Minorities and Education: The Achievement Gap in America
Introduction and Statement of Purpose
It has long been understood that the American public school system has not succeeded in providing truly equal educational opportunities for all students (Oakes, 2005). Most likely to be underserved or poorly served by this system are the children of the poor, members of minority groups, and students with special needs. Of particular interest to educational reformers are the achievement differentials observed when students from racial, ethnic, and linguistic minority groups are compared to middle class white students (Bowles & Gintis, 1976). A large body of research has supported the assertion that for a variety of reasons, American public school students belonging to minority groups are at risk for academic failure, dropout, lower achievement levels, and a host of other problems that are associated with later difficulties in maintaining employment or achieving social mobility (Sireci, DeLeon, & Washington, 2002).
Most American public school systems have been engaged in reform and restructuring efforts designed to ameliorate this situation and to generally improve learning and other outcomes that are exhibited by at-risk students and even entire communities (Jencks, Smith, Acland, Bane, Cohen, Gintis, Heynes, & Michelson, 1972). Nevertheless, these reform efforts have not fully succeeded in creating the kind of level academic playing field that is so desperately needed to improve schooling and enhance individual and group achievement (Fordham & Ojbu, 1986; Ferguson, 2000).
Any number of reasons have been advanced to explain the achievement deficits associated with minority students. Jeannie Oakes (2005) takes the position that while many at-risk children, including children from minority groups, may be less oriented toward educational success due to familial or community variables, it is also important to recognize that ...