These gaps—and other issues—have led today to calls for reform of the U.S. education system. As Christopher B. Swanson stated in his analysis of the nation‘s high school graduation rates, At the heart of the reform agenda lie commitments to combat the U.S. dropout crisis and propel the nation‘s schools and its economy at full speed into the 21st century, by ensuring that all students have a chance to earn a meaningful diploma that prepares them for further education and training and a successful adult life. The administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama have espoused such goals, as have major philanthropies, leading nonprofit organizations, prominent business leaders, and state and district policymakers from coast to coast. (Christopher B. Swanson, ―Analysis Finds Graduation Rates Moving Up: Strong signs of improvement on graduation,‖ Education Week, May 31, 2011.) http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/06/09/34analysis.h30.html?tkn=YS UFAEYuYs17FNRl4oOWD1RiiOioMCNeg6Y3&cmp=clp-edweek&intc=EW-DC11EWH
Seeming inability to close the achievement gap has fueled discussion between those favoring ―school-centered‖ approaches and others endorsing ―community- focused‖ initiatives. Harvard‘s Will Dobbie and Roland G. Fryer, Jr. summarized these sides of the debate as follows: The lack of progress has fed into a long-standing and rancorous debate among scholars, policymakers, and practitioners as to whether schools alone can close the achievement gap or whether the challenges children bring to school are too much for even the best educators to overcome. Proponents of the school-centered approach refer to anecdotes of excellence in particular schools or examples of other countries where poor children in superior schools outperform average Americans (Karin Chenoweth, 2007). Advocates of the community-focused approach argue that teachers and school administrators are dealing with issues that originate outside the classroom, citing research that shows racial and socioeconomic achievement gaps are present before children enter school (Fryer and Levitt 2004; 2006) and that one-third to one-half of the gap can be explained by family-environment indicators (Meredith Phillips, James Crouse, and John Ralph 1998; Fryer and Levitt 2004). In this scenario, combating poverty and having more constructive out-of-school time may lead to better and more-focused instruction in school. Indeed, James Coleman et al. (1966), in their famous report on equality of educational opportunity, argue that schools alone cannot treat the problem of chronic underachievement in urban schools. (Will Dobbie and Roland G. Fryer, Jr., ―Are High-Quality Schools Enough to Increase Achievement Among the Poor?‖ November 2010, pp. 1-2.) http://www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/fryer/files/HCZ_Nov_2010.pdf
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