Achievement Gap In Schools Seems Difficult to Close

Achievement Gap In Schools Seems Difficult to Close

A report recently released by the Council of the Great City Schools shows that only 12 percent of black male, fourth-grade students read at a proficient level, while 40 percent of their white peers possess proficient level reading skills. When it comes to educational drive and motivation, black male students are nearly two times more likely to drop out of high school than their white male counterparts.

The achievement gap between young black and white students has existed for some time now. Researchers and theorists have long observed the gap and worked towards breeching it, but a clear solution to the problem has yet to be reached.

James Earl Davis, Interim Dean, College of Education at Temple University recently spoke with Neal Conan from National Public Radio to discuss his take on the report, and to attempt to identify a cause for the gap in academic achievement between racial classes. Davis thinks such a gap does exist in part due to the actions or non-actions of students themselves, but also due to the actions, or lack thereof, among school administrators and teachers. So, says Davis, any solution to the problem must involve parties on both sides taking responsibility for students' academic progress.

Davis suggests that while schools need to acknowledge and respect the individual strengths that their students have, they must also aim to provide opportunities for black male students to learn how to be successful academically. Teacher expectations have proved to be just as important as the expectations that a student holds for himself.

When attempting to increase academic performance among young, black male students, persistence in solving the issue is key. The education gap has existed for decades and Davis feels that although the problem hasn't been solved, it often slips off of America's radar and simply reappears at a later time. Davis recalled a New York Times Magazine from 1995, which made headlines for featuring a black man on the cover and he also mentioned current philanthropic efforts being aimed toward correcting poor achievement of black men in schools. "I think these efforts are critically important, but this has to be a sustained effort to alleviate these disparities," he said.

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