Closing the Academic Achievement Gap

In a society that places a large importance on higher education, a significant

achievement gap has been created between minority and low income students who
cannot afford a traditional college education. It is important to assess how and why this
achievement gap has been established, and the impact it will have on students. To
determine this impact it is important to develop an understanding of which groups are
affected by the achievement gap, the differences in quality of education between online,
two-year, and four-year universities, and the accessibility of funding for higher
education.
After reviewing multiple sources it is clear that the achievement gap greatly
impacts low income students. Ann Owens discusses how an achievement gap is
established early on for students during their time receiving public education. She
explains how income segregation of school districts leads to a widening in the
achievement gap. High-income students tend to perform better than low-income
students in segregated school districts. Developing an achievement gap early in a
students life makes it incredibly difficult for them to try and close the gap as they
become older. This creates a cycle of poorer education for low income families. Emily
Chertoff explains how the common route of community college for low income students
can negatively affect their future education. Many four-year universities are hesitant to
accept transfer students from community colleges. If four-year schools do accept
community college transfers it is incredibly difficult for these students to apply all their
credits gained at community college toward their four-year degree.
Due to a significant difference in resources available to four-year vs two-year
students, it is proven that four-year students are given a better quality education than
students who attend community college. Chertoff discusses the issue of underfunding of
community colleges, despite the large population of students in attendance. Two-year
students are not given the same resources on their campuses as four-year students
are. As a result of this underfunding, community colleges are unable to offer resources
to students to assist them in their transfer to four-year universities. Community colleges
cannot provide adequate advising to students, putting them at a great disadvantage for
understanding their necessary course load and classes needed to transfer.
 (Figure 1)
Community colleges students also lack education needed to be successful after
graduating. As seen above in figure 1, four-year universities offer resources to students
that can help lead to success after college. This career success program offered at
UNC Charlotte provides students with opportunities to learn how to stand out during an
interview, and ultimately land a job in their field of interest. UNC Charlotte is capable of
providing advising that community colleges simply lack the funding to provide. Funding
of two-year colleges should be increased to provide these students with education that
will allow them to succeed in the world after community college.
While it is clear that a large achievement gap is created between community
college and four-year college students, this gap is even more significant for online
community college students. Shanna Jaggars and Di Xu prove in their study that there
is a clear gap between online and face-to-face learners that attend community colleges.
They compare the overall GPA and performance of students who attend online vs in
person classes and it is obvious that online students performed significantly worse.
While this gap impacts different areas of study to different extents, it is still a large issue
across the board that needs to be addressed. Online learning is an excellent resource
to parents, and working students, but it should not require a sacrifice of quality
education. Xu and Jaggars urge schools to work to close the gap between online and
face-to-face students in order to provide a more valuable learning experience for
non-traditional students.

(Figure 2)
Students choose to attend community college because two-year universities offer
the most affordable higher education. Making four-year universities more affordable to
the public would help to close the achievement gap in education. Figure 2 above shows
a scholarship opportunity for students attending UNC Charlotte. Four student will be
awarded a thousand dollar housing scholarship for winning the campus cribs contest.
The odds of winning this scholarship are very slim, and if a student were to win the
scholarship it would only cover about five percent of their tuition for that year. In the
opening interview scene of the movie 21, Ben Campbell is competing with 76 students
for the Robinson scholarship, a full ride to Harvard med school. While Ben provides an
excellent resume which includes a 4.0 GPA from MIT, he still has a slim chance of
being awarded the scholarship. Both of these examples showcase the intense
competition for educational scholarships, and prove that students are likely to have to
pay for some or all of their higher education with their own funding. Many students lack
the resources to be able to pay the bill of a four-year university. The tuition of larger
universities should be lowered to provide low-income students with the same
opportunities as others, and to close the academic achievement gap.
 (Figure 3)
The achievement gap will continue to impact students after they leave college.
Students with degrees from community colleges often times were not presented with
opportunities to gain experience in their field during their time in school. Many jobs are
becoming increasingly competitive, and without experience having a two-year degree
simply is not enough for many companies. Community college students also lack
opportunities to network and make connections in their field. Four-year universities
provide students with opportunities, such as career fairs, that allow students to network
and give them a leg up when applying for jobs after college. Figure 3 above is an
example of a career fair at UNC Charlotte that provides students with an opportunity to
meet with employers in hopes of possibly obtaining an internship or job with a company
of interest.
The achievement gap in our education system needs to be addressed and
solutions must be implemented in order to help close this gap. Low-income students are
being negatively impacted by their financial situation, and are being forced to settle for
lower quality education. The community college system needs to be reformed to provide
students with adequate funding and resources that will allow them an equal education to
those who attend four-year universities.
 Works Cited
Chertoff, Emily. “How America's 2-Tiered Education System Is Perpetuating Inequality.” ​The
Atlantic,​ 25 May 2013,
www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/05/how-americas-2-tiered-education-system-
is-perpetuating-inequality/276246/​.
Owens, Ann. “Income Segregation between School Districts and Inequality in Students’
Achievement.” ​Sociology of Education​, vol. 91, no. 1, Jan. 2018, pp. 1–27. ​Academic
Search Complete​,
web.a.ebscohost.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=28&sid=f51608c4-5a1
a-4ff2-ba28-2cbd8fd64564@sessionmgr4008&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY
29wZT1zaXRl#AN=127240112&db=a9h.
Shifflett, Lauren. ​Campus Cribs Contest. 1​ 4 September 2018, photograph
Shifflett, Lauren. ​My Success Story. ​14 September 2018, photograph
Shifflett, Lauren. ​Career Fair. 1​ 4 September 2018, photograph
Xu, Di, and Shanna S. Jaggars. “Performance Gaps Between Online and Face-to-Face Courses:
Differences Across Types of Students and Academic Subject Areas.” ​Journal of Higher
Education,​ vol. 85, no. 5, Oct. 2014, pp. 633–659. ​Academic Search Complete​,
web.b.ebscohost.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=9&sid=1aa9d53e-c22f-
4768-a63a-87005d217482@sessionmgr104&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29
wZT1zaXRl#AN=97515262&db=a9h.
“​21.​” Directed by Robert Luketic. Performance by Jim Sturgess, and Bob Phillip, 2008.