Prometheus 6

EDUCATION
Still Work to be Done

As we celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Brown v. Board, the Supreme Court's landmark decision declaring school segregation unconstitutional, questions remain about the fairness of public education. Newsweek reports "Today, by virtually any measure of academic achievement, blacks, Puerto Ricans and Mexican-Americans are, on average, far behind their white and Asian-American peers." Meanwhile, a Newsweek poll shows "only 38 percent" of blacks believe their neighborhood schools "have the resources necessary to provide a quality education." Reports released this month demonstrate that unequal resources track with unequal outcomes. A recent study by the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future illustrates that a two-tiered or separate and unequal, education system continues to exist in many states. A report by the Education Trust demonstrates that "on every measure – teacher quality, access to high-level curriculum, and state/local education funding – students of color and low-income students continue to get less than their fair share of public education's most critical resources." President Bush, however, has not delivered on promises to fully fund No Child Left Behind, while demanding strict compliance with new mandates, putting schools in impossible situations. Recent court rulings reveal, "[a]s the clamor for integration wanes, the fight for opportunity in the nation's public schools has largely become a battle over money."

INSUFFICIENT FUNDS: In the school district of Topeka, Kansas, where President Bush spoke Monday, the president's 2004 budget leaves more than 8,000 students without Title I aid, aimed to assist "public schools with the highest percentages of children from low-income families." The NYT reports "only days before the Brown v. Board of Education festivities were set to begin, a state judge took the drastic step of ordering the schools shut down unless lawmakers increased the 'hugely insufficient dollars' going to all districts, particularly those with poor minority students." Similar verdicts have come down in Massachusetts and Montana, where judges noted "that state exams and the federal No Child Left Behind law set concrete academic goals that students have little chance of meeting without more money." Such rulings underscore the local realities states face as a result of the president's cuts in funding to states – the situation is exacerbated by state budget cuts stemming from local resistance to raising taxes for education. "For the standards-based approach to have any chance of success," wrote Judge Jeffrey M. Sherlock of Montana last month, "the state must assure that districts have sufficient resources." This year alone, the president underfunds No Child Left Behind by $9.4 billion.

ADMINISTRATION IMPLEMENTATION FAILURES: In a report released this year, the Harvard Civil Rights Project tracked "the first-year results of the No Child Left Behind Act in 11 urban districts," concluding that "In each of the districts we studied, fewer than 18% of eligible students requested and received supplemental educational services. In most of these districts it was less than 7% of the eligible students, and in some it was less than 1%." Other reports confirm the main problem is the administration's failure to effectively implement the law. A report released by the Citizens Commission on Civil Rights, "Choosing Better Schools," argues that the transfer and supplemental service options under NCLB are providing valuable educational opportunities to low income students, but calls for the administration to do more to assist states and districts in implementing them. A report issued by the Center for Education policy similarly argues the administration needs to provide greater support and place a higher priority on improving struggling schools rather than promoting transfers.

NEXT STEPS?: There are a diversity of proposals to improve educational opportunities for all students. Many believe ensuring high quality teachers for all students is the key to equal educational opportunities. An American Progress column by Sheryll Cashin contends we must renew our commitment to integration. Author Richard Kahlenberg, suggests "the research shows, poor kids of all races do better in a middle-class environment." Kahlenberg applauds attempts at economic de-segregation in North Carolina, Massachusetts, San Francisco, Florida and elsewhere, both for their effect on academic achievement and on broader issues of citizenship.For more reform proposals watch the recent American Progress education forum.