Student Underachievement Gap Analysis

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Moreover, McEachern (2014) cited that the achievement gaps are found in all education systems. Studies, concentrated in the United States but also conducted in other countries, have considered racial and ethnic achievement gaps (Lee, 2002, 2004), urban-rural achievement gaps (Graham & Provost, 2012; Provasnik, 2007), gender achievement gaps (Benson, 2005b; Marks, 2008; Shafiq, 2011), private-public school achievement gaps (C. Lubienski, Weitzel, & S.T. Lubienski, 2009), and more. Certain groups of children may perform below average based on a variety of factors, such as poverty, family composition, teacher/school quality, school access, technology, and motivation, among others (Davis-Kean, 2005; Entwisle & Alexander, 1992; Rankin & Quane, …show more content…

In the United States, academic underachievement among children who are not fluent speakers of the predominant school language, English, is an unequivocal reality (Fry, 2008). Language-correlated achievement gaps have been characterized in other countries too. Dustmann et al. (2012) found that a language spoken at home that is not the predominant language in education is the single most important factor associated with the achievement gap between immigrants and natives of several OECD countries. Minority language students tend to perform more poorly in school than majority language peers, probably because of limited proficiency in the primary language of instruction (August & Shanahan, 2006; Kieffer, 2008). This limited proficiency can undermine students’ ability to complete school tasks (Keuhn, 1996; Vang, 2005), including science and math (Miller & Scheller, 2010). Children whose home language is the same as the school language, on the other hand, are able to transfer discussions between the two settings more easily, which could support the completion of homework and other school tasks (Hong & You, 2012). Children who hear a different language at home than the one used at school have a wide variety of possible language trajectories (Hoff, …show more content…

In the Philippines, some studies relating academic outcomes to language have been conducted. Observational studies like the First Language Component Bridging Program (FLC-BP) Pilot Project in Ifugao (1986-1993), Culture-Responsive Curriculum for Indigenous People–Third Elementary Education Project (2003-2007), Double Exposure in Mathematics Initiative of Region IV-B (2004-2007), Apo Palamguwan Cultural Education Center program in Bukidnon (since the early 1990s), and various IP education projects of the Bureau of Non-Formal Education have involved implementing some form of native language education program and tracking or observing the overall progress of its beneficiaries. The tracking of progress is often anecdotal, highlighting changes in the dynamics of the classroom including the enthusiasm of the pupils, their interest in reading, and speed in learning. The Double Exposure in Mathematics Initiative is one example of a study in which tangible achievement data was collected. The Grade 1 scores of the Regional Achievement Test in Mathematics was found to be higher in 2005 when the pupils were exposed to mathematics in both their mother tongue and English, compared with the 2004 Grade 1 cohort who were only taught in English

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