the excellence gap: a new lens for education policy and advocacy
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The Excellence Gap: A New Lens for Education Policy and Advocacy. Dr. Jonathan A. Plucker March 18, 2012 Belin-Blank Center/NAGC Acceleration Summit. Overview of our excellence gap work Helpful for advocacy? What research is needed to advance our efforts?. Overview. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The Excellence Gap:A New Lens for Education
Policy and Advocacy
Dr. Jonathan A. PluckerMarch 18, 2012
Belin-Blank Center/NAGC Acceleration Summit
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2
• Overview of our excellence gap work
• Helpful for advocacy?
• What research is needed to advance our efforts?
3
OVERVIEW
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What is the Excellence Gap?
• There has been a lot of focus on minimum competency achievement gaps– the overall average gaps at low to medium levels of
performance between demographic groups• Comparatively little attention to gaps in performance among
high ability students– In a good educational system we should see both equity
AND excellence– Plenty of evidence this can happen
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Super Awesome Quote!
• Education systems that fail to develop the potential of students from every background can make claims to neither excellence nor equity, neither quality nor equality.
7
Why Should We Care?
• Life prospects of students from disadvantaged backgrounds
• Equity of the Educational System– Shouldn’t there be roughly the same
percentage of high-performing students from every background?
• Is minimum competency really enough?• International Competitiveness & Pipeline Issues
8
A Widening Excellence Gap
TIMSS may be a better international assessment on which to base policy, since it samples by grade and not age and is similar in many ways to NAEP.
Both in absolute and relative terms, it is clear the U.S. is at a huge disadvantage.
1995 1999 2003 20070
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
Percent Scoring at Advanced Benchmark on TIMSS Grade 8 Math
Singapore
Korea
Taiwan
Japan
England
Russia
U.S.
45%!
Not45%!
Measuring the Excellence Gap
Percent Scoring at the Highest Level For example …
Free and Reduced Lunch (FARM) : 6% AdvancedNon-Free and Reduced Lunch (Non-FARM) : 15% Advanced15% - 6% = Excellence Gap of 9%
Can also measure using scores at a given high percentile, say the student at the 90th percentile (better for statistical reasons when tracking trends)
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Excellence Gaps Using the NAEP
• The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scored on a 0-500 point scale
• Roughly every two years by the U.S. Department of Education
• Performance Levels are Determined by Cut-Scores (Basic, Proficient, Advanced)
• Built on framework similar to TIMSS
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2011 NAEP Math Results
Male
Female
WhiteBlac
k
Hispan
icAsia
n
N.Amer. ELL
non-ELL Full
Reduced
Free
0
5
10
15
20
25
86
9
1 2
19
2 1
7
11
42
97
11
2 3
22
31
9
13
52
Grade 4 Grade 8
12
2011 NAEP Reading Results
Male
Female
WhiteBlac
k
Hispan
icAsia
n
N.Amer. ELL
non-ELL Full
Reduced
Free
02468
1012141618
79
11
23
17
4
1
9
13
422
5 5
1 1
8
20
45
21
Grade 4 Grade 8
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Summary of 2011 NAEP
• There are large gaps in the advanced achievement of under-represented groups relative to their peers on multiple assessments
Race, Socioeconomic Status, English Language Learners
• These populations are growing as a share of all students
• These high potential students cannot “take care of themselves.”
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TRENDS
15
1996
2000
2003
2005
2007
2009
2011
0.0
2.0
4.0
6.0
8.0
10.0
12.0
2.93.2
5.5
6.8
7.68.2
9.0
0.1 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 0.9 1.10.2 0.8
1.3 1.5 1.41.9
WhiteBlackHispanic
% Advanced in Math Grade 4
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NCLB
1998 2002 2003 2005 2007 2009 20110.0
2.0
4.0
6.0
8.0
10.0
12.0
3.43.7
4.3 4.13.8 3.8
4.7
0.3 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.7
0.7 0.60.8 0.8 0.7 0.8 1.0
3.3
3.8
5.4 5.65.1
6.1
7.8
WhiteBlack HispanicAsian
% Advanced in Reading Grade 8
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NCLB
Trends in Reading Grade 4at the 90th Percentile
1998 2000 2002 2003 2005 2007 2009235
240
245
250
255
260
265
270
WhiteBlackHispanic
28.2
24.4
20.6
23.0
Long-Term Trends in the Excellence Gap
• If we go back before the passage of NCLB, there isn’t much evidence that the gaps are shrinking – many have become much larger.
• In 2009 and 2011 the numbers for ELL students were especially discouraging, giving back most if not all previous gains over the last dozen years.
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NAEP Math Grade 4 Gap Trends
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1996 2000 2003 2005 2007 20090.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
40.0
45.0
50.0
FARM GapWhite-Black GapWhite-Hispanic GapELL Gap
Roughly 2-3 grade levels.
NAEP Math Grade 8 Gap Trends
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1996 2000 2003 2005 2007 20090.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
40.0
45.0
50.0
FARM GapWhite-Black GapWhite-Hispanic GapELL Gap
NAEP Reading Grade 4 Gap Trends
22
1998 2000 2002 2003 2005 2007 20090.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
40.0
45.0
50.0
FARM GapWhite-Black GapWhite-Hispanic GapELL Gap
NAEP Reading Grade 8 Gap Trends
23
1998 2002 2003 2005 2007 20090.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
40.0
45.0
50.0
FARM GapWhite-Black GapWhite-Hispanic GapELL Gap
Worse Than It Looks
• In many cases there has been very little change in overall performance
• Some gaps have shrunk because white or non-FARM scores have declined
• At the present rate, it would take decades (if ever) for the gaps to close.
