Religion, Intact Families, and the Achievement Gap

Using analyses of the National Education Longitudinal Study (NELS) and meta-analysis, I present data that indicate that in religious, mostly Christian, schools, the achievement gap between white and minority students, as well as between children of highand low-socioeconomic status, is considerably smaller than in public schools. I then undertake statistical analyses to indicate why this is the case, including examining school culture, the encouragement of religious commitment, and an emphasis on the family. One of the most notable findings that emerges from this study is that using the NELS dataset, when African American and Latino children who are religious and come from intact families are compared with white students, the achievement gap disappears. Other findings indicate that religious schools have more racial harmony, fewer drug problems, and a more demanding curriculum than do public schools, features that probably help to explain the smaller achievement gap. Jeynes: Religion, Intact Families, and the Achievement Gap 3 Over the last four decades, one of the most persistent debates in education has been on how to close the achievement gap between white students on the one hand and black and Hispanic students on the other (Green 2001; Simpson 1981). This achievement gap exists in virtually every measure of educational progress, including standardized tests, GPA, the dropout rate, and the extent to which students are left back a grade (Conciatore 1990; Gordon 1976; Green et al. 2000; So and Chan 1984). The United States was founded on the principle of equality. As a result, Americans tend to feel uncomfortable when unequal results emerge, and American educators have frequently tried to reduce those inequalities (Green 2001; Osborne 1999). The intractable nature of the difference in academic outcomes that exists between students of certain races of color and white students and those of low versus high socioeconomic status, has been of considerable concern to educators and the American public (Rayburn and Hayes 1975; Roscigno 1998). Ronald Roach (2001: 377) recently asserted that “in the academic and think tank world, pondering achievement gap remedies takes center stage. ” Given the persistence of this gap, the government has launched a plethora of initiatives designed to eradicate it (Green et al. 2000; Jones 1984; Rumberger and Willms 1992). These initiatives include Head Start, the school lunch program, President Clinton’s national standards program, a host of affirmative action programs, No Child Left Behind, and various other programs. Moreover, copious private programs have been initiated by various academics, research institutes, foundations, and other organizations (Navarro and Natalicio 1999; Ross, Smith, and Casey 1999; Slavin and Madden 2001; Trent 1997). These efforts have focused on multicultural teaching, attempting to raise students’ self-esteem, parental involvement, requiring school uniforms, community partnerships, and so forth (Henderson 1975; Slavin and Madden 2001; Vail 1996). Of all the inequalities that exist in the American education system, researchers have probably tried to address racial inequality more than any other (Haycock 2001; Orfield et al. 2000). And while there was a period during the 1980s when the achievement gap did show some reduction, which some social scientists credit to the Back to Basics movement (Green 2001; Haycock and Jerald 2002; Jerald and Haycock 2002), it remains adamantly wide even to this day (Cross and Slater 2000; Haycock 2001; Hedges and Nowell, 1999; Lindjord 1998; Orfield et al. 2000; Slater 1999). Although researchers and educators acknowledge that an achievement gap exists, social scientists differ widely in their suggestions about how to bridge the gap. One such solution includes religious commitment of students. Increasingly, particularly over the last two decades, social scientists have examined the influence of religious commitment, religious schools, and family structure on the educational outcomes of students of color (Jeynes 1999, 2003b). 4 Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion Vol. 3 (2007), Article 3 Various studies using a variety of analytic approaches, including meta-analyses, nationwide datasets, and qualitative techniques, have found a consistent positive relationship between variables such as religious commitment, Christian schooling, and intact parental family structure and school success (Jeynes 2002a). These trends exist not only for American students generally, but specifically for students of color (Jeynes 1999, 2003b). For example, students of color who are religious (defined by both intrinsic and extrinsic measures) outperform their counterparts who are less religious (Jeynes 1999, 2003b). Minority students attending Christian or other religious schools achieve at higher rates scholastically than do their counterparts at public schools, even when the study has adjusted for socioeconomic