Introduction Education experts have spent many years planning and revising learning material and assessment tools to meet the demands of diverse learners coming into the 21st century. Educators have responded to this demand by becoming more aware of the need for a multicultural education program that helps meet the needs of each diverse learner, examining their own attitudes and bias opinions toward minority students, and acknowledging the important role every stakeholder plays in providing an equal education to every learner. However, in spite of these efforts, there is still a growing concern for the achievement gap that remains evident among students. Despite some evidence of success and strong progress by black, Hispanic, and socioeconomic disadvantaged students from 1970 to 1988, the education reform efforts of the last decade have not enabled significant numbers of students to become educationally competitive or to close the gaps in achievement (Lee, 2001). The purpose of this paper is to reflect on multicultural education, the achievement gap, and unresolved issues, prospects and challenges moving through the 21st century. I will show my knowledge, through research, of the efforts and tactics educators and policy makers are being urged to consider helping narrow the academic disparities which continue to divide racial and ethnic groups moving forward. Furthermore, after viewing the required video presented by Dr. Ferguson, I will describe my views on the achievement gap, and how as a teacher, I can implement some of the suggestions and concepts of Dr. Ferguson into my classroom, school and/or district. After all, we need to arrive at mid-century with adults and children from every background feeling they have as m... ... middle of paper ... ...). Professional community and closing the student achievement gap. Advocating for What’s Right: A One-Day NEA Symposium on Critical Issues for Educators. Presentation conducted from Harvard University, Washington, D.C. Ferguson, R. F. (2011, October 15). Educational excellence with equity: A social movement for the 21st century [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_KTzDUcqrk&feature=youtu.be Lee, J. (2002). Racial and ethnic achievement gap trends: Reversing the progress toward equity? Educational Researcher, 31(1), 3-12. Manning, L. & Baruth. L. (2009). Multicultural education of children and adolescents (5th Ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Williams, B., & Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, A. A. (2003). Closing the achievement gap: A vision for changing beliefs and practices (2nd Ed.). Alexandria, VA.
Landsmen, Julie. (2004, November) Closing the Achievement Gap: Confronting the Racism of Low Expectations. Educational Leadership 62 (3).
Authors Glenn E. Singleton and Curtis Linton in Chapter Five of Courageous Conversations About Race broach the topic of race, by asking the reader to evaluate his or her own consciousness of race. According to the authors, in order to address the achievement gaps between African American students and White students, educators should shift their energy towards focusing on the factors that they have direct control of inside the classroom rather than on the factors that influence this achievement disparity between races outside the classroom.
The multicultural movement in education is deeply rooted, and the movement as we know it today dates back to the 1960s, when the civil rights movement was in full swing. Stemming from the Brown vs. Board of Education (1954) decision and out of the demand by ethnic groups to be included in public schools, colleges, and universities, the main thrust of the mo...
The theme of the research is to discover why there is such a vast educational gap between minority and Caucasian students. Many American are unaware that such an educational gap actually exists among today’s students. This article informs us of alarming statics, such as of African American students representing a majority of the special education population, despite only making up roughly 40% of the student population. It also breaks down key events that contributed to the poor education that minority children are currently receiving. For example, in the past, it was illegal to educate African Americans and when it became legal to blacks were treated as second class students. They were segregated from their white counter parts and given hand-me-down textbooks. This article also discusses others factors that contributed to the poor education of minority students such as moral principles, socio-political, and economic stat. Despite the amount of time that has past, today’s schools are similar to the past. Minority children are still in second-rate learning environments while white students enjoy the comforts of first class school buildings and textbooks. In summary, the theme of this article was to bring attention to the educational gap among African-American, Latino, Asian, and other non-white students.
The achievement gap is defined as the disparity between the performance groups of students, especially groups defined by gender, race/ethnicity, ability and socio-economic status. The achievement gap can be observed through a variety of measures including standardized test scores, grade point averages, drop out rates, college enrollment and completion rates. The Black-White achievement gap is a critical issue in modern society’s education system. Although data surrounding the issue clearly indicates that the racial performance gap exists in areas of standardized tests, graduation rates, dropout rates, and enrollment in continuing education, the causative reasons for the gap are ambiguous—therefore presenting a significant challenge in regard to the most effective way to close the gap. The gap appears before children enter kindergarten and it persists into adulthood (Jencks 1998). Since 1970, the gap has decreased about 40 percent, but has steadily grown since. Theories suggest the Black-White achievement gap is created by a multitude of social, cultural, and economic factors as well as educational opportunities and/or learning experiences. Factors such as biased testing, discrimination by teachers, test anxiety among black students, disparities between blacks and whites in income or family structure, and genetic and cultural differences between blacks and whites have all been evaluated as explanations for the Black-White achievement gap (Farkas 2004). The research that follows will elaborate on these factors as they affect the decline in academic performance of black males—particularly the literacy achievement of black males.
As the fastest growing racial or ethnic group in America's public schools, Hispanic students have the unique potential to positively affect the economic and cultural future of the United States. Ensuring the promise of this diverse group of learners requires the attention and commitment of the entire country. We must work harder to close the educational achievement gaps between Hispanic students and the nation as a whole. This must begin with high expectations for achievement, clear goals for what must be accomplished, and specific benchmarks to measure our progress.
