Taking different views on Wake's achievement gap

Is Wake County's racial achievement gap shrinking or growing?

It all depends on how you look at the data, as shown by recent pronouncements from the Civitas Institute and the Coalition of Concerned Citizens for African American Children.

Both groups are taking differing opinions on the achievement gap to based their opinions on the community-based school assignment resolution that will be voted on Tuesday.

In a blog post today, Bob Luebke of the conservative Civitas Institute focuses on the change in time from the 2005-06 school year to the present. He also uses the tougher standard on students passing both the reading and math end-of-grade exams.

He notes how EOG and end-of-course scores have declined over time ins even of 10 minority achievement categories. He also pots to the the drop in graduation rate.

"Clinging to a policy that has failed to produce results offers minority students no help," Luebke writes. "These failures are a compelling reason why the school board should move ahead with other options."

But Calla Wright of the Coalition of Concerned Citizens for African American Children says the achievement gap is closing in a press release she and the local NAACP sent late Sunday. She bases her press release on data that staff presented at a CCCAAC forum last week.

Wright puts a lot more of the focus on how test scores went up this past school year. Some of the gain on the EOGs was helped by the use of retesting. But you can also see that the achievement gap on the math EOGs has been closing over time.

Here's Wright's press release:

The Coalition Of Concerned Citizens For African American Children and South Central Wake County NAACP comment on accurate student performance data and achievement as it relates to WCPSS diversity policy.

It is evident that the student performance data report shows that WCPSS standardized test scores continue to increase. The report shows that the subgroups were disaggregated according ethnicity, gender, language proficiency, and disability and all subgroups made growth in the areas of reading and math during the 2008-2009 school year.

WCPSS graduation rate for 2008-09 is 78.4%. The report shows that the following subgroups rates were: Whites 89.4%, African Americans 63.4% and Hispanics 51.1%.

We call on our newly elected school board members to review/promote accurate facts when discussing student performance and achievement with our community. Please do not provide the public/community with political propaganda to promote “neighborhood and community schools zones.”

Finally, we want our newly elected school board members to know that we hold them accountable and they must to serve all children. All of their decisions and actions should be based on facts, independent judgment while refusing to surrender judgement to individuals or special interest groups.