Children Did Not Bring the Achievement Gap into Twin Cities Classrooms
"...If we treated education the way we treat sports, failing leaders wouldn't survive a season. Coaches who can't win get fired. Players who don't produce get pushed harder to improve. But in education, the most important playing field of all, we tolerate failure year in and year out."
By Don Allen, Journal of A Black Teacher
Walk into most Twin Cities schools today, and you'll see gleaming new lockers, polished hallways, and floors freshly waxed. They gleam like museum pieces of what "progress" is supposed to look like. This also depends on the location of the school. I had a friend who said his classroom was mopped twice in the 2024-2025 school year. His building served African American students in one of Minneapolis’ poorest neighborhoods. But scratch below the surface and you'll find that too many children still cannot read at grade level, do basic mathematical calculations, or pass science benchmarks. The truth is unavoidable: children did not bring the achievement gap to the classrooms; adults did.
The discrepancy between what students know and need to know is neither natural nor a manifestation of student laziness and lack of interest. It is the outcome of systems that have been created, sustained, and too often left unattended by adults. When school systems tout cosmetic renovations while student proficiency hovers below 70 percent in basic subjects, they are engaging in educational hypocrisy at its best. To quote Karen Chenoweth (2007), "success happens when schools focus relentlessly on what matters most, teaching and learning" (p. 23).
School site name changes and waxed floors have never moved a reading score.
Rather than confronting systemic instructional breakdowns, unfair policies, and misaligned learning systems, leaders usually opt for distractions. Cutting a ribbon on new lockers is easier than doing the hard, sometimes painful work of changing instruction. Yet, as Michael Fullan (2019) reminds us, real change results from "leaders who see beyond superficial reforms and engage deeply in culture-building" (p. 44). A culture of success cannot be constructed on cosmetic renovations. It takes courageous leadership that prioritizes children's academic development above all else.
And still, too frequently, we accept mediocrity. We permit site leaders to oversee schools in which a third of students achieve proficiency, and we label that "progress." It's not progress; it's malpractice. Mohammad Cruz (2021) is direct about this: equity can no longer be a rhetorical flourish; it has to be in practices, policy, and outcomes. An equity statement on a district website does not mean much if most Black, Brown, or multilingual students cannot read on grade level.
A deeper dishonesty is at play here, one that Ibram X. Kendi (2019) calls "denial" - the heartbeat of racism. Denial also beats strongly in under-resourced schools. Denial that poverty, homelessness, and trauma affect student performance. Denial that untrained or unsupported teachers cannot alone close skill gaps alone. Denial that decades of failing proficiency rates mean more than "challenges"; they mean systemic neglect.
If we are committed to equity and student success, then the window dressing has to stop. No amount of glossy facilities can replace actual, systemic educational transformation. The question isn't whether we can do better; the question is whether we are ready to leave behind the pretence of improvement that has held sway for far too long.
Three Non-Negotiables for Change
1. Eliminate Poor Leaders
If a site leader is not able to push student proficiency past 70 percent in reading, math, and science, then it's time for that leader to step down. Leadership is not a title; leadership is about getting things done. Schools that fail year after year need leaders who can show measurable gains, not make excuses.
2. Prioritize Instruction Over Infrastructure
Budgets reveal values. When schools spend millions on athletic facilities and building facelifts while literacy rates level off, they declare, in a loud voice, that image is more vital than the life chances of kids. Money must be redirected into teacher training, curriculum alignment, and student-centered interventions. Until every child reads and computes on grade level, new lockers can wait.
3. Build Equity-Centered Accountability Systems
Equity must be measured in outcomes, not in slogans. Districts must publish concrete data on progress, train educators in culturally responsive teaching, and hold leaders accountable for results. If disparities persist, intervention must be automatic and relentless. Words like "inclusion" and "justice" must not grace mission statements; they must guide concrete actions in classrooms.
We owe our children more than polished schools that hide systemic dysfunction. The achievement gap is not theirs to own; it belongs to the adults who run the system. Until we stop congratulating ourselves for cosmetic victories and start holding ourselves accountable for academic ones, we will continue to betray our students.
