Through the lens of interdisciplinary and systems perspectives, The Anatomy of Achievement Gaps offers an expert critical analysis of the underachievement problems plaguing the American education system today. By providing a blueprint to meet these challenges, Jaekyung Lee both evaluates and informs American educational policies with a new model of achievement for preschool through college-aged students.

When it comes to race in America, we must face one uncomfortable but undeniable fact. Almost 50 years after the birth of the civil rights movement, inequality still reigns supreme in our classrooms. At a time when African-American students trail their white peers on academic tests and experience high dropout rates, low college completion rates, and a tendency to shy away from majors in hard sciences and mathematics, the Black-White achievement gap in our schools has become the major barrier to racial equality and social justice in America. In fact, it is arguably the greatest civil rights issue of our time. The Black-White Achievement Gap is a call to action for this country to face up to and confront this crisis head on. Renowned former Secretary of Education Rod Paige believes we can close this gap. In this thought-provoking book, he and Elaine Witty trace the history of the achievement gap, discuss its relevance to racial equality and social justice, examine popular explanations, and offer suggestions for the type of committed leadership and community involvement needed to close it. African-American leaders need to rally around this important cause if we are to make real progress since students’ academic performance is a function not only of school quality, but of home and community factors as well. The Black-White Achievement Gap is an unflinching and long overdue look at the very real problem of racial disparity in our schools and what we must do to solve it.

The attempts of fixing our nations school system since 1964 have not been a walk in the park. Several legislations and laws have been reformed to improve ways to implement the improvement plans in our school system. Looking back at the anatomy of our education system in the last fifty years brings up very few solutions as to what direction is righteously affordable for the next generation. Whether you talk about equality of education or legislation for the common standards for K12, what really matters is how well our next generation of youth is ready for the twenty-first-century workforce and/or college pathways. This book was written on behalf of students, teachers, and parents, who lack the understanding, guidance, stability, and hope in the twenty-first-century educational system. This is a system of turmoil. We have seen changes over the last fifty years, yet millions of students from elementary to freshmen year in college are suffering academically. Many are failing, and few are making the grade. Our nation ranks below the top 20 worldwide in math and science, and we are not moving fast enough to change it. It is very important to note that students of all ages can benefit from this book to improve their education and get the much-needed support academically through counseling and mentoring. Parents and students need advisement. Students need to know what tools are available to succeed in their academic affairs, and parents need to know if those tools are adequate. Education is the key for success, and perseverance unlocks the door. This book opens the door to a rewarding career and best decision making for a prosperous future and allows students to grasp a better understanding of what it means to be educated. This book gives the essence of where we were and where we are headed. Many students dont know how to study and lack the understanding of why reading is important. Millions of students come to school with raw minds and starving brains. This book looks at the mind of a teenager and the brain. In this book, youll learn about proper nutrition that will enhance the mind and spark the thinking cells. As you read this guide, you will learn more and more answers to readiness for the twenty-first-century workplace and the needed skills to succeed. Anatomy of a Model Student dares to speak out on whats wrong with todays youth and behavior issues that hinder learning. This book is the bible of educational fitness for parents and educators alike. It will empower, encourage, and mesmerize its readers, so please read it to be wise, practice it to be educated.

While teaching at an all-Black middle school in Atlanta, Meira Levinson realized that students’ individual self-improvement would not necessarily enable them to overcome their profound marginalization within American society. This is because of a civic empowerment gap that is as shameful and antidemocratic as the academic achievement gap targeted by No Child Left Behind. No Citizen Left Behind argues that students must be taught how to upend and reshape power relationships directly, through political and civic action. Drawing on political theory, empirical research, and her own on-the-ground experience, Levinson shows how de facto segregated urban schools can and must be at the center of this struggle. Recovering the civic purposes of public schools will take more than tweaking the curriculum. Levinson calls on schools to remake civic education. Schools should teach collective action, openly discuss the racialized dimensions of citizenship, and provoke students by engaging their passions against contemporary injustices. Students must also have frequent opportunities to take civic and political action, including within the school itself. To build a truly egalitarian society, we must reject myths of civic sameness and empower all young people to raise their diverse voices. Levinson’s account challenges not just educators but all who care about justice, diversity, or democracy.

The case for race-conscious education policy In our unequal society, families of color fully share the dream of college but their children often attend schools that do not prepare them, and the higher education system gives the best opportunities to the most privileged. Students of color hope for college but often face a dead end. For many young people, racial inequality puts them at a disadvantage from early childhood. The Walls around Opportunity argues that colorblind policies have made college inaccessible to a large share of students of color, and reveals how policies that acknowledge racial inequalities and set racial equality goals can succeed where colorblindness has failed. Gary Orfield paints a troubling portrait of American higher education, explaining how profound racial gaps imbedded in virtually every stage of our children’s lives pose a major threat to communities of color and the nation. He describes how the 1960s and early 1970s was the only period in history to witness sustained efforts at racial equity in higher education, and how the Reagan era ushered in today’s colorblind policies, which ignore the realities of color inequality. Orfield shows how this misguided policy has resegregated public schools, exacerbated inequalities in college preparation, denied needed financial aid to families, and led to huge price increases over decades that have seen little real gain in income for most Americans. Now with a new afterword that discusses the 2023 Supreme Court decision to outlaw affirmative action in college admissions, this timely and urgent book shows that the court’s colorblind ruling is unworkable in a society where every aspect of opportunity and preparation is linked to race, and reveals the gaps in the opportunity pipeline while exploring the best ways to address them in light of this decision.