Inequity in American Education of the Poor: Part 3

To ensure students are mastering the skills necessary to be college or career ready, measuring of academic success materialized. However, most racial and ethnic subgroups of children have improved their scores over time, performed better on mathematics, reading and science measures.  Nevertheless, the achievement gap causes critic to blame the public education for failing to teach the poor students. For every critic pointing out the failures of the system, there’s a success story to be told that outlines the progress public education has made. 

The U.S. Department of Education released a report in December 2011, documenting that school districts across our country are unevenly distributing their state and local funds, shortchanging schools that serve low-income students.  The report reveals for the first time the extent of inequity in our nation’s per-pupil expenditures from state and local sources among the schools within a school district. 

 

Weber was an early researcher to the literature school inequity.  In his 1971 study of four effective inner-city schools, Weber focused on reading achievement that was clearly successful for poor children on the basis of national norms.  All four schools had strong leadership and the principal was instrumental in setting the tone of the school; helped decide on instructional strategies; and organizing and distributing the school's resources.  All four schools had "high expectations" for all students.  All four schools had an orderly, relatively quiet, and pleasant atmosphere.  All four schools strongly emphasized pupil acquisition of reading skills and reinforced that emphasis by careful and frequent evaluation of pupil progress.