Think about it: If we treated education the way we treat sports, failing leaders wouldn't survive a season. Coaches who can't win get fired. Players who don't produce get pushed harder to improve. But in education, the most important playing field of all, we tolerate failure year in and year out. Site leaders preside over losing records counted in literacy and math scores, and instead of accountability, they are given contract renewals. The scoreboard isn't subtle: our children are paying the price for adult failure. The achievement gap did not follow our children into the classroom. It was delivered to them by adults too afraid to face reality. The era of afraid leadership must end. Schools have to prioritize teaching and learning, hold those responsible accountable, and cease acting as if glossy buildings equal successful students. If we fail to make that choice today, we must stop referring to ourselves as educators. We are nothing but custodians of failure, waxing floors while futures implode.
The discrepancy between what students know and need to know is neither natural nor a manifestation of student laziness and lack of interest. It is the outcome of systems that have been created, sustained, and too often left unattended by adults. When school systems tout cosmetic renovations while student proficiency hovers below 70 percent in basic subjects, they are engaging in educational hypocrisy at its best. To quote Karen Chenoweth (2007), "success happens when schools focus relentlessly on what matters most, teaching and learning" (p. 23).
School site name changes and waxed floors have never moved a reading score.
Rather than confronting systemic instructional breakdowns, unfair policies, and misaligned learning systems, leaders usually opt for distractions. Cutting a ribbon on new lockers is easier than doing the hard, sometimes painful work of changing instruction. Yet, as Michael Fullan (2019) reminds us, real change results from "leaders who see beyond superficial reforms and engage deeply in culture-building" (p. 44). A culture of success cannot be constructed on cosmetic renovations. It takes courageous leadership that prioritizes children's academic development above all else.
And still, too frequently, we accept mediocrity. We permit site leaders to oversee schools in which a third of students achieve proficiency, and we label that "progress." It's not progress; it's malpractice. Mohammad Cruz (2021) is direct about this: equity can no longer be a rhetorical flourish; it has to be in practices, policy, and outcomes. An equity statement on a district website does not mean much if most Black, Brown, or multilingual students cannot read on grade level.
A deeper dishonesty is at play here, one that Ibram X. Kendi (2019) calls "denial" - the heartbeat of racism. Denial also beats strongly in under-resourced schools. Denial that poverty, homelessness, and trauma affect student performance. Denial that untrained or unsupported teachers cannot alone close skill gaps alone. Denial that decades of failing proficiency rates mean more than "challenges"; they mean systemic neglect.
If we are committed to equity and student success, then the window dressing has to stop. No amount of glossy facilities can replace actual, systemic educational transformation. The question isn't whether we can do better; the question is whether we are ready to leave behind the pretence of improvement that has held sway for far too long.
Three Non-Negotiables for Change
1. Eliminate Poor Leaders
If a site leader is not able to push student proficiency past 70 percent in reading, math, and science, then it's time for that leader to step down. Leadership is not a title; leadership is about getting things done. Schools that fail year after year need leaders who can show measurable gains, not make excuses.
2. Prioritize Instruction Over Infrastructure
Budgets reveal values. When schools spend millions on athletic facilities and building facelifts while literacy rates level off, they declare, in a loud voice, that image is more vital than the life chances of kids. Money must be redirected into teacher training, curriculum alignment, and student-centered interventions. Until every child reads and computes on grade level, new lockers can wait.
3. Build Equity-Centered Accountability Systems
Equity must be measured in outcomes, not in slogans. Districts must publish concrete data on progress, train educators in culturally responsive teaching, and hold leaders accountable for results. If disparities persist, intervention must be automatic and relentless. Words like "inclusion" and "justice" must not grace mission statements; they must guide concrete actions in classrooms.
We owe our children more than polished schools that hide systemic dysfunction. The achievement gap is not theirs to own; it belongs to the adults who run the system. Until we stop congratulating ourselves for cosmetic victories and start holding ourselves accountable for academic ones, we will continue to betray our students.
Think about it: If we treated education the way we treat sports, failing leaders wouldn't survive a season. Coaches who can't win get fired. Players who don't produce get pushed harder to improve. But in education, the most important playing field of all, we tolerate failure year in and year out. Site leaders preside over losing records counted in literacy and math scores, and instead of accountability, they are given contract renewals. The scoreboard isn't subtle: our children are paying the price for adult failure. The achievement gap did not follow our children into the classroom. It was delivered to them by adults too afraid to face reality. The era of afraid leadership must end. Schools have to prioritize teaching and learning, hold those responsible accountable, and cease acting as if glossy buildings equal successful students. If we fail to make that choice today, we must stop referring to ourselves as educators. We are nothing but custodians of failure, waxing floors while futures implode.
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