The National Education Policy Center publishes reviews of research and reports from think tanks and advocacy groups.
In this post, Professor Jaekyung Lee of SUNY, Buffalo, reviews a report from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute on the academic progress of children of color. To the surprise and delight of many, including me, TBF concluded that poverty reduction played a role in the academic gains in the past two decades.
Reviewed
by:
Jaekyung Lee
University at Buffalo, SUNY
November 2019
Executive Summary
A recent Fordham report highlights the historic academic progress of Black and Hispanic
groups over the past two decades at the elementary school level on the NAEP exam. From
this, the report offers the major claim, based on its author’s eyeball test, that the academic
progress of students of color is attributable “mostly” to poverty reduction. The report, how-
ever, also acknowledges that correlation is not causation and calls for systematic statistical
analysis to test the author’s proposition. This review responds to that call by examining the
validity of the report’s arguments around progress and causes, looking to expanded data
sources, including both family income and school expenditures. The review notes uneven
patterns of achievement among grade levels and refutes the report’s claim that flat achieve-
ment trends among 12th graders are a result of dropout reductions. My own analysis with
data suggests that poverty reduction has indeed been important, as has increased school
funding. Further, I raise critical questions about national progress towards both excellence
and equity. First, academic progress at the elementary school level is undercut by an off-
setting slump at the high school level. Second, in spite of the greater academic progress of
Black and Hispanic groups during the 1990s and 2000s, Black-White and Hispanic-White
achievement gaps remain substantial across all grades in core subjects. Third, despite prog-
ress in poverty reduction, racial inequalities in social and educational opportunities as well
as racial differences in economic returns to educational investment persist. Overall, the re-
port helpfully brings attention to the significant academic progress of Black and Hispanic
students over the past two decades, although it is incorrect to downplay the persisting racial
gaps or the phenomenon of the high school slump.
Key Review Takeaway: Report emphasizes significant academic progress of Black and Hispanic students over the past two decades, but is incorrect in downplaying the persisting racial gaps or the phenomenon of the high school slump.
Find Documents:
Publication Announcement:https://nepc.info/node/10079
NEPC Review:https://nepc.colorado.edu/thinktank/achievement
Report Reviewed:https://fordhaminstitute.org/national/research/fewer-children-left-behind
Diane Ravitch's blog 
What is the operational definition of achievement gap closure? Does or would application of the definition signal existence of achievement gaps between Black and Hispanic? Or between any other ethnicities or so-called races other than White-Black and White-Hispanic?
Gaps on standardized tests never close. They are normed on a bell curve. The bell curve is designed never to close.
an essential point
If Trump’s favorite FAUX News reports this, then the Orange BigMac will claim this only happened because he is president and children of color and their parents love him for it.
To the Orange BigMac, the timeline is meaningless. All that counts is the report came out when he was president; then he takes credit for any gains.
Instead of testing students ad nauseam looking for miracles, we should raise wages as Bernie and Warren have suggested. All students will do better in school if their families do better economically. It makes sense that a family with more resources will be better able to provide for the children.
No doubt about it. A family with more resources has disposable cash to pay tutors.
Both rising wages and public schools are linked to democracy. Subsistence wages create reliance on religion/theocracy.
Off topic
Howard Fuller is from Louisiana where he attended St. Boniface Catholic Parochial School. He is currently at Marquette University (Catholic) in Wisconsin. Freedom from Religion Foundation reports, “In Wisconsin 90.57% of schools participating in the states’ 3 voucher programs are religious.”
The federal minimum wages is worth 31% less today than it was in 1968, 17% less than 10 years ago.
Bill Gates has spoken out against raising the minimum wage. He lives in the state that has the most regressive tax system in the nation. The poor pay a rate up to 7 times that of the Gates family.
Acton Institute (Elizabeth Yeh- 2017), “Time for Catholics to Reconsider Their Support for Minimum Wage”.
The bishops are clearly politicized to get public funds for their schools. What did they actively do, in the political arena, to increase minimum wage, federally and in states, from 2017 to 2019?