Is the Attainment Gap Fundamentally Flawed? Challenges and Opportunities

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Ahmed, F. 2020. Is the Attainment Gap Fundamentally Flawed? Challenges and Opportunities. Research in Teacher Education. 10 (1), pp. 18-22. https://doi.org/10.15123/uel.88z8w
AuthorsAhmed, F.
Abstract

Inequality of outcome has become one of the most pressing issues in education. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the performance of disadvantaged students. However, despite increased support, no school in England or Wales has managed to consistently close the attainment gap between disadvantaged students and their peers. This raises many questions, none more important than: is there an error in how we measure the performance of disadvantaged students? Furthermore, what are the implications of such a potential error? This paper argues that the attainment gap as it is currently calculated is ineffective in identifying the locus of underperformance, the specific needs of disadvantaged students and the support needed to improve outcomes. Finally, this paper attempts to address this by discussing a pilot project focused on identifying and addressing disadvantaged students’ needs and the challenges and opportunities this raises.

JournalResearch in Teacher Education
Journal citation10 (1), pp. 18-22
ISSN2046-1240
2047-3818
Year2020
PublisherThe School of Education and Communities, University of East London
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Anyone
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.15123/uel.88z8w
Publication dates
OnlineMay 2020
Publication process dates
Deposited12 Feb 2021
Copyright holder© 2020 The Author
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