The Black-White Achievement Gap Revisited Revisitando la brecha en el rendimiento de estudiantes negros y blancos Revisitando a defasagem de rendimento academico dos estudantes negros e brancos

This study examines trends in Black student achievement and in the Black-White achievement gap over the period 2000 to 2007, employing data from ten states drawn from the NAEP Grade 8 mathematics assessments. Results are obtained for three levels of aggregation: the state, school poverty stratum within the state, and schools within poverty stratum. In addition, information on the ten states’ education policies for the period 1998 to 2005 was compiled. States relative ranks on the overall strength of their reform efforts were compared to their relative ranks with respect to their success in improving Black student achievement and in reducing the Black- White achievement gap. This study constitutes an extension of earlier work that considered the same issues for the period 1992 to 2000 and, thus, offers a unique comparison between the pre-NCLB era and the present one. Although the ten states certainly differed in their outcomes, the general picture at all three levels of aggregation is quite clear: The achievement gaps are substantial and the introduction of federally mandated high stakes test-based accountability through No Child Left Behind has had a very modest impact on the rates of improvement for Black students and on the pace of reductions in the achievement gaps between Black students and White students. Moreover, there was only a weak association between states’ policy rankings and their rankings related to test results. It appears there is a need for both fresh thinking on education reform and a more concerted effort to collect comprehensive longitudinal information on states' education policies. Este estudio examina las tendencias en el rendimiento acade mico de estudiantes negros y la brecha en el rendimiento de los estudiantes negros y blancos en el peri odo 2000 a 2007, utilizando datos de las evaluaciones NAEP de Matema ticas para el octavo grado en diez estados. Se obtuvieron resultados para tres niveles de agregacio n: estatal, estrato de pobreza de la escuela en el estado, y escuelas dentro del estrato de pobreza. Adema s, se compilo la informacio n sobre las poli ticas de educacio n en los diez estados para el peri odo 1998 a 2005. El ranking relativo de la fortaleza de los esfuerzos de reforma de los estados se comparo con las mejoras de rendimiento de los estudiantes negros y con la reduccio n de la brecha de logros acade micos de los estudiantes negros-Blancos. Este trabajo es una continuacio n de trabajos previos que consideraron los mismos temas para el peri odo 1992 a 2000 y, por tanto, ofrece una u nica comparacio n entre la era