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Projected Trends in Reading Grade 4
19982000
20022003
20052007
20092011
20132015
20172019
20212023
20252027
20292031
20332035
20372039
20412043
20452047
20492051
20532055
20572059
2061210
220
230
240
250
260
270
280
290
WhiteBlackHispanic
2051 2060
More Evidence for the Excellence Gap
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1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 20100.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
35.0%
40.0%
45.0%
% of Tests Receiving a 4 or 5 on AP Exams
BlackWhiteHispanic
Not “underrepresented”?
BUT THEY KEEP TELLING US THERE’S A RISING TIDE …
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A Distinct Problem
• The Excellence Gap is not the same phenomenon as the achievement gap
• Although achievement gaps are somewhat larger than excellence gaps, there are also closing more quickly and consistently
• This is especially true for lower-income students during the NCLB era
• (not that we’d call the rate achievement gaps are closing fast)
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Achievement vs. Excellence Gaps, FARM students 2003-2009
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Math 4
Math 8
Reading 4
Reading 8
-2 -1 0 1 2
90th Percentile All Students
Rising tide?
A Complicated Story
• Focusing on race or income in isolation can give a misleading picture– Interaction of race & income– Changes in composition
• For example the decline in Reading Grade 8 scores among White and FARM students since 2003 is almost entirely due to lower scores among lower-income Whites.
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Reading G8 90th Percentile Trends
31
2003 2005 2007 2009270.0
275.0
280.0
285.0
290.0
295.0
300.0
305.0
310.0
315.0
320.0
White FARMWhite Non-FARMBlack FARMBlack Non-FARMHispanic FARMHispanic Non-FARM
Poor white students performing at similar levelsto not-poor Hispanic and Black students
( )
SO IT’S ALL ABOUT POVERTY THEN?
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2002 2003 2005 2007 2009 20110
2
4
6
8
10
12
8
11
9
1110
9
23 3 3 3
3
5
7
3
5
45
WhiteBlackHispanic
NAEP Grade 4 Reading – DOD Schools
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8% 6%
WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?
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• The “excellence underclass” will soon be the majority of students in most states–It already is in many states.
• A culture that values talent in all students is of unestimable benefit to everyone.
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BUT WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT?
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What is the Federal Government Doing?
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1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2005 2006 2007 2008 20090
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
12,000
3,000
5,000 6,500 6,500
6,500
7,500
11,250 11,177 11,111 11,022
9,596
7,597 7,463
10,000
7,000 6,600
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Federal Appropriation for Javits Gifted and Talented Education
Appropriated Proposed by President
Years
Appr
opria
tion
in th
ousa
nds o
f dol
lars
<-- NCLB enacted
What are States Doing?
• Although some states have adopted a mandate to identify and serve gifted students and have appropriated money to do so:– Gifted education funds are very vulnerable due to the
fiscal climate– Most gifted education funding and policy is still carried out
at the state level, with a major effect on equity– There is no evidence that ANY state has figured out a way
to address Excellence Gaps, and many states have laughably low criteria for what constitutes an Advanced student
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% Advanced Math Grade 4 State vs. NAEP
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White Black Hispanic White Black Hispanic White Black Hispanic White Black HispanicCalifornia Pennsylvania Indiana Maine
0.0
10.0
20.0
30.0
40.0
50.0
60.0
53
2629
58
27
32
16
3 4
15
7 69
1 1
9
2 1
6
0 2
7
20
StateNAEP
Recommendation #1
• Make Closing the Excellence Gap a State and National Priority– Expose people to the data– That which is not visible is by definition
invisible.• Stop pretending the U.S. is “post-racial” or
“beyond class distinctions”– Much criticism of G/T programs is deserved.
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Recommendation #2
• Policymakers and educators should ask two questions:– How will this impact advanced students?– How will this help more students perform at
advanced levels?
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Recommendations #3 and #4
• Acknowledge That Both Minimum Competency and Excellence Can be Addressed At the Same Time– Other countries acknowledge this, why
can’t we?• Set Realistic Goal to Shrink Gaps
– We’re not getting every subgroup to 10% advanced in every content area any time soon.
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Recommendations #5 and #6
• Determine the Appropriate Mix of Federal, State, Local Policies and Interventions– Federal mandate probably not a good thing– Federal research role probably a very good
thing• Use things that we know work well
– Grouping, acceleration, identification PD
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Recommendations #7, #8, and #9
• Include the Performance of Advanced Students in Discussions of Common Standards
• Address the “Low-Hanging Policy Fruit” Immediately– Early graduation and financial aid
• Conduct More Research on Advanced Learning and Talent Development– How to address stereotype threat?
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HELPFUL FOR ADVOCACY?
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WHAT RESEARCH IS NEEDED?
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Needed Research
• How do excellence gaps correlate with long-term educational and economic outcomes?
• How do changes in immigration policy impact the need for excellence education?
• How can recent research on stereotype threat be used to design interventions for bright students?
• Do recent advances in data systems change the way ability grouping and acceleration can be implemented?
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Future Excellence Gap Work
• Second edition of report in April 2012• Special report on science excellence gaps in
near future• Special report on the experiences of gifted
black males in fall 2012• Report on NAEP excellence gaps in major
urban areas around this time next year.
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Excessively ProvocativeClosing Thought #1
The U.S. has created a great context in which to be
talented, but it is very bad at developing talent.
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Excessively ProvocativeClosing Thought #2
There is no naturaladvocacy group foradvanced students.
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ceep.indiana.edu/mindthegap
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CEEP Contact Information:
Jonathan Plucker, Ph.D.Director
1900 East Tenth StreetBloomington, Indiana 47406-7512812-855-4438Fax: [email protected]
http://ceep.indiana.edu
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