them and their children. Feed and educate. It is a fact also that the better educated have a lower amount of children, and are better able to take care of the one’s they have …..Blessings
May 26th, 2006 at 9:18 pmThat’s right lemmings throw MORE money at it and that will solve the problem. If your looking for the inverse of the laffer curve look at schools where we spend the most money and the grad/college entry rates. Money is not the problem or answer RESPOSIBILITY is the answer.
May 26th, 2006 at 10:06 pmHay Ret, Rep, Vet, Just in case you haven’t noticed all the house and senate voting for the last 7 years, ( five of which your elustrious decider and the republicans have controled) our country has been on a borrow and spend like drunken soldiers all that time. Our infastructure, schools, home security and everything has gone to shit because of the massive cuts to all our needed services to give more tax cuts to the rich, give aways to big oil, Hmo’s, pharmacudicals and every piece of crap legislation that only benefits big business, graft and greed. All this is to promote a pre-emtive unnecessary war in Iraq, which incidently has also always hit the republican chopping block to the point parents had to buy gear for their own son’s and daughters, injured vet’s have been charged for their hospital stays and many of their famalies are living in poverty and have to get food stamps.
I am sick and tired of people who haven’t been paying attention, critisizing those of us who have been fighting for our troops even though we don’t want this war . Spewing your right winged crap and acting like you are in the know just because you think you know how thing realy are do not make it so. I have been watching the votes in the house and senate for years and am here to tell you, you need to watch for your self and then come back and tell us your point of view…….Schools across our nation have been saddled with an unfunded night mare with bush’s “no child left behind ” farce. Just like this administration ” clean air”, clear skies. Educate your self and stop the bigot, right winged crap…..One last thing while I am chastizing you……….This administrations response of N.O. and Katrina….In the 4 and a half day’s before bush responded, i had sent out tons of screaming emails to all representatives, Just what have you done for your country lately, except bash librals and the less fortunat than your self. First we must feed our nation and her people, educate and lift up the ones in need. Bring back our constitution, civil rights and real law and order. Rid our selves of the corrupt polaticians on all sides and get us out from this stagering debt, No more wars is part of the answer, especialy the one this administration has against it’s own people……
May 26th, 2006 at 10:50 pmRESPOSIBILITY is the answer.
Comment by Retired Republcan Veteran — May 26, 2006 @ 10:06 pm
RESPONSIBILLITY of the system which values money over people…responsibility of people who would rather get $50 in a tax cut instead of making sure the children of this nation are actually educated…responsibility of people who purport to be christian to live as HE commanded….care for the poor not the rich…giving like the poor woman not the rich ….having a god you are committed to not money(you can not serve both…Christ said so)…responsibility for the future not this minute..like not running the national debt to 8.4 trillion and asking the same children you skimped on their education to pay your bills..RIGHT?
May 26th, 2006 at 11:06 pm“No matter what your intelligence or social background,
watching a lot of television during childhood means you
are a lot less likely to have a degree by your mid-twenties,
according to new University of Otago research.”
http://www.otago.ac.nz/ news/ news/ 2005/ 05-07-05_press_release.html
“Third graders with a bedroom television scored significantly
lower on the Stanford Achievement Test than those without…”
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/Parenting/tb/1303
And there are more studies linking heavy childhood TV viewing
with low achievement. See: http://www.tvsmarter.com
I’ve read that African American children (on average) watch
May 27th, 2006 at 5:05 amsubstantially more TV than white kids. This would more than
explain the disparity.
#22 - Sharon, RRS won’t budge until he’s feeling the pain personally. Good post, though!
May 27th, 2006 at 11:39 amThese people have no hope of anything meanful in their life. So lets put military recruiters in the high schools to channel these individuals into the armed services. They can learn to fight our dirty little wars so Buffy and Reggie, and reat of the rich white republican kids can go to college and continue the privilaged society.
