School Success and Failure Is Mainly Based On Family Income

The experts know that overall school performance is based on how much money a family earns annually. This is why on average, the schools with the most students receiving free or reduced lunch do not perform as well as schools with the least amount of students receiving free or reduced lunch.

For many people this explanation is too simplistic; however, there is an international math and reading test in which the United States is a participant. Two of the three major international tests—The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study and The Trends in International Math and Science Study.

The tests are given every few years and they break down student scores according to the poverty rate in each school in America. The poverty rate in a school in America is determined by students that receive free or reduced priced lunch.

Among U.S. public schools with children attending schools where no one received free or reduced priced lunch, the reading literacy scores were higher than any other country. Yep, these students are number one in the world.

The schools where some of the students received free or reduced priced lunch had reading literacy scores that were lower than schools where no one received free or reduced priced lunch.

The U.S. students where all or most of the students received free or reduced priced lunch had the lowest reading test scores of the three groups.

In an unsurprising way, the math and science test scores were similar to the reading literacy scores. Students where 10% or less of U.S. students received free or reduced priced lunch had scores that exceeded every other country in science and third in math.

These math scores decreased as the percentage of U.S. students receiving free or reduced priced lunch increased at a U.S. school. Once the number of students receiving free or reduced priced lunch reached 50% at a U.S. school, the schools test scores dropped below the average for all countries taking this international test.

Poverty is the elephant in the room that no one in a leadership role is talking about in America when it comes to education.