SOMA Living November 2021

EDUCATION A question our community has been asking for many years is “Why do Black students in our district consistently have significantly poorer educational outcomes than other students?” Reports about and lawsuits against our school district dating back to at least 2014 chronicle a history of de-facto segregation and academic tracking. The gaps between Black students and the districtwide average in math and ELA tends to hover around 20 percentage points. While lawsuits and parent group demands may shift the structure that produces these undesirable outcomes for students generally over time, parents, particularly Black parents must put a plan in place to secure the educational outcomes and futures of their own children. As a parent said to me recently, “I thought the school had a plan for my child. I was incorrect.” Any experienced parent can tell you that year-to-year, what happens in schools and within classrooms can be the “(un)luck of the draw” for their child(ren). Thus, individual families need to invest their time and energy in developing a proactive, long-term plan that charts a success pathway for their child that is independent of the school their child attends or classroom their child lands in. The pathway they develop should incorporate the hopes, goals, values, and expectations they have for (and later develop with) their child(ren) in the future. Little kids grow up quickly and a year or even a marking period where things “slip” academically can be very difficult and painful to make up. When academic competencies slip, students can suffer emotionally, lose confidence, and disengage from their school experience. It happens far too often here and disproportionately among students of color. Parents also suffer as they struggle to understand what’s missing from their child’s ability to read, write or work with mathematical concepts. When I was a young parent, I didn’t know what was missing for my son. Having a Harvard Ph.D. did not help me navigate us through this district. Socio demographic differences do not fully explain the performance disparities that plague our district, and emphasize the necessity that local families develop their own plans that are proactive and forward looking to support their own children’s academics. To be most effective, these plans must be consistent, have high standards, and include supports for literacy and numeracy which are the keys that unlock learning for their students.

Dr. Alissa Gardenhire is the president of Kids Win, Inc., an educational consultancy. Local to SOMA for over 20 years, a long-time parent in this district, and an educational researcher and now educator, she is passionate about learning, retention, and mastery of words and numbers for K-12 students for their growth, confidence, and freedom. Follow her blog at www.kidswininc.com.

SOMA LIVING 21

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NOVEMBER 2021