May 27th, 2006 at 11:46 amThank’s Zookeeper. I just have to vent sometimes. The saying ” to bad being stupid isn’t painful, a lot of people would be in a world of hurt” seems to apply. Sad to me that a lazy mind by an adult is a choice. And to think they vote is our problem and the problem of future generations if there are to be any….To be so selfish and deny people education, food, and freedom is almost as bad as sending our young off to an unjust war in Iraq and ignoring hundreds of thousands of our own in a disaster.. I’m ready to march and riot at this point….Blessings
May 27th, 2006 at 12:48 pmI used to teach in one of the low performing, inner city schools. Why the minority kids are not acheiving is complex. There isn’t one factor that can be easily fixed.
I personally think that Schwartenegger has it correct when he says that good after-school programs are critical. This is one thing that could be done that would have a major impact. Many of the kids in my class went home to sit in front of the television. Most of them didn’t go out to play because their parents were afraid for them to. I had a child whose mother was pulling herself up the socio-eco ladder and she decided to put her child in an after -school program. She said I hope it’s worth it because its costing me a lot. I think it was. I saw her daughter’s academic performance increase a great deal. We want children to run an academic marathon; but they are couch potatoes.
Family instability is also a factor. How is a kid supposed to concentrate in school when mom got beat up by her boyfriend last night, or big brother was arrested for dealing drugs, or uncle was shot and killed in gang activity. These problems stem from the families themselves and the community. I think it did help a lot to cut increased payments to welfare recipients who have more children. It drained the financial incentive to have kids for money.
Racial bigotry comes in many forms. We developed a strict behavior policy at our school. It called for expulsion of students who blasted through the consequences. In a 500 student school, we needed to expell about 5 kids. We weren’t able to because the district wouldn’t allow it. Those five kids drug another 20 kids along in highly disruptive behavior. One day the district person on discipline came to talk to the teachers. I told him that we had behaviors that in an upper-socio eco area the kids would have been expelled long ago. ( I knew of specific cases.) He told me that the difference was socio-eco. We had different demographics. That infuriated me on the part of all the good parents and struggling students who had to contend with the 1% who were actively working at disrupting the class. That, to me, is real bigotry and prejudice; the belief that minorities can not work hard and behave in socially responsible manners.
Text book manufactures rule our school system. Huge amounts of money are wasted in the US each year, buying new text book series that make big promises. The pendulum swings back and forth on teaching strategies. That’s how you sell text books. The money should be spent on teachers (not pay raises, more teachers) and support staff.
Teachers should have a lot more say in education. Its such a political ball. Everyone remembers about being in school, and most people think they know all about teaching and learning. But it is different when you are the teacher. Finland made a big overhaul in their schools and have met with success. They turned it over to the teachers, not to the textbook manufactures and politicians.
I don’t see any way that you can reward good teachers financially and I don’t think you need to. The real rewards in being a good teacher is seeing your kids get it. More money would drive greed, manipulation and cheating. Teachers should be paid a good living wage; they don’t need to be made rich.
Sharon
May 27th, 2006 at 1:44 pmWords like “self-confidence,” “self-reliance,” “initiative”, “enterprise,” “optimism,” etc. play little role in the liberal and leftist vocabulary. The leftist is anti-individualistic, pro-collectivist. He wants society to solve everyone’s needs for them, take care of them. He is not the sort of person who has an inner sense of confidence in his own ability to solve his own problems and satisfy his own needs. The leftist is antagonistic to the concept of competition because, deep inside, he feels like a loser.
May 27th, 2006 at 2:17 pmSharon, very good post and true……Ted, your post sounds like a narrow right winged bigots opinion……Is it.?
May 27th, 2006 at 2:35 pmI’m from Texas so I can tell you a lot about why the hispanic numbers are so low. Most hispanics I went to school with could care less about college. They only go to school because they’re required to. They will even tell you that. For the group that does care, about half of them know very little English. This makes them very difficult to teach since tests and materials are in English. Learning English is not encouraged at home either. Their main reason for being there is to accompany their father while he’s working on a job to send money to Mexico for the rest of their relatives. Moving up and being successful is not viewed as being important in Mexico. Mexicans are very happy just to be doing the jobs most of them are doing now. Desire to be successful comes later when they’ve picked up more on American culture. This is a common theme of most new groups of immigrants who’ve come to America throughout history.
