African-American Students inSecondary Education

Matthew BraddockCultural Diversity

Population

In 2011-2012, African-American students

represented 16% of the secondary education

population.(Office for Civil Rights)

Discipline

However, they represented

32-42% of the students

suspended or expelled.

While White students

represent 31-40% of the students

suspended or expelled, they represent 51% of the student

population.

(Office for Civil Rights)

Graduation

In 2011-2012, 80% of United States students graduated

secondary school in 4 years.

While 86% of White students completed secondary

school on-time, only 69% of African-American students

graduated on-time.

(National Center for Education Statistics)

Dropouts

While the dropout rate for African-Americans has dropped from 12.6% to 7.3% in the past twenty

years, it is still higher than White students (5.0%).

(National Center for Education Statistics)

College Readiness

The ACT exam measures college readiness by

testing four benchmarks: English, Reading,

Mathematics, and Science.

In 2013, only 5% of African-American students met all

4 benchmarks.

(ACT Inc.)

Test Scores

For the NAEP assessment in 2013, White students

averaged 162 in mathematics and 297 in

reading.

In contrast, African-American students averaged 132 in mathematics and 268 in

reading, both approximately 30 points lower.

(National Center for Education Statistics)

Reflection

The data does not give explanations or reasoning for the results. Some possible conclusions are lack of support for minorities, improper instructing methods, or systemic racism in the schooling system.

As an instructor as a high school where African-American students represent 91% of the population, I witness these deficiencies on a daily basis. Change must done on a national scale.

References[References can be viewed at bit.ly/cultural_diversity]

● ACT Inc. The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2013: National. http://www.act.org/research/policymakers/cccr13/pdf/CCCR13-NationalReadinessRpt.pdf

● National Center for Education Statistics. 2013 Mathematics and Reading: Grade 12 Assessments. http://nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_g12_2013/#/

● National Center for Education Statistics. Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation Rates and Event Dropout Rates. http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014391.pdf

● Office for Civil Rights. Civil Rights Data Collection; Data Snapshot: School Discipline. http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-discipline-snapshot.pdf

References[References can be viewed at bit.ly/cultural_diversity]

● ACT Inc. The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2013: National. http://www.act.org/research/policymakers/cccr13/pdf/CCCR13-NationalReadinessRpt.pdf

● National Center for Education Statistics. 2013 Mathematics and Reading: Grade 12 Assessments. http://nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_g12_2013/#/

● National Center for Education Statistics. Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation Rates and Event Dropout Rates. http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014391.pdf

● Office for Civil Rights. Civil Rights Data Collection; Data Snapshot: School Discipline. http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-discipline-snapshot.pdf