From the �Discussion and Implications� portion of the actual report;
Lagging achievement is a problem for poor and minority children and for the broad middle class. A large part of the economic cost associated with America�s educational achievement gap is borne by poor and minority communities whose members are unable to reach their potential. But the magnitude of the international gap suggests that the broad middle class in the United States pays a severe price for failing to match the performance of nations with better educational systems. In our observation, parents in poor neighborhoods are all too aware that their schools are not performing well; but middle-class parents typically do not realize that their schools are failing to adequately prepare their children for an age of global competition. Our findings suggest this middle-class complacency is unjustified and should be challenged.
Besides the overall achievement gap amongst nations and between states, as well as, the racial/economic groups within the U.S., the report states that often school districts within states (having very similar demographics) yield very different achievement results. That is definitely the case, IMO, when comparing course offerings / programs and then nationally normed testing results from the Chicago suburb district of friends to our area.
Our daughter started out in public school here. Although we felt most of her ps teachers for grades K-2 were pretty strong (they are definitely well compensated here as compared to other areas), the level of expected and actual instruction seemed well below the ability level of almost all of the kids, certainly including ours. Maybe our own elementary districts simply had above average expectations, dh from Fairfax County and MN college area for me, but I think they were just more realistic than the expectations here.