May 27th, 2006 at 2:39 pmTed;
May 27th, 2006 at 2:44 pmHow is that last diatribe relevant to the discussion? Perhaps if we considered what works for schools? After school programs so that students would have a safe place to study? More libraries and more books? School lunch and breakfast programs. No TVs in bedrooms? Tutoring programs? Somethings do require money, books don’t come free nor space for afterschool programs.
Skeptic - by failing you see the relevance, you are further provide evidence of the notion.
May 28th, 2006 at 1:28 amDING DING DING DING DING DING
…………………….Ted……………………
May 28th, 2006 at 2:53 amI suppose you idiots think the NAACP is trying to keep minorities down as well since the CT NAACP supports NCLB or do you lib crackers think they are too stupid to know better?
http://www.nhregister.com/ site/ news.cfm?newsid=16034092&BRD=1281&PAG=461&dept_id=566835&rfi=6
May 28th, 2006 at 7:34 amIf I remember correctly Sen Kennedy sponsored the act. I suppose he too is a stupid racist chimp?
May 28th, 2006 at 8:37 amI find it interesting that most consider the education problem to be how few minority children go to college and how to get all children ready to enter college. That is not the problem. To me, it is the universal prejudice against vocational trades. They are not valued (until the water goes off). If we valued all skilled or unskilled for that matter, workers. We would realize that the best preparation a school system can give a child is one where they are taught basic general information that an adult needs to know, ( that does not include algebra II), team work, work ethics, pride in accomplishment, and a basic healthy lifestyle.
May 28th, 2006 at 10:11 amI cannot imagine a society where no child is left behind, meaning one where every child goes to college and gains a “professional” degree. I look forward to the day where a school board stands up and says we will do what is best for the child.
The leftist is antagonistic to the concept of competition because, deep inside, he feels like a loser.
Comment by Ted — May 27, 2006 @ 2:17 pm
You have it backwards. As usual for you neocon trolls. It is self-confidence that allows people to have relationships withother people. We are, after all, social creatures. It is the lack of self-esteem in those on the right that makes them see their neighbors, friends, family and everyone else as competition to be challenged, feared. loathed.
By valuing yourself - you come to value others. Thought that appreciation for others, we can work together, support one another, and build communities that help the least among us in times of need. It’s not that we ‘expect’ this - it is that we want this, and so it is how we live. You neocons try to dissect our way of life and impose your own inner loathing and fear upon our systems. It is why you do not understand them - or us really.
How do I know this? Experience. I was a conservative for most of my life. It wasn’t until I learned self-value that I became a liberal. You should try it. Much better way of life to live within a community of those who value life than among those who see everyone else as competition. Less stress, less health issues, and less anger. Sure, you have less things this way, but who nees more ‘things’? I’ll tell you - someone with no inner peace.
Liberalism is the key to longevity in life. Not that we expect you to understand. Just keep your ignorance to yourself - like all your other ‘possessions’.
May 28th, 2006 at 11:37 amTeachers should be paid a good living wage; they don’t need to be made rich.
Comment by Sharon — May 27, 2006 @ 1:44 pm
Excellent post!
May 28th, 2006 at 11:39 amI was going to reply to Ted, but trading insults with him would be as sensible as wrestling with pigs.
May 28th, 2006 at 1:07 pmI wish we had vocational educational programs for adults too so that people who graduate from college with a useless degree could learn a skill. I wouldn’t like to see a “vocational track” as that used to be a way of segregating poor children to a second class education, but some vocational courses would be a good thing for those who plan to use those skills after graduation and those who are just curious.
gee could it maybe be that “minority” kids just are not as smart as caucasian kids?? With all the money and affirmitive action and other programs these “minorities” get they could all get doctorates.
June 10th, 2006 at 4:15 pmthose eveil white people are keeping them down right? Look at what an absolute shit- hole Africa is compared to most other countries. People don’t want to face facts and the truth abouit certain things just blame white men.
if it wasn’t for white men this world would still be living in the stone age. Yet the white guy is always the problem.
go ahead all you “progressives” here let the attacks begin. but the truth is still the truth.
this site sucks! and no child left behind doesnt work!
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