Why We Really Need to Track Educational Equity

Full report with charts In September, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released Monitoring Educational Equity, a consensus report designed to better describe that status quo. The report identifies a set of equity indicators that can highlight disparities, in order to explore causes and monitor change. Such consensus reports are influential because they focus on the big questions of science and social science, with the goal of producing independent, rigorous and objective information. Noting that multiple measures are necessary when evaluation educational equity, the report recommends tracking 16 indicators. Seven fall into the outcomes category, with a focus on three broad areas (kindergarten readiness, K-12 learning and engagement, and educational attainment). The remaining nine indicators address four main dimensions of unequal opportunities: (1) racial, ethnic and economic segregation; (2) access to high-quality early childhood education; (3) access to high-quality curricula and instruction; and (4) exposure to supportive school and classroom environments. Unequal Opportunities 1. Unequal access to early childhood education: Evidence abounds that children benefit from high-quality early childhood education. Yet key groups of children who would benefit most (Hispanic children and those from low-income families) are less likely to attend preschool.

2. Uneven exposure to high-poverty schools: Research shows that schools that serve high concentrations of families living in poverty too often lack the resources to meet students’ academic and social-emotional needs. Relative to their share of students living in poverty and also to their share among all children under 18, Hispanic children are over-represented at such schools. Black children are also over-represented at high-poverty schools relative to their share of the overall child population.

3. Unequal access to a rigorous, college preparatory curriculum: It’s difficult to learn what you’re not taught. Yet access to a rigorous, college-preparatory curriculum varies significantly by race, with students attending schools with high percentages of students of color less likely to be exposed to the coursework they need, in order to be admitted to college and to succeed once they are there.

*Schools with low percentages of students of color are in the 20thpercentile or lower when it comes to their share of students of color. Schools with high percentages of students of color are in the 80thpercentile or higher. Data from 2018. Unequal Outcomes 4. Disparities in Assessment Results: The longstanding National Assessment of Educational Progress is often referred to as our nation’s report card. Consisting of multiple exams administered across subjects to students at different grade levels, it is one of the most widely used indicators of educational outcomes. Across grade levels and exams, outcomes are worse for Black and Hispanic students, for children from low-income families, for students with disabilities, and for emerging bilinguals.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress scale ranges from 0 to 500. Data is from 2017.  5. Differences in Postsecondary Outcomes: In today’s society, postsecondary education is increasingly critical to economic survival and is even associated with the ability to live a healthy, long, and satisfying life. Yet Hispanic and Black youth are significantly less likely than either Asian or White youth to continue their educations beyond high school.