EDUC 6001

How Does Socioeconomic
Status Affect Student
Achievement?
Megon Mancini

* This project work is original and I have not
submitted it for credit in any other course at ECU
or any other higher education institution.

“Although class powerfully impacts
education, and education certainly
impacts class, discussions of class and
education have been relatively scarce.”
(Yeskel, 2008, pg. 8)

QuickTimeª see this
are needed to and a picture.
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor

What is a Social Class?
•A large group of people who share similar
economic and social position combined make
up our social-class identity.
•Our social-class identity is based on wealth,
income, status, and who and what you know.
(Yeskel, 2008).
•Socioeconomic status is typically broken into
three categories: high SES, middle SES, and
low SES.

Ways that socioeconomic
status impacts education
• Issues of access • Parental
• Academic involvement
preparation • Institutional policies
• Curricular content and practices
• School culture • Extracurricular
activities

(Yeskel, 2008)

Inequalities Based on
Socioeconomic Status
• Educational inequality starts early in life- it
begins with uneven access to high-quality
childcare.
• K-12 education is often separate and
unequal based on race, ethnicity, geography,
family income, and language status.
• Higher education becomes inaccessible due
to insufficient monetary resources and/or
ineffective academic preparation.
(Yeskel, 2008)

Inequalities in Schools
• Socioeconomic status increases segregation by race
and class in school districts. (Goyette, 2008)
• Lower-income and urban families of color tend to rely
on non-neighborhood schools options where white,
suburban, middle-income families select schools
based on their neighborhood and residences.
(Goyette)
• In the United States the wealthiest 1% of families
currently have more wealth than the bottom 90% put
together (Yeskel, 2008).
• The inequalities in schools will more than likely re-
create and reinforce class inequality. (Yeskel, 2008)

Student outcomes related to SES
• Socioeconomic status is positively related to
outcomes in 12th grade (Battle & Lewis, 2002).
• The following statistics are according to Sacks
as stated in Spencer and Castano (2007):
• The College Board released on average a high-
school senior whose parents did not finish high
school, scored 100 points lower on the SAT
compared to the national average.
• In 2005, out of college bound students, only 8%
has parents whose income was $20,000 or less.
• Furthermore, students of most selective
colleges, only 3% are from low-SES
backgrounds.

How to Minimize Learning Gaps
• All students benefit from good teaching, however
it gives the biggest boost to low achieving
students.
• “Good teaching is a powerful gap-closer”
(Marshall, 2009).
• Although teachers are under pressure due to
high-stakes tests to cover the necessary
curriculum, data needs to be analyzed and used
to gear instruction.
• When students don’t learn something, it is what
schools do to help that child that makes
the difference and has potential to
close the gap.

Making a Difference
• Research has shown that many factors give
way to the underachievement of minority
students (economics, parents, community, and
the environment), however schools can make a
difference (Kuykendall, 1991).
• Teachers expectations are extremely important
in developing a positive self-image.
• Kuykendall stated in her publication, “Many
black and lower-income children have a need to
relate the learning process to their own
experience” (Ch. 2, pg. 3).

• Education is “the access channel
through which the American Dream can
be realized” (Yeskel, 2008).
• A college degree is becoming more
vital and is equivalent to what used to
be a high school degree in years past.

Expectations for Students

• Since we all develop norms and values based on the
culture in which we were raised, we need to be
cognizant of those beliefs and work to be
appreciative of the uniqueness of cultures that differ
from ours.
• According to a 1987 study by Cheyney et al, 60% of
Black youth are involved in programs that do not
lead to a strong value in history, literature, and
access to higher order thinking skills. (Kuykendall,
1991)

NAEP
• The National Assessment of Educational
Progress (NAEP) stated that students from
low socioeconomic backgrounds and many
children of color regularly achieve below the
national average in mathematics and
language skills. As children continue through
their school years the gap widens. (Bowman,
1994).

Stereotype Threat
• Achievement gap in standardized testing between
high and low socioeconomic status may be due to
stereotype threat- when members of a group perform
poorly on a task because they fear confirming a
negative stereotype that is associated with their
ingroup (Spencer & Castano, 2007).
• Low-socioeconomic (SES) students perform worse
on a test when it is presented as a means to
diagnosing intelligence. On the other hand low-SES
students do better in non-threatening conditions.
(Spencer & Castano)

Stereotyping
• According to the Educational Testing Service
(ETS), as stated in Spencer and Castano
(2007), students whose parents attended
college do better than first generation college
students on standardized tests such as the
GRE and SAT. Parents with college degrees
may motivate their children more and live in
areas that allow their children to attend better
quality schools.
• Stereotyping may lead to diminished academic
achievement when their SES was made
important before taking a test.

