How Does Income Gap Affect Montgomery Schools Students?

A recent study by the Stanford University Center for Education Policy Analysis, published by the New York Times, investigated just how large the achievement gap between students in America's richest and poorest communities truly is.

The study analyzed several thousand school districts across the country, including Montgomery County Public Schools, and found that the yearly income of families was correlated to student performance. The study indicates that the most highly impoverished school districts achieved at levels four grades below children in some of the country's richest school districts.

According to the data, families in the Montgomery County school system earn a median income of $100,000 per year. Montgomery County students performed 1.1 grade level higher than the national average.

The district’s demographics are: 36 percent white students, 24 percent Hispanic, 22 percent black and 18 percent Asian/other.

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The study says the difference in the achievement gap between districts is correlated to parental income, parental education and racial/ethnic segregation. And schools in poor or racially segregated neighborhoods have a tough time recruiting and keeping skilled teachers, says the study, and classes are more likely to be disrupted by violence or the impact of violence in the neighborhood.

Correlation does not necessarily show causation across the country, as some communities with low median incomes have been shown to have high performance in their school districts. Steubenville, OH has a median income of $19,000 per year, but its students are performing at 1.1 grade levels above the national average.

In addition, Newport, TN has a median income of $19,000 per year, but its students are performing at 0.6 grade levels above the average.

Researchers examined data from about 200 million standardized math and reading tests taken by third- through eighth-graders in every state between 2009 and 2012. Although different states administer different exams, the study authors could compare the state results with scores on federal tests known as the National Assessment of Educational Progress in order to compare districts.

Click here to view the full study by the University of Stanford Center for Education Policy Analysis.

Click here to see the full New York Times report. You can also follow The Upshot, a division of the New York Times on Twitter @UpshotNYT.