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HELD BACK: Why Austin's Schools Aren't Working For Students Of Color

Gabriel C. Pérez
/
KUT
A student raises her hand in Savanna Wilson's fourth-grade class at Overton Elementary School.

In most urban school districts, including the Austin Independent School District, black and Latino students don't perform as well on standardized tests as their white and Asian peers.

This is called an achievement gap, and it's something the AISD school board made a priority to close in 2017.

But it's a challenging goal. Students who are falling behind academically often face other obstacles outside the classroom: homelessness, food insecurity, emotional problems, lack of familial support. So much affects how students do once they get to school.

There's a fierce debate on what it takes to close this gap, and it's currently playing out in the boardroom and classrooms of AISD.

Find the entire story here.

Claire McInerny is a former education reporter for KUT.
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