Race, SES and achievement gaps

Authors
Susanna Loeb
Year of publication
2007
Publication
Handbook of Research in Education Finance and Policy
Publisher
Routledge Press
Editors
Section Editor In H.F. Ladd & E.B. Fiske (Eds.)
Pages
499-518
Racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in academic achievement remain a stubborn fact of schooling in the United States. National studies consistently show that the average non-Hispanic black student scores well below the average non-Hispanic white student on standardized tests of math and reading skills, as does the average Hispanic student. Likewise, the average student from a low-income family scores much lower on such tests than students from higher-income fami-lies. Considerable attention has been focused on achievement gaps, particularly the black-white achievement gap. Scholars and educators have suggested a number of possible explanations for these gaps, and policy makers, principals, and teachers have tried a range of remedies. As this chapter documents, however, the gaps persist despite these efforts. Moreover, our understanding of the causes and patterns of these achievement gaps is far from complete.

Suggested Citation

Loeb, S. (2007). Race, SES and achievement gaps. Handbook of Research in Education Finance and Policy. Routledge Press, 499-518