PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A new web tool by a Philadelphia nonprofit points out wide inequities in educational opportunities across the country. It shows that some of the widest gaps are in Pennsylvania.
The new Educational Opportunity Dashboard from Philadelphia-based Research for Action uses federal data to rank states on how well schools offer students access to things like experienced teachers, or whether they offer calculus or physics.
“Not necessarily whether or not they actually are receiving those opportunities, but whether they even get a chance to attend a school that provides those opportunities,” said David Lapp, RFA’s director of policy research.
He said that nationally, the dashboard shows gaps between what schools offer students of color, and what they offer white students.
“In Pennsylvania, the size of those gaps are among the largest in the country,” he explained.
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“Black students in Pennsylvania receive less than Black students receive in most other states, whereas white students in Pennsylvania receive more than white students receive in most other states.”
Pennsylvania ranks 49th in the gap between opportunities for Black and white students, and last for the disparity between Hispanic and white students.
Lapp said presenting the data in this way will allow policymakers to see how well they’re giving students the opportunity to succeed.
Their dashboard uses 14 indicators involving three categories, educators, student climate and curriculum.
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The educators section looks at:
- Certified teachers.
- STEM certified teachers
- Experienced teachers.
- Low student/teacher ratio.
- Low student/counselor ratio.
The student climate area studies:
- Suspenion rates.
- Student absenteeism.
- Teacher absenteeism.
- Grade retention.
The curriculum index involves:
- Advanced math.
- Calculus.
- Chemistry.
- AP/Dual enrollment.
- Physics.
The dashboard uses federal data from the 2017-18 school year, so it doesn’t indicate how the COVID-19 pandemic affected school opportunities.