Black and Latino students in the U.S. don’t have access to certified instructors, counselors and advanced classes at the rate that white students do, according to a new report by the U.S. Education Department.
Released Wednesday as part of the Civil Rights Data Collection, a survey that gathers information on public schools across the nation, the report highlights disadvantages in the school system when it comes to Black and Latino students.
Collecting the latest information from the 2020-2021 school year, the report found that only about 1% of the total U.S. students, or 522,000 students, were attendees at schools where less than half of the teachers actually met the state certification requirements as a learning instructor. At these schools, the student demographics were composed of 66% Black or Latino students, highlighting the disadvantage these students are at when it comes to being taught by certified educators to receive an equitable education.
Disadvantages in learning opportunities also meant that Black students and Latino students were underrepresented in AP classes. Despite making up 15% of the high school students across the nation, Black students comprised just 8% of Advanced Placement science and 6% of Advanced Placement math students while Latino students made up only 20% and 19% of students in AP science and AP math classes, respectively.
With the lack of qualified instructors, disadvantages in support from education officials extended to the school counselors. The Department of Education found that BIPOC students were more likely to go to schools with no counselors, with Black students being 1.2 times more likely to receive no counselor aid.
In a press release, Department of Education and civil rights officials reinforced a need to address the inequities found.
“These new CRDC data reflect troubling differences in students’ experiences in our nation’s schools,” said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon. “We remain committed to working with school communities to ensure the full civil rights protections that federal law demands.”
Today, OCR released new civil rights data from the 2020–21 school year, offering critical insight regarding civil rights indicators during that coronavirus pandemic year. Press release: https://t.co/69tftgUDG3 pic.twitter.com/dvHEvKzQVj
— ED Civil Rights (@EDcivilrights) November 15, 2023
Recent research has emphasized the benefit of having certified teachers as educational instructors. Per the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, being taught by a board-certified teacher adds approximately one to two more months of learning material to a student’s educational career on average.
A majority of students taught by board-certified teachers also exhibited a deeper understanding of the courses.
Seventy-four percent of students learning under board-certified teachers understood the class material better than the students under instructors who haven’t met the requirements. Overall, this rate was nearly three times that of the latter students.
“Through National Board Certification, teachers demonstrate that their teaching meets the profession’s standards for accomplished practice through a rigorous, peer-reviewed and performance-based process, similar to professional certification in fields such as medicine,” according to representatives of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. “In achieving Board certification, teachers prove their ability to advance student learning and achievement.”
