Children who lack access to quality education quickly fall behind academically compared to their peers. This is largely the result of economic and housing segregation. Children from low income communities attend local schools in their neighborhoods, which often have crowded classrooms, limited resources, and inexperienced teachers. In contrast, school funding is more plentiful in neighborhoods with expensive homes, so children from these areas have have access to the best resources.
A stark example of residential segregation and its effects on school quality can be found in New York City, which has one of the most segregated school systems in the nation. The lack of equity in New York public school systems has led to a wider achievement gap among whites and students of color in New York City. A study in the Bronx compared the differences in resources between two junior high schools. The study profiled one school, which was located in the middle class Riverdale section. The other was in the South Bronx, the poorest congressional district in the country. Unlike at the Riverdale School, there were many uncertified teachers in the South Bronx School. Teachers were teaching courses in subjects where they had no educational background. An overwhelming number of students in the Riverdale School were white, while the students in the South Bronx School were black and Latino. This lack of resources is the reason why achievement gap will continue to widen between whites and people of color unless alternative policies are implemented.
In the current system, children from low income families are forced to pay the price for something that they have no control over – and this strongly impacts their future opportunities. For example, a CUNY professor told my class a story about how one of his former students failed a placement exam for reading and writing. This student ended up failing, not because he did not know the material, but because he had little familiarity with using computers and was slow finding numbers and letters on the keyboard. This just shows that students in low-income schools have the potential to learn, but they can’t reach their full potential due to lack of resources.
Unfortunately, local policies are making things worse. In New York City, there are policies that essentially prevent children from poor families from attending specialized high schools in New York City. Among the eight highest rated high schools in the city, only 11 percent of students are black and Latino, despite the fact that over 70 percent of all public high school students are black and Latino. This discrepancy is because prospective students are required to take admission exams to get into these schools — exams that their elementary and middle school didn’t prepare them for. Increasingly, these schools are for students from affluent families. And because race and class are so intertwined, these policies disproportionally affect people of color.
There are couple policy alternatives that can be taken to help close the achievement gap. One possible solution is to hire qualified teachers that students from low-income backgrounds can identify with and relate. Additionally, providing students from low-income households with additional resources, such as a tutoring center in their neighborhoods, mentorship programs, and free internet, would also be helpful. Other solutions would be to instate year-round school, so students won’t forget what they are learning during year over summer break. Last but not least, creating a non-partisan watchdog group that makes sure resources are shared equally between all public schools regardless of socioeconomic status would be helpful to start closing the racial achievement gap.
If this achievement gap is not closed soon, millions of Americans will drop out due to the failing school system, which will impact the U.S. economy drastically. Instead of bringing up educated, hardworking Americans who have the option to find decent careers as a result of their education, there will be more people depending on government housing and food stamps. The more educated people in society, the better the country will be economically.
This change will require major effort. In addition to the innovations discussed above, the U.S. needs to figure out a way to create more effective school leaders and a commitment to educational leadership. Children are the future, and it is vital for them to receive quality education regardless of their race and social class.