Strategies for Really Closing the Achievement Gap
Working in a central Harlem neighborhood where 10,000 children live and addressing childhood needs from birth through college, the Harlem Children's Zone is succeeding in helping families realize dreams of their children getting college educations. Remarks by Geoffrey Canada, President and CEO of the Harlem Children's Zone, inspired hope and determination on October 27, when 50 national leaders in politics, business, philanthropy, academia, and education advocacy gathered at Teachers College, Columbia University, to discuss policy strategies for closing the educational achievement gap. This policy convening followed the Campaign for Educational Equity's two-day symposium on “The Social Costs of Inadequate Education” and asked the participants to help the new Campaign, launched in June, to establish priorities for its ambitious goals.
Michael Rebell, executive director of the Campaign, presented the imperative for “comprehensive educational equity.” Because educational inequity poses a multi-faceted challenge, any response must be equally comprehensive: in addition to well-known educational interventions like early childhood education, small class sizes, and high quality teaching, we must also invest in parental involvement, children's health, families' economic stability, and other factors that affect student performance.
Dr. Edmund Gordon responded with a set of goals to pursue, including equal access to educational capital in the form of family, community, cultural, and peer support, and meaningful employment opportunities for all high school graduates. Steve Rauschenberger, president of the National Conference of State Legislatures and a candidate for governor in Illinois, encouraged collaboration on shared goals between advocates and legislators and transparency on the part of education leaders about resource allocation. The importance of growing political will through effective messaging was emphasized by Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education. Janet Corcoran, president of PENCIL, indicated that some in the business community are committed to helping close the achievement gap, and she encouraged the Campaign to propose priorities to the private sector.
Hank Levin also recognized the crucial importance of family involvement, urging families to enter a “contract” with schools to support learning and educational achievement in the home. Richard Rothstein of Teachers College proposed an Equity Report Card that measures educational outcomes in academic skills, critical thinking, social skills and citizenship, emotional and physical health, vocational education, and arts and literature, as well as indicators for inputs and resources that support educational goals. That national data will be broken down by state, and will thus monitor the progress of states and the nation in narrowing educational gaps. The role of the courts was explored by Molly Hunter, director of the ACCESS Network: while the courts are at the center of the national movement for adequate school funding, they are limited in the ways in which they can support student achievement.
After a rousing luncheon speech by Cory Booker, Teachers College Trustee and Newark, New Jersey City Council Member, the afternoon was devoted to brainstorming useful and effective priorities for the young campaign. Participants emphasized the need to sell these points to a variety of very diverse constituencies, as well as the varying roles of the business community, legislators, policy makers, and the public in achieving educational equity.
Participants also urged the Campaign to focus on the moral and civic imperatives that drive the movement for educational equity, even as the economic rationales for the movement are being explored and emphasized. The movement will necessarily deal with issues of racial and economic integration, and with the intersection of social and educational problems and reforms, the group agreed. It must also create a positive discussion that emphasizes potential and accomplishment to harness and direct public and private support for the public education system towards the goal of equity and closing the achievement gap.
This third day of the symposium on the “Social Costs of Inadequate Education” closed with remarks from Michael Rebell, who thanked the participants for adding their invaluable perspectives and opinions to the priorities on which Campaign for Educational Equity will focus. The Campaign has a clear mandate to address what were shown to be the serious social costs of inadequate education; the tools and insights collected in this policy meeting will provide a strong foundation for action and research as the campaign moves forward.
Prepared by Katherine Lu and Nelly Ward, October 31, 2005 |
