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From the Achievement Gap to the Education Debt: Understanding Achievement in U.S. Schools

Item

Title

From the Achievement Gap to the Education Debt: Understanding Achievement in U.S. Schools

Abstract/Description

The achievement gap is one of the most talked-about issues in U.S. education. The term refers to the disparities in standardized test scores between Black and White, Latina/o and White, and recent immigrant and White students. This article argues that a focus on the gap is misplaced. Instead, we need to look at the “education debt” that has accumulated over time. This debt comprises historical, economic, sociopolitical, and moral components. The author draws an analogy with the concept of national debt—which she contrasts with that of a national budget deficit—to argue the significance of the education debt.

Author/creator

Date

In publication

Volume

35

Issue

7

Pages

3-12

Resource type

Background/Context

Medium

Print

Background/context type

Conceptual

Open access/free-text available

No

Peer reviewed

Yes

ISSN

0013-189X

Citation

Ladson-Billings, G. (2006). From the Achievement Gap to the Education Debt: Understanding Achievement in U.S. Schools. Educational Researcher, 35(7), 3–12. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X035007003

Resource status/form

Published Text

Scholarship genre

Theoretical

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