Quality education for all

World Vision speaks out for the most vulnerable children in the United States, with the goal of increasing access to the basic opportunities available for citizens of a free and democratic society. Among those basic opportunities is the right to a high-quality education. We advocate for first-rate education that is available to all children, regardless of economic status. In a country founded on the mantra of equal opportunity, no children should be denied the basic right to a quality public education because of their family income level. Disparity in education quality While there are many high-quality schools in the United States, schools in low-income communities typically rank the lowest in terms of quality.

World Vision advocates for first-rate education that is available to all children, regardless of economic status ©2008 Laura Reinhardt/World Vision

For instance, in 2005, the Education Trust released a report revealing that, on average, America’s public schools spend about $900 less per pupil on students educated in the poorest school districts than those educated in the wealthiest. (1)

Another Education Trust report released in 2006 analyzed the disparity in teacher quality between schools in some high-income versus low-income areas. The report found that (2):

• In Chicago, one out of every eight teachers in the highest-poverty schools failed the test of basic teacher skills at least once — twice the rate of teachers at low-poverty schools.
• At high-minority elementary schools in Ohio, one in eight teachers are not “highly qualified,” compared to one in 50 teachers at elementary schools serving the smallest proportion of students of color.
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We must ensure that low-income and minority children are prepared to be successful, participating members of our democracy. To achieve this:

• A more comprehensive accountability system and better measurements of progress must be put in place.
• High school drop-out rates must decrease.
• More after-school programming and enrichment activities in low-income communities must be available.

In many cities in the United States, World Vision youth workers tutor, mentor, and provide positive activities for thousands of at-risk young people. In Washington, D.C., World Vision advocates for measures that will help bring equity to public education systems.

Get involved

• Pray for disadvantaged youth in the United States. Pray that God would provide them with opportunities that prepare them for a healthy, full life. Pray also for God’s anointment on organizations and churches that seek to serve youth and families in impoverished communities.
• Donate. Caring teachers in low-income schools often spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars of their own money each year to meet the needs of their students. Give a gift to provide resources like books, videos, art supplies, educational games, reward prizes, sports equipment, and more.

Sources

1. Statement by the Education Trust, Deccember 2005
   http://www2.edtrust.org/EdTrust/ETW/CA-2005FundingGap.htm
2. The Education Trust: Teaching inequality: How poor and minority students Are shortchanged on teacher quality, June 2006
   http://www2.edtrust.org/EdTrust/Press+Room/teacherquality2006.htm

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