Implications of Current
Trends
• Research reveals, “If current trends in
educational achievement continue,
millions of students will not obtain the
education necessary for full
participation in the economic and civic
life of the country” (Bowman, 1994).

Rowan-Salisbury Schools
• Rowan-Salisbury Schools is a relatively rural
set school district in the Piedmont region of
North Carolina.
• There are 20 elementary schools, 8 middle
schools, and 8 high schools (including 1
Alternative Middle School serving students in
grades Kindergarten- eighth grades and 1
Alternative High School serving students in
grades eight –twelve).

A Look at NC School
Report Cards
• The following slides
will examine how
Rowan-Salisbury
Schools compared
to the State in
standardized
testing.

QuickTimeª and a
are needed to see this picture.

• School size in relation to the State shows that
Rowan-Salisbury Schools has slightly smaller
elementary and high schools, and is remotely larger
in middle school size.

• As a district, Rowan-Salisbury Schools
scored below the state in all End-Of-Grade
tests in grades three-eight.

End-of-Grade Testing
Grades 3-8
• Economically disadvantaged (E.D) students
scored extremely lower than not
economically disadvantaged (N.E.D)
students in the district (41.9% to 73.3%).
• The states overall average E.D students are
outscores by N.E.D students by 30.1% on
the End-of-Grade tests.

End-of-Course Testing
Grades 9-12
• E.D students scored
0.8% higher in the
district than the
QuickTimeª and a state percentage
are needed to see this picture. whereas N.E.D
students scored
0.1% lower than
than the state
percentage.

Adequate Yearly Progress
AYP
• According to NCLB, students are
divided into 10 groups that must
make AYP.
QuickTimeª • see this picture.
are needed toand a student group
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor must have
Each
at least 40 students in the tested
grade levels to be included in
AYP. The student must attend a
school for 140 days to be
counted as well.
• To make AYP, the tested grades
must meet proficiency targets in
reading and math.

Conclusion
• It is apparent that we need to reform the
funding system to ensure that all children are
worthy of quality education, not only the ones
whose parents can afford it (Yeskel, 2008).
• “The evidence is now overwhelming that if you
take an average low-income child and put him
into an average American public school, he will
almost certainly come out poorly educated”
(Marshall, 2009, pg. 653).
• Tests are unsuccessful in separating culture
from development. The tests associate a child’s
inability to perform a
particular task to a developmental
delay (Bowman,1994).

Last Word

As educators, it is
imperative that we teach
all students with high
expectations regardless
QuickTimeª and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor of socioeconomic status.
are needed to see this picture. Students are capable of
what we expect and
setting the bar too low
only proves to be an
injustice to and for them.

References
Battle, J., & Lewis, M. (2002). The Increasing significance of class: The relative effects of race and socioeconomic

status on academic achievement. Journal of Poverty, 6(2), 21-36. Retrieved March 15, 2010 from,

http://web.ebscohost.com.jproxy.lib.ecu.edu/ehost/detail?vid=9&hid=8&sid=d1807f86-0406-47c1-8f44-

89aef9a19441%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=9869488

Bowman, B. (1994). Cultural diversity and academic achievement. North Central Regional Educational Laboratory

Retrieved March 15, 2010 from, http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/educatrs/leadrshp/le0bow.htm

Goyette, K. (2008). Race, social background, and school choice options. Equity & Excellence in Education. 4(1),

114-129. Retrieved March 20, 2010 from,


89aef9a19441%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=31334446

Kuykendall,C. (1991). Improving black student achievement by enhancing student's self image. Retrieved February

17, 2010 from, http://www.maec.org/achieve/achieve.html

References
Marshall, K. (2009). A how-to plan for widening the gap. Phi Delta Kappan, 90(9), 650-655. Retrieved March 20,

2010, from http://web.ebscohost.com.jproxy.lib.ecu.edu/ehost/detail?vid=5&hid=8&sid=d1807f86-0406-

47c1-8f44-

89aef9a19441%40ses sionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=38812293

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. (2009). Education first NC school report cards. Retrieved March

20, 2010 from, http://www.ncreportcards.org

Spencer, B., & Castano, E. (2007). Social Justice Research, 20(4), 418-432. Retrieved March 15, 2010, from



Yeskel, F. (2008). Coming to class: Looking at education through the lens of class introduction to the class and

education special issue. Equity & Excellence in Education, 41(1), 1-11. Retrieved March 20, 2010, from



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EDUC 6001