Skip to main content
eScholarship
Open Access Publications from the University of California

UC Santa Barbara

UC Santa Barbara Previously Published Works bannerUC Santa Barbara

The Long Road to Equality: A Meta-Regression Analysis of Changes in the Black Test Score Gap over Time.

Abstract

Objective

We analyze changes in test score gaps between Black students and their peers from 1979 to 2010 and examine how observable factors contribute to the gap.

Methods

Using meta-regression, we examine the relationship between African American racial status and achievement in United States K-12 education in 165 published studies.

Results

The absolute relationship between Black status and achievement decreased during the 1980s and early 1990s, but was stagnant from the late 1990s through 2010. Socioeconomic status explained more than half of the gap, and the influence of socioeconomic status on the gap did not changed significantly over time. Schooling characteristics explained relatively little of the gap, but school-level factors increased in importance over time.

Conclusions

Black test score gap closure stagnated in an era when federal education policy sought to close racial achievement gaps. Observable factors explain more of the gap than has been previously recognized.

Many UC-authored scholarly publications are freely available on this site because of the UC's open access policies. Let us know how this access is important for you.

Main Content
For improved accessibility of PDF content, download the file to your device.
Current View