The Impact of Economic Disadvantage on Student Achievement
The Texas public school system is far from perfect, but it has been one of the most successful in the United States in recent years, second only to Iowa in 2014 with 88% of Texas students earning their diploma on time. Participation rates in AP and IB classes are increasing among minorities, reflecting a “college-going culture,” according to the former Education Commissioner Michael Williams. Ethnicity and socioeconomic status are prominent factors that remain hotly debated in the success of students, however. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board tracked 8th grade cohorts through higher education to measure enrollment based on numerous factors throughout the state of Texas.
The Texas public school system has undergone significant changes in recent years. Data from the Texas Education Agency has revealed that diversity has increased, and economically disadvantaged students have increased. In Houston, for example, the student population has almost equal parts of white, black, Hispanic, and Asian students, the four major ethnic groups in the United States. This is due to large growth in Hispanic and Asian populations in Texas. Steve Murdock, a former state demographer and U.S. Census Bureau director, argues that immigration patterns have driven this change, as the higher birth rate and larger number of people in childbearing ages of minority populations result in an increase in population. Over the course of the 21st century, the white student population has decreased by about a third as birth rates decline, while the black population has maintained static numbers, only slightly decreasing in the last few years.
The Texas minority population topped 50% in the 2010 census, and the student population reflects this shift. As diversity has increased, economic disadvantage has increased. Nearly 60% of the state’s public school students were considered “economically disadvantaged”, defined as a student eligible for free or reduced-price lunch or other public assistance, in the 2014–2015 school year. The school districts with no economically disadvantaged students are majority-white schools: Highland Park ISD, Doss Consolidated CSD, Divide ISD, and Guthrie CSD. The school districts with almost entirely economically disadvantaged students are majority-minority schools: Damon ISD, Karnak ISD, Progreso ISD, Anthony ISD, and Edcouch-Elsa ISD, which each have a 99.4% Hispanic student population. The extreme differences in diversity throughout Texas makes the outcome of these issues apparent and difficult to ignore.
Data from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shows that in a group of students across Texas beginning in the 8th grade in 2009, enrollment steadily declined with each year. Economically disadvantaged students experienced a much more rapid decline, however. The variation in race differs most in students who were not economically disadvantaged that obtained higher education in the form of a degree or certificate. Economically disadvantaged students of ethnicities other than African American, Hispanic, or White had the highest percentage of students remaining in the educational system for each educational level. African American, Hispanic, and White students were fairly close in percentage, however. This research reveals that the economic disadvantage impacts student achievement significantly more than ethnicity in Texas.
The coronavirus pandemic has created setbacks in education across Texas, the United States, and globally. Worsening existing issues, schools are dealing with decreased funding and adjusting to remote learning. Students are falling behind, and gaps between children whose parents are invested in their education and others whose parents work full time to make ends meet and do not have time or do not encourage continuation in education are growing. Some students are thriving, while others are facing more and more barriers in their pursuit of education. Pre-Covid research has shown that “students enrolled in online schools have had poorer outcomes in math, reading, science, writing, and history achievement when compared with students in traditional schools.” Although the pandemic has improved access to technology, the students still left behind by the digital divide are disproportionately black, Hispanic, and Native American.
Access to technology impacts not only students engaging in remote learning, but also children and families entering a workforce increasingly dependent on technology and accessing everyday services such as telemedicine. The effect of economic disadvantage is clear, and minority populations bear the brunt of it. Opportunity gaps when comparing outcomes for different ethnicities and socioeconomic classes are often driven by poverty and impact an individual from before they are born throughout their lives. Black children have been found to be more likely to encounter more adverse childhood experiences than more affluent, white children by kindergarten. These experiences have implications in their mental health and the rest of their lives. This root problem of inequity is reinforced by a history of legislation, redlining, and discrimination based on race and impacts enrollment in higher education. Change must start in addressing the issues students face during early childhood, where the foundation for the rest of their education and lives is set.
The impact of ethnicity and economic status are crucial to study and understand in the Texas education system. This is a system with the potential to lift individuals and families out of poverty or keep them in the same cycle. Academic achievement can be attained through early intervention in education for the economically disadvantaged student.
Works Cited
Bombardieri, Marcella. “Covid-19 Changed Education in America — Permanently.” Politico PRO, 14 Apr. 2021, www.politico.com/states/california/story/2021/04/14/covid-19-changed-education-in-america-permanently-1374718.
Collier, Kiah, and Alexa Ura. “Texas Public Schools Are Poorer, More Diverse.” The Texas Tribune, 8 Aug. 2018, www.texastribune.org/2015/12/09/new-schools-explorer-shows-changing-face-schools.
Inside Higher Ed. “Black Students Need Changes to Policies and Structures beyond Higher.” Inside Higher Ed, 20 Oct. 2020, www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/10/20/black-students-need-changes-policies-and-structures-beyond-higher-education.