Achievement Gap Essay

Words: 926
Pages: 4

The Achievement gap between the Rich and the Poor It seems logical to suggest that education is the great equalizer. However, this does not show (need to explain). It shows that it is getting harder and harder for poor kids to get an education. The achievement gap is defined as the income difference between a child from a family at the 90th percentile of the family income distributed and a child from a family at the 10th percentile (Reardon 91). Families with 90th percentile earn 11 times as much as families in the 10th percentile. Low income students as a group have performed less well than high income students in: standardized tests, high school completion rates, grades, high School completion rates, college enrollment and completion rates …show more content…
In this paper I will examine why the income achievement gap between different classes has grown over the years, with reference to the fact that high income families have more resources to invest in their children, higher income families live in better school districts with better schools, and lastly I will challenge the myth that poor parents are uninvolved in their …show more content…
Segregation by income is still common for housing markets. Compared with wealthier families’ poor kids are more likely to attend schools that have less funding, more limited computer and internet access, lower teacher salaries, larger class sizes, higher student to teacher ratios, less rigorous curriculum and fewer experienced teaches (Gorski 35) According to the research done by The National Commission on Teaching and America’s future it showed that low income schools are more likely to have rat and Cockroach infestations. The schools are most likely to have other issues such as dirty or bathrooms that don work at all, large numbers of teacher vacancies or substitute teachers, more teachers who are not certified in their teaching field, insufficient or outdated classroom materials, poor or non existing learning facilities, such as science labs (Gorski 35). These are all characteristics and problems that most wealthy schools will not