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Achievement Gap
Hi Sandy,
Thanks for posting this and posing many great questions. I recently came across a video that discusses this topic and provides some additional insights and ideas that may help combat the gap.
http://player.vimeo.com/video/39452445
The video provides a lot of great information. It talks about the importance of early childhood development and how its essential to the child's success in life and education.
I have read that there are many factors that influence the gap including: childhood development, nutrition, community, family situation, family income, access to resources, and schools.
I think its important, and the research has shown, that its not just about the school; that there are other factors that play into the gap. I believe we could more effectively use our tax dollars in specific areas to help reduce the gap. This could range from enhancing resources at specific schools to making early development programs more available to education for families on what can be done to help their children excel and why its important for them to do so.
While I think this is an important issue that needs to be addressed, I am curious as to how many people know much about the issue... this potential lack of knowledge about the issue impacts how well it can be addressed.
I value the children, diversity in communities, and a good education for all for many reasons. One simple fact, that I am sure most people can relate to, is that the children are the future of our community, state, nation, and world. We need to help them develop and learn so they can be best equipped to undertake the challenges of the future.
Everyone can help improve the situation. It starts with becoming aware of the issue and discussing it... and right here is a great place to get started! It would be great to draw people into this conversation that are not very familiar with the topic. As the knowledge base grows and ideas are discussed, we can work towards developing plans that can help eliminate the gap in our communities.