Hear Us,
Believe Us:
Centering African American
Parent Voices in K-12 Education
Key Finding 4: Opportunity Gaps
Slightly more than half of parents and caregivers believe that African American students in their community and surrounding areas are not given the same opportunities to learn and succeed as White students.
Given the deeply entrenched history of racial discrimination within schools, this finding is not surprising. African American students are more likely to attend schools with less funding, less qualified teachers and less access to rigorous programs. These are structural problems which create unequal opportunities to learn for Black students. While discussions mount about achievement gaps, opportunity gaps should be the central focus in addressing inequities.
Additional Resources
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A Seat at the Table: African American Youth’s Perceptions of K-12 Education
The role to be played by youth is just as important as that of leaders and parents. They are, after all, the stakeholders whose response to reform will determine if it succeeds or fails. Of the three groups, they are the only one with firsthand knowledge of what happens in the classroom. And, all too often, they do not have a seat at the table during reform discussions. This study, the third installment of UNCF’s African American perceptions research on key issues in K-12 education, begins to remedy that omission.
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A First Look: Students’ Access to Educational Opportunities in U.S. Public Schools. Office for Civil Rights