You may be unaware, but a major achievement gap is plaguing Berkeley Unified School District, and it’s especially prevalent in our school, Berkeley High School. I remember learning about this achievement gap last year, in 8th grade. In my Advancement Via Individual Determination class at Longfellow Middle School, we analyzed a reading about the major achievement gap in BUSD. I felt shocked by some of the facts I read about, but also so glad I learned about this before coming to the school. It gave me context on some ways I may be challenged at school, and how to face the challenge. This gap separating Black and Latinx students and their white and Asian classmates became common knowledge to me. However, when I got to BHS, I realized this was definitely not the case for other people, so many students don’t know about this. Berkeley schools have one of the biggest achievement gaps in the entire country. Sadly, this gap begins in elementary. Through researching on BUSD’s website, I saw how consistently, for all the elementary schools, economically disadvantaged students performed much worse in school than students who were not. Now, the reason this is related to the gap is that, most commonly, Black and Latinx students are more underprivileged compared to their Asian and white peers.
Yes, programs are working to fight this, but not enough. The Equity, Achievement & Belonging Department of BUSD names the African American Success Framework (AASF), BUSD Umoja Program, and BUSD Puente Program as some of their targeted equity programs. Yet, Umoja was only at Longfellow and is currently gone and replaced by a class mixing the Umoja and AVID curriculums. I went through Puente and Umoja and learned about the AASF from my mom. So, while I do enjoy the fact that these programs exist, Berkeley needs to do more. It needs to start in elementary schools; we must inspire children with role models who look like them. Only learning about Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King, Cesar Chavez, and Dolores Huerta every single year is not enough. It’s necessary for our teachers to tell their students daily that they are smart, worthy, and capable. Many students feel they are not expected to succeed, or maybe they have never seen a college-going person in their family. So, as a district, it needs to be instilled in students by the time they begin Berkeley schools that they can do anything. Words of affirmation work! On mentalhealth.com, the reading “The Science Of Affirmations: The Brain’s Response To Positive Thinking¨ by Lisa A. Koosis, reviewed by medical professional Dr. Brindusa Vanta, Ph.D. states ¨Because positive affirmations work by replacing negative thought patterns with healthier ways of thinking, they can have a positive impact on the brain and body … These mantras encourage productive responses to challenging situations.”
Community is another big factor in success. Every time someone wins at an award show we hear them thank their support systems because that’s a crucial element in how they achieved their goals. Most people are inclined to create a community with people they relate to. This is why having teachers, and classmates you can see yourself in is important. Because Berkeley schools are not the most diverse it’s often challenging for underrepresented students to feel a sense of community, which also adds to the gap. As a student, you can work to make connections with teachers and most importantly your classmates so you can build each other up, and inspire one another.