How Schools Really Matter: Why Our Assumption about Schools and Inequality Is Mostly Wrong

"School is supposed to be the great equalizer in America, though we know it often doesn't work as it should. In fact, when it comes to understanding schools and inequality, especially in K-12 schools, the more common view is that American schools actually increase inequality. This assumption has become such a strongly held belief in our society that our schools (especially poor ones) have become a punching bag for political candidates, pundits, and concerned citizens. In this book, Douglas B. Downey putsthese widespread ideas to the test, finding that the numbers offer an important corrective to our understanding of schools' effects on inequality. Schools do not exacerbate inequality, Downey shows-they actually help to level the playing field. Achievement gaps in math and reading skills are mostly formed prior to kindergarten entry, and schools do more to reduce them than increase them. We spend so much time and energy trying to reduce inequality via school reform, but it clearly starts too late, after most of the "action" has already occurred; the real sources of inequality are elsewhere. Downey's book is an essential call to action: if we are serious about building a more just society, we are going to have to fight some battles bigger than school reform and get at the roots of inequality once and for all"--
Most of us assume that public schools in America are unequal&;that the quality of the education varies with the location of the school and that as a result, children learn more in the schools that serve mostly rich, white kids than in the schools serving mostly poor, black kids. But it turns out that this common assumption is misplaced. As Douglas B. Downey shows in How Schools Really Matter, achievement gaps have very little to do with what goes on in our schools. Not only do schools not exacerbate inequality in skills, they actually help to level the playing field. The real sources of achievement gaps are elsewhere. A close look at the testing data in seasonal patterns bears this out. It turns out that achievement gaps in reading skills between high- and low-income children are nearly entirely formed prior to kindergarten, and schools do more to reduce them than increase them. And when gaps do increase, they tend to do so during summers, not during school periods. So why do both liberal and conservative politicians strongly advocate for school reform, arguing that the poor quality of schools serving disadvantaged children is an important contributor to inequality? It&;s because discussing the broader social and economic reforms necessary for really reducing inequality has become too challenging and polarizing&;it&;s just easier to talk about fixing schools. Of course, there are differences that schools can make, and Downey outlines the kinds of reforms that make sense given what we know about inequality outside of schools, including more school exposure, increased standardization, and better and fairer school and teacher measurements. ?How Schools Really Matter offers a firm rebuke to those who find nothing but fault in our schools, which are doing a much better than job than we give them credit for. It should also be a call to arms for educators and policymakers: the bottom line is that if we are serious about reducing inequality, we are going to have to fight some battles that are bigger than school reform&;battles against the social inequality that is reflected within, rather than generated by&;our public school system.