Foolproof Strategies to Close The Student Achievement Gap

Underperforming schools are closing. Teachers identified as incompetent are reassigned or outright fired. Federal and state funds are targeted to design new programs and make substantial school reforms. Improvement and accountability requirements are more stringent for states, districts, schools, and teachers. Responses to The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), replaced by No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), now modified again to ESEA are a mere few of the countless noble efforts attempted across the country. The goal all along has been to raise student achievement and to close gaps. Still the average African American or Hispanic high school graduate is reading at a level similar to that of the average white eighth-grader. This grim reality is the mere tip of the iceberg. The implications are legion. What responsibility must parents assume to arrest this disaster?