Brett Dickerson cites recent SAT data to conclude the reform efforts focused on high standards and rigor have been ineffective. He describes the focus on rigor as an example of “white privilege”.
High expectations for a student’s education are effective only to the extent that the child and parents see the value of them. When high expectations are arbitrary, delivered by people who are remote from the culture of the children, and don’t make sense to the children themselves, then they don’t work. They really don’t work.
He proposes that what happens in a child’s life outside of school is still more important than what happens in school. I must say that each time I read such a conclusion it reminds me of the Coleman studies from the 1960s – home environment is largest determinant of student performance, but teacher quality matters the most for students from homes with fewer resources. Schools cannot be the only assumed remedy for inequalities that exist among students outside of the classroom.