1. The effects of Socio-Economic Status on African American students’ achievement Nazzerine Charles & Kelly-Ann Thompson Education 702.22 Fall 2008

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of the Problem (Slide 3) Research Hypothesis (Slide 4) Literature Review (Slides 5-10)

3. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM In 1954, the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education focused on desegregating schools based on race. Since then, while students of different races are now able to attend school together, students of low socioeconomic status are still being left behind. This research paper will examine how the socioeconomic status of African Americans affects their achievement and academic performance.

4. RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS The most salient reason for poor academic performance and achievement on the part of African American fourth grade students is their socioeconomic status.

5. LITERATURE REVIEW PROS Kozol believes that children from poor families are cheated out of a future by underequipped, understaffed and underfunded schools in U.S. inner cities and less affluent suburbs. The poorer districts are not getting the same opportunities for education as the affluent neighborhoods. (Kozol, J. 1991) Inequality in school funding is an issue of basic fairness. In the 67 districts that were examined, the results indicate that poverty levels correlates with achievement levels. Students from lower SES groups tend to perform at lower levels. (Biddle, B. & Payne, K. 1999)

6. LITERATURE REVIEW PROS This article focuses on the achievement differences between students of a lower and higher income. It also portrayed the similarities and variations within each group. (Carpenter II,D.M., Ramirez, A., & Severn, L. 2006). This article focuses on the relationship between race, prior academic and current academic achievements. It portrays how the accomplishments of students are greatly connected to where they go to school. It especially looks at the math and reading grade levels of students who attend schools in urban neighborhoods. (Goddard, R.D., Hoy, W.K., & Sweetland, S.R. 2000).

7. LITERATURE REVIEW Pros This article focuses on how lack of training of teachers and principals affects the achievement of African American children. Schools in low SES areas tend to have less experience teachers and a watered down curriculum. It states that teachers should be aware of the type of students they are teaching and develop their instruction accordingly. For example, it’s essential that African Americans are taught their history and their important contributions to society, and how they can make a difference. (Talbert-Johnson, C. 2004)

8. LITERATURE REVIEW Pros The article focuses on how the cultural biases and negative stereotypes towards African American students affect their self esteem, consequently affecting their academic achievement. It states that teachers tend to have low expectations and goals for students from low SES. (Baker-Booker, P. 2005). This article focuses on the achievement levels of minority elementary students that attended schools in urban areas. It compared poor minority students with white affluent students interest in science and background knowledge of the subject. The article indicates that if poor minority students were given the same resources as the affluent white students, they would have an equal opportunity to succeed. (Weinner, G. 2003)

9. LITERATURE REVIEW CONS This article portrays how academic achievement is based on the culture of the school. It states that the rigor of the curriculum in a school indicates why some students perform higher than others. (Lee, W., Wilson, T.C., Winfield, L. 1991) This article focuses on how the culture of classism and system-wide inequalities in the schools are the major reason why students from low socioeconomic status do not perform well academically. (Gorski, P. 2008)

10. LITERATURE REVIEW CONS This article focuses on how achievement levels, specifically in regards to the test scores of students are based on the way the test is formatted (the type of questions) and the characteristic of the student (if the student is a good test taker or not). (Willie, C. 2001).

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