status (Jeynes 2002b). Finally, students of color from intact families excel at higher levels in school than do students from less traditional family structures (Jeynes 1999, 2003b). Although religiosity, attending religious schools, and being raised in an intact family have ameliorative influences on scholastic outcomes for minority students, research results only suggest the possibility that these factors reduce the achievement gap. Given that these three factors are also associated with improved grades and scores for white students, it is conceivable that these factors could benefit white children more than children of color. In this scenario, these factors could actually benefit young people overall but exacerbate the achievement gap. Therefore, it is important to assess not only the effects of these factors on the educational outcomes of children of color, but also their effect on the achievement gap. The possibility that Christian and other religious schools could serve to reduce the achievement gap appears consistent with the religious emphasis on providing succor for the downtrodden. When one looks at some of the poorest sections of U.S. and European cities, the vast majority of the shelters that minister to the poor are religious. While some secularists talk of the need to give to the poor, it is usually religious people who are the ones reaching the poor in the trenches of homelessness and poverty (Deck, Tarango, and Matovina 1995; Greenway 1992; Henry and Hancock 1979; Nicholls and Wood 1996; Perkins 1995). Considering the strong impact that religious and family variables have on people’s lives, there has been a puzzling dearth of studies examining the influence of these factors on the achievement gap (Jeynes 1999, 2001, 2003b). The need for the research presented in this article is particularly noteworthy (Jeynes 1999, 2003b) for three reasons. The first reason is the debate surrounding the idea of school choice plans that include private schools. If attending religious schools improves the educational outlook for low-socioeconomic-status (low-SES) children, this enhances the argument in favor of including private schools in a school choice system. However, if attending private religious schools does not improve these children’s Jeynes: Religion, Intact Families, and the Achievement Gap 5 academic results, then the argument in favor of a choice program that would permit them to attend private religious schools is substantially weakened. Nevertheless, one should note that there are other nonacademic reasons why school choice may be laudable. The second reason is that educators, parents, and sociologists need added insight into how to raise the accomplishments and aspirations of low-SES students (Jeynes 2003a, 2003b, 2005b). The third reason is the importance of ascertaining whether public school educators can benefit by examining the religious school model (Hudolin 1994). To the extent to which low-SES children perform better in religious schools, this strengthens the argument that public school educators can learn from some of the practices of religious schools (Bryk, Lee, and Holland 1993; LePore and Warren 1997; McEwen, Knipe, and Gallagher 1997). Bryk, Lee, and Holland (1993) and other researchers note that many theorists do not favor school choice but still assert that educators can learn from the religious school model (Schmidt 1988). Other social scientists contend that religious schools do not do a better job than their public school counterparts in educating low-SES children (Noell 1982; Willms 1985). Given this disparity of perceptions, it is important to resolve this issue. Moreover, Kozol (1991) and other researchers assert that low-SES children represent the children it is most crucial for the U.S. educational system to reach. These researchers argue that low-SES children consistently trail high-SES children in educational outcomes (Ogbu 1992). Consequently, it is crucial to uncover what works in raising these children’s school achievement (Ogbu 1992). Perhaps almost as important as the answers to the above questions is that if religious students, religious schools, and intact families do have a positive impact on achievement, it is important to determine some of the reasons why. In this way, social scientists can maximize the benefits of learning from these influences to broaden their impact in the educational arena. METHODS AND DATA SOURCES To assess the extent to which religious commitment, religious schools, and family factors could influence achievement, two types of statistical analysis were undertaken. The first type of analysis involved using an esteemed nationwide sample (the National Education Longitudinal Survey, abbreviated NELS88) of 24,599 students from 1,052 schools that was representative of the nation’s student population. The second analysis involved completing a meta-analysis. A metaanalysis statistically combines all the relevant existing studies on a given subject to determine the aggreg