OPPORTUNITY G A P - Schott Foundation

OPPORTUNITY G A PClosing opportunity gaps in education is the onlyway to close achievement gapsThe achievement gap betweenWhite students and Black andLatino students correlates to theOPPORTUNITY GAP—disparity inaccess to quality schools and theresources needed for academic success,such as early childhood education,highly prepared and effective teachers,college preparatory curricula, andequitable instructional resources.For the past two decades, our nation’sleaders have focused on “output”standards and testing to close theachievement gaps that separatedifferent student groups. This onlylooks at one side of the equation forsuccess. It is essential to hold publicofficials accountable for “input”standards, assuring that all students,regardless of where they live, haveaccess to the resources they need tohave a fair and substantive opportunityto learn. If we close the opportunitygap, we can close the achievement gap.are disproportionately concentratedin a few states: California, Illinois,Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania andTexas. Detailed state-level reports,including data on inequities amonggroups and the social and economicconsequences, are available at :www.otlstatereport.orgThe Schott Foundation’sreport, Lost Opportunity, “The nation recognizes its social, civic andfinds that, nationally,economic strength is directly linked to thestudents from historicallystrength of its public schools. But if every childdisadvantaged groupsis to have an opportunity for success, everyhave just a 51 percentstudent must have a true Opportunity to Learn.”Opportunity to Learn,when compared to White,non-Latino students. TheJohn H. Jackson, Presidenteffects of these inequities Schott Foundation for Public EducationUnderstanding the Opportunity GapNew data now available from the U.S.Department of Education’s Office forCivil Rights shines additional light ondisparities in educational resources andopportunities. The Civil Rights DataCollection (CRDC) covers some 7,000districts and more than 72,000 schools.View the data at: ocrdata.ed.gov“Transparency is the first step toward reform and for districts thatwant to do the right thing, and the [CRDC] is an incredible source ofinformation that shows them where they can improve and how toget better.”The data show whether students indifferent schools and districts haveequal access to experienced teachers,rigorous coursework and otherindicators of quality education. Forexample, 3,000 schools serving some500,000 high school students offer noAlgebra 2 classes, and more than2 million students in 7,300 schools hadno access to calculus classes. Schools serving mostly African-American students are twice as likely to haveteachers with one or two years of experience than are schools within the samedistrict that serve mostly White students.Russlynn Ali, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of EducationOpportunity gaps remain large among different student groups Students with limited English proficiency make up 6 percent of the high schoolpopulation (in grades 9-12), but are 15 percent of the students for whom algebrais the highest-level math course taken by the final year of their high school career. Only 22 percent of local education agencies (LEAs) reported that they operatedpre-K programs targeting children from low-income families.Source: U.S. Department of Education; Civil Rights Data Collectionwww.otlcampaign.org

ProPublica: Not all states are equal in closing opportunity gapsThe independent news service ProPublica reviewed the U.S. Department ofEducation database as part of an exhaustive analysis of states’ efforts to closeopportunity gaps. ProPublica found that family economic differences typicallyare reflected in the classroom, with students from wealthy families taking manymore advanced courses.ProPublica created a user-friendly tool that allows you to see whether yourstate—and your school—are providing equal access to quality education.View the tool at ocrdata.ed.gov projects.propublica.org/schoolsAccess to high-level courses varies by stateBased on ProPublica’s analysis, here isa sample of how states compare to thenational average for the percentageof students who take at least oneAdvanced Placement course:National AverageArkansasWisconsinPennsylvaniaNew YorkMassachusettsMissouri18 percent25 percent18 percent16 percent16 percent15 percent10 percent“The opportunity to learn—the necessary resources, thecurriculum opportunities,the quality teachers—thataffluent students have, is whatdetermines what people cando in life.”ResourcesU.S. Department of Education’s CivilRights Data Collection (CRDC)ocrdata.ed.govEducation Law Center’s report onschool financing: “Is School FundingFair? A National Report Card”www.schoolfundingfairness.orgYes We Can: The Schott 50-StateReport on Public Education andBlack Males 2010blackboysreport.org/bbreport.pdfLost Opportunity: A 50-State Reporton the Opportunity to Learn inAmericawww.otlstatereport.orgProPublica’s analysis of state effortsto close opportunity gapsprojects.propublica.org/schoolsLinda Darling-Hammond, Professorof Education at Stanford UniversityUnequal access to experienced teachersAn analysis by the OTL Campaign of the Civil Rights Data Collection reveals large gaps in the access students haveto experienced teachers and Advanced Placement courses.www.otlcampaign.org

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Opportunity to Learn, when compared to White, non-Latino students. The effects of these inequities "The nation recognizes its social, civic and economic strength is directly linked to the strength of its public schools. But if every child is to have an opportunity for success, every student must have a true Opportunity to Learn."