Deck 7: Cultural, Social and Educational Causes of the Achievement Gap and How to Fix It

Question 1

Which of the following statements are true?

A) Young children's family environments rather than income are major predictors of cognitive, social, and emotional abilities.
B) Low income and skin color do not influence academic achievement, but social class differences do.
C) Middle and upper-class parents tend to include their children in adult conversations and ask for their child's response to a greater degree than do low income parents.
D) All are correct
E) None are correct

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following statements is true concerning social class and socioeconomic status (SES)?

A) Student SES is associated with academic achievement.
B) Parental occupation, educational level, income, housing value, and political influence are the basis for determining social class and SES.
C) Social class, unlike SES, is traced back for two generations.
D) Social class and SES are fixed and people cannot move up or down.
E) Student SES is associated with academic achievement and determined by parental occupation, educational level, income, housing value and political influence.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which of the following statements is false concerning child discipline practices?

A) Parent practices concerning disciplining children varies by social class.
B) Toddlers of professionals received an average of six verbal encouragements per scolding.
C) Toddlers of working class parents received an average of eight verbal encouragements per scolding.
D) Toddlers of welfare-recipient parents who were not employed received one encouragement for every two scoldings.
E) All are false

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which of the following statements is false concerning NAEP scores and social class?

A) The NAEP is not given to children whose parents' income level allows children to qualify for free or reduced price lunch.
B) NAEP scores are positively correlated with social class.
C) NAEP reading scores are higher for upper income students than for lower income students.
D) NAEP math scores are higher for upper income students than for lower income students.

Question 5

Which of the following statements is true?

A) The upper class is usually defined as wealthy persons with considerable money, property, and investments.
B) The middle class usually earns between $25,000 and $30,000 per year.
C) The working class is defined as those who work more than 50 hours per week.
D) The underclass is a group living on the edge between the upper middle class and the upper class who want to be rich.
E) All are correct

Question 6

Which of the following were found in a study that tracked students through elementary school on the achievement gap?

A) Poor children learn as much as their middle-class peers during the school year as measured by standardized tests.
B) African American, Latino, and low-income students lose academic ground when out of school.
C) Middle-class children gained over the summer in reading and held steady with math.
D) All are correct

Question 7

Which of the following statements is false concerning the achievement gap?

A) Minorities and the poor are affected most by achievement gap.
B) Since the workforce is projected to have increasing numbers of minorities, the achievement gap could have a negative impact on our national economic productivity.
C) Many policy makers conclude that the achievement gap is the result of wrongly designed school policies.
D) The achievement gap is a specialty store run by the GAP.
E) Educating minorities and the poor effectively is necessary to ensure their future and our nation's future.

Question 8

Which of the following is not a poverty-related health issue for school children?

A) Low birth weight
B) Poor vision
C) Poor oral hygiene
D) Increased incidence of asthma
E) Borg assimilation

Question 9

Which of the following statements is false?

A) Historically disadvantaged minority groups currently have an approximate 50% probability of finishing high school.
B) The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education predicts that by 2020, the white working age population will have declined to 63% compared to its 82% in 1980.
C) Large numbers of younger workers are projected to be ethnic minorities while larger numbers of white workers are projected to retire, shifting our national workforce from a majority white workers to more people of color.
D) All statements are true
E) All statements are false

Question 10

Which of the following is not a poverty-related health issue for school children?

A) Lead poisoning
B) Arsenic poisoning
C) Lower prefrontal cortex activity
D) All are correct
E) None are correct

Question 11

Which of the following statements is false concerning equality of opportunity?

A) Education is an important factor in equality of opportunity.
B) Equality of opportunity is the idea that all members of society are given limited chances to enter an occupation or social class and to compete for any place in society.
C) Equality of opportunity means that eventually everyone will have the same income and status.
D) Equality of opportunity is hampered by unequal starting places at birth.
E) Equality of opportunity is the idea that all members of society are given limited chances to enter an occupation or social class and to compete for any place in society and means that eventually everyone will have the same income and status .

Question 12

Which of the following statements is true concerning the population projections?

A) In 2010, just under two-thirds of the population was White non-Latino.
B) By 2050, fewer than half of the population will be White non-Latino.
C) In 2010, the Latino population was under 10%.
D) By 2050, the Latino population is projected to be more than one third of the population.
E) In 2010, just under two-thirds of the population was White non-Latino and by 2050, fewer than half of the population will be White non-Latino.
F) None are correct

Question 13

Which of the following statements is false concerning sorting and selecting of students?

A) In the early days of American schools, families sorted and selected students for school based on the family needs.
B) Sorting and selecting students for various ability tracks is a unifying experience as children are correctly placed into appropriate experiences and rigor of education.
C) Beginning in the late 19^th century, all children were required to attend school and students were classified (sorted and selected) into education tracks according to their talents and abilities.
D) Generally, sorting and selecting provided the top 10% of students with a rigorous academic education to prepare them for college and professional careers.

Question 14

Which of the following statements is true concerning multiple risk factors and students?

A) Multiple risk factors are associated with increased absenteeism.
B) Some of the multiple risk factors include any combination of poverty, health, housing, and parenting.
C) SES is not a risk factor.
D) Inappropriate parenting is not a risk factor.
E) Multiple risk factors are associated with increased absenteeism and include any combination of poverty, health, housing, and parenting.
F) None are true

Question 15

Which of the following is not a housing related issue for school children living in poverty?

A) More than 1 million homeless children attend public schools
B) Student mobility
C) Lack of internet services in the home
D) Low birth weight
E) None are correct

Question 16

Which of the following statements is not true?

A) Children raised by parents educated and working as professionals, on average, ask teachers more questions than children reared by working class parents.
B) Surprisingly, children from working class families tend to have the same number of books in the home as children from upper-middle class families.
C) On average, parents who are professionals speak more than 2,000 words per hour to their children.
D) On average, working class parents speak about 1,300 words per hour with their children.
E) On average, welfare-recipient mothers speak about 600 words per hour with their children.

Question 17

Which of the following statements is true?

A) In 2013, America had more poor people than any other time in the 54 years of keeping such records.
B) Approximately 23% of U.S. children live in poverty.
C) Child poverty is also associated with health, housing, and multiple risk factors.
D) All are correct
E) None are correct

Question 18

Which of the following statements is true concerning predominantly minority schools?

A) Attending predominantly minority schools has a negative effect on student achievement.
B) Attending predominantly minority schools is associated with lower teacher experience rates.
C) Attending predominantly minority schools is associated with higher levels of student mobility.
D) All are true
E) None are true

Question 19

Which of the following statements is false concerning the relationship between social class and educational outcomes?

A) Social class differences contribute to and result from the achievement gap.
B) Generally, higher social class status is negatively correlated with high school graduation rates.
C) Generally, lower social class status is positively correlated with lower graduation rates.
D) Generally, upper class status is associated with more academic credentials and diplomas.
E) All are false

Question 20

Which risk factor affects students' academic achievement most?

A) Race
B) Ethnicity
C) SES
D) Health
E) Housing

Question 21

List and explain at least three studies that demonstrate how expectations affect performance.

Question 22

List and explain five reasons why attending predominantly minority schools hurts minority student achievement.

Question 23

List and explain at least four research findings on grade retention.

Question 24

List and explain five reasons why minority students attending integrated schools helps improve minority achievement.

Question 25

List and explain at least four research findings on tracking.

Question 26

Explain at least five practices that contribute to the achievement gap and what you would do to improve educational practices to overcome those practices.