Los Angeles, CA- William Jeynes, a senior fellow at the Witherspoon Institute in Princeton and a professor at California State University-Long Beach, published results of a major study on the achievement gap in the July issue of Education & Urban Society, which indicates that government policies have had no effect in reducing the achievement gap. Moreover, when one considers school specific efforts to bridge the gap, the reduction has been very slight. However, Jeynes, a Harvard graduate, indicates that the study also produced some very good news. “Religious faith among children of color has a considerable impact in alleviating the achievement gap. From other studies that I’ve done it appears that faith gives these young people a sense of purpose and they are more likely to be self-disciplined.” Jeynes also noted that, “In Christian schools the achievement gap is 25% narrower than in public schools and this emphasis on purpose in life and self-discipline is likely part of the reason. These schools also insist on parental involvement more than is common in public schools.” Consistent with Jeynes’ statement family factors, such as whether a child was from an intact family and had highly involved parents, was the second most important variable in narrowing the achievement gap.

Jeynes asserted, “We expect far too much from the government. It can do some things well, but apparently reducing the achievement gap is not one of them. Perhaps we are expecting the government to be like superman. Although the results surprised me to some degree, they really make sense when one peruses the results of the study. The findings suggest that the closer one gets to having an impact on the personal lives of children, the more of an influence this will have on the achievement gap.” The results of the study are certainly food for thought, given that the nation as a whole and the government specifically have been attempting to eliminate the achievement gaps for half a century. When asked about this point Jeynes replied, “Yes, it is discouraging that with all the billions of dollars that have been spent on the achievement gap, so little progress has been made. Nevertheless, what is encouraging is that these findings indicate the real solutions require very little money.”