No (White) Child Left Behind
Greeting the first black president on his 100th day milestone is the news that the racial achievement gap is as wide as ever, according to results from the most recently administered federal educational proficiency test.
From the New York Times:
The achievement gap between white and minority students has not narrowed in recent years, despite the focus of the No Child Left Behind law on improving the scores of blacks and Hispanics, according to results of a federal test considered to be the nation’s best measure of long-term trends in math and reading proficiency.
Duh.
That’s not really news to anyone paying attention.
There is a spark of clarity embedded in this “news,” though, however subtle:
Between 2004 and last year, scores for young minority students increased, but so did those of white students, leaving the achievement gap stubbornly wide, despite President George W. Bush’s frequent assertions that the No Child law was having a dramatic effect.
Ironically, equality in teaching and in testing yields disparate impact among the races. Which is another way of saying that equal opportunity does not equal outcome make.
Specious and half-hearted attempts at closing the gap simply do not close the gap – they merely raise scores across the board (probably artificially, at that), leaving unchanged the gap itself.
One this milestone day for the Obamas, what separates them from most black people is choice. The hallmark of the left, the Obamas have choice – and they use it to erase the achievement gap for their daughters.
It’s working, but at who’s expense?
Sasha and Malia Obama will probably be, like their parents, exceptions to the rule – exceptional because choice excepted them from falling into the gap.
The Obama girls will likely break barriers – the first black this, the first black that – but those achievements will be because of, not in spite of, the achievement gap.
The “first” that makes possible the rest of the firsts? They’re among the first black students permitted the choice to close their own achievement gaps.
Comments
By j potter on April 29th, 2009 at 9:36 am
more useful might be a comparison on student’s family income. Also does “minority” include groups like asians that typically test above thenorm? Finally, how many students in these tests use english as a second language?
By Laurin on April 29th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Another trip down the rabbit hole for Mande’s Adventures in Wonderland!
“The Obama girls will likely break barriers – the first black this, the first black that – but those achievements will be because of, not in spite of, the achievement gap.
The “first” that makes possible the rest of the firsts? They’re among the first black students permitted the choice to close their own achievement gaps.”
What in the world does that even mean? Their achievements will be because of the achievement gap? What are you talking about? Among the first black students permitted the choice to close their own achievement gap? Huh? Step out of the metaphor and look around and you’ll see that your writing lacks any sense of coherence.
By Thomas on April 29th, 2009 at 3:33 pm
The achievement gaps have more to do with income levels than race. Lower income families (black, white, hispanic etc.) score lower than higher income families of any race; including the Obamas. Malia and Sasha are no exception to children in their family’s income bracket.
By Mande Wilkes on April 29th, 2009 at 4:23 pm
Laurin -
There are others who Mande-bash way better than you do. Leave it to them.
- Mande
By Pat Hendrix on April 29th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
“Ironically, equality in teaching and in testing yields disparate impact among the races. Which is another way of saying that equal opportunity does not equal outcome make.”
Aside from it not really being irony, this sentence is misleading to say the least. The gap in race and income is reflected not just in public schools, but also in private schools. In fact, there are several studies in the past five years that suggest public school do better than private schools when income is factored into the equation. Of course Mande isn’t going to mention those. Rather than concede her argument might be specious, she conveniently discards the facts.
Honey, you will be a star in the Republican women’s writing circuit. Just dye the hair blonde and presto: Best seller.
PS: Here are a couple of articles – yes, in the Grey Lady (shudder).
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/15/education/15report.html
http://educationwonk.blogspot.com/2006/01/private-vs-public-schools-some.html
By Mande Wilkes on April 29th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Pat -
What makes you think I’m a fan of private schools?
The only private school system worth a damn is the Waldorf method. Montessori I like too, but unfortunately it doesn’t go past the elementary level.
If those options aren’t available or afforable, then home school is usually the only acceptable method.
Of course, these are only my personal preferences. The presence of choice is the point, not necessarily what one does with that choice.
- Mande
P.S. – Blonde doesn’t become me. Neither does Republicanism.
By baker on April 29th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
I, too, have trouble deciphering the writing/logic of all this.
The Obama girls will be the “first black this, first black that”? That is an odd assertion. Their dad was just elected President, and their mom is the first black First Lady. In the professional and educational and sports and entertainment ranks — and now in the highest political ranks — there have been all sorts of barriers broken….many of them long ago. So the notion that the Obama’s daughters will be barrier-breakers doesn’t seem to me to hold much water.
And what’s this about “their achievement gaps”? What evidence is there that these girls themselves are on the wrong side of the achievement gap?
I’ll leave aside for now the reality that the vast majority of the predominantly white and wealthy private schools in our state have no interest in tackling the achievement gap….
By Reeta on April 30th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
I feel that you should not classify minoriities into groups. What you should realize is that we are all Americans regardless of racial background or color. Hispanics, African-American or whatever else race has just as much as a chance of being successful in life then a Caucasian person. You should realize that is not about our choice of living, but by the goodness of God who leads us in life and through him we can be anything we want regardless of what man say.