The Achievement Gap in America has separated and divided America's youth into more or less, two different cultures of socioeconomic placement. The first being the predominantly Caucasian students at American elementary schools, high schools, and colleges that excel greatly in their education. Most of the time earning them middle to upper class jobs in the economy, the aforementioned group contrasts significantly with its opposite culture of American youth. The second culture, the population that is mostly made up of the minority races, takes it's place in the American education system as the population of students who are less interested in getting a decent education and taking advantage of the resources that are offered, for various underlying reasons. This in turn manufactures less people of this type of culture to be readily available for higher paying jobs, and often times unemployable for a job at all. The Achievement Gap in America is influenced by many cultural, environmental, and socioeconomic factors that separate lower and higher achieving students based on these factors, and leave a high amount of unemployed Americans as a result, if not incarcerated or deceased.
Achievement gaps in schools across America impinge on racial-ethnic and socioeconomic status groups. For generations school systems focus on improving the achievement gaps for low-income and minority students. Statistics have provided evidenced that the school systems made enormous progress between 1970 and 1988, but came to a halt thereafter. Presently in the 20th century the gap has widened and the need for improvement is challenging for the school administr...
The United States places a great deal of importance on education and continuing to be a leader in the realm of education. If the United States wants to continue on this road it must take a good look at the achievement gap that has been created and growing. In a system where in high school 34% of black students are being held back, and are more likely to drop out before receiving a high school diploma it is essential to understand what has caused this gap and ways to help close it. When African Americans first came to this country becoming educated was not something they were allowed to do, they had to wait years and years to even learn how to write without there being consequences. When the opportunity did come along for African Americans to become educated and schools were created for them and by them, there have still being hurdles for them with chances of schools losing accreditation, and financial support for students. Policies, laws, and initiatives must really become priorities to help African Americans to ensure that they are allowed to succeed and achieve the same goals and lives as everyone else. Making sure there are able, understanding, and qualified teachers teaching students is also very important. Teachers play such a big role in the lives of students and helping them to succeed not primary and secondary school, but also continuing their journey’s into places of higher learning. This is a problem that can be fixed as long as we are serious about true equality and opportunities for
Poverty and its effects on educational performance of minorities is a societal issue with many facets. First understanding the implications of poverty, and then offering creditable interventions to combat the problem is necessary. First, one must understand that belonging to an underrepresented minority group does not necessarily imply that a student is disadvantaged, but those belonging to those ethnic groups in addition to having low income offer a risk of low academic achievement (Olszewski-Kuilius & Clarenbach, 2012). Statistically, students from minority groups score lower on standardize testing than their white counterparts (Tomlinson & Jarvis, 2014). The reasons for this are numerous. Having
The world is made up of many different types of people, each one having his or her cultural background. Over the years, the United States has become increasingly populated with cultural diversity. This influx has prompted school administrators to recognize the need to incorporate multicultural programs into their school environment including classroom settings, school wide activities, and curriculum as it becomes more evident that the benefits of teaching cultural diversity within the school setting will positively influence our communities, and ultimately the entire nation’s future. The purpose of this paper is to share the pros and cons of multicultural education in the classroom. Additionally, I will express my views compared to those in the reading requirements for this assignment, as well as, new knowledge obtained through the research. Finally, I will share situations where I was challenged introducing a multicultural issue during a class.
As we proceed further into the 21st century, multiculturalism becomes more relevant to obtaining a truly global society. Dr. James A. Banks defines the meaning of multicultural education and its potential impact on society when it is truly integrated into American classrooms. In his lecture, Democracy, Diversity and Social Justice: Education in a Global Age, Banks (2006) defines the five dimensions of multicultural education that serve as a guide to school reform when trying to implement multicultural education (Banks 2010). The goal of multicultural education is to encourage students to value their own cultures and the diverse cultures of those around them without politicizing their differences but rather, as Banks passionately explains in his lecture, “to actualize the ideals stated in the Constitution” (2006) forming “civil, moral, and just communities.”
The problem represented in this paper is the low academic achievements of students in multicultural classrooms, especially students of minority status who are facing a world full of challenges and struggles as they grow-up and embark upon their journey through education systems. Unfortunately, minorities are disposed to discrimination, harassment, bullying, prejudice, abuse, violence and other victimization. These factors that a minority status student might face consequently affect his/her achievement and educational process. Several other factors affect a multicultural classroom’s academic performance:
The concepts included in providing a more diverse, multicultural education are requiring teachers to review their own issues and prejudices while expanding their knowledge of the many cultures that make up the classroom. These efforts help the educator recognize the various individual and cultural differences of each student, as well as gain an understanding on how these differences impact the learning process. The purpose of this paper is to reflect upon individual and cultural difference research and why diverse students struggle to succeed in school. Furthermore, I will share some instructional approaches I could implement in the classroom to accommodate diverse students. Finally, I will discuss the responsibility of educators in addressing the issue of how our o...
The cultural diversity in society, which is reflected in schools, is forcing schools not to solely rely on content-centered curriculum, but to also incorporate student-centered lesson plans based on critique and inquiry. This requires multicultural education to a dominant part of the school system, not just an extra course or unit. Further, it demands that learning itself no longer be seen as obtaining knowledge but rather, education be seen as creating knowledge. Multicultural education should be seen as affirming the diversity of students and communities, promoting the multicultural ideas of the United States, and building the knowledge and behaviors needed for students to be a positive and contributing member of society and the global community as a whole.