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GabeReber
ProfessorRobinKramer
CAS138T
4/8/2015
TheEconomicAchievementGap:HowWeCanFixItUsingTheFinnishModel
IntheUnitedStates,22%ofchildrenarebornintofamiliesbelowthepovertyline,anda
further45%areborntolowincomehouseholds(ChildPoverty,NCCP).Witheconomic
inequalitygrowingeachyear,thesenumberswillonlycontinuetobejustashigh.Thisis
obviouslyaproblem,buttheinfluenceofpovertyreachesfurtherthanjustyourbankaccount.
Poorpeoplearealsoaffectedacademicallyimpoverishedchildrenstatisticallydoworsein
schoolthanyouraveragemiddleorupperclasschild.Amultitudeoffactorsgointothistrend,
buttheyallstemfromeconomichardship.Thisdisparitybetweentheacademicaccomplishments
ofwelloffandnotsowelloffstudentsisoftencalledthesocioeconomicachievementgapby
socialresearchers.
Themainpurposeoftheeducationsystemistoequipournationsyoungestandbrightest
withthetoolstheyneedtosucceedinlife.Whenitbecomesapparentwhypoorkidsarefalling
behind,however,yourealizethatitisnotthemfailingschool,buttheschoolfailingthem.In
keepingwiththetrueessenceofeducation,theU.S.needstorethinkitsfailingsystemandadopt
onethatismoreconducivetotheempowermentofimpoverishedchildreninordertoclosethis
achievementgap.TheFinnisheducationsystem,oneofthebestintheworld,isaverygood
exampleofwhattheAmericansystemshouldbemodelledafter.Itemploysaveryinclusive
educationalmodel,focusingondisadvantagedkidswhoarefallingbehind.Also,Finnish

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teachersarekepttoaveryhighstandard,andaresomeofthebestintheworld.Byadoptingthis
mixofofwelltrainedinstructorsandtheinclusionofdisadvantagedstudents,kidsofall
socioeconomicclassesshouldbeabletoachievetotheirtruepotentialintheUnitedStates.
Uponenteringkindergarten,economicallydisadvantagedkidsperformatalower
cognitivelevelthantheirpeers(Lee&Burkam,2002).Infact,beingbornintopovertyisitself
damagingtotheyoungmindofadevelopingchild.AccordingtoresearchersattheUniversityof
Kansas,3yearoldsfromrichfamiliesknowtwotimesasmanywordsaspoor3yearolds(Hart
&Risley,1995).Alarmingly,impoverishedchildrenalsoshowlessactivityintheprefrontal
cortexthantheirmoreadvantagedcounterparts,greatlyimpairingtheirattentionspanforyearsto
come(Novotney,2010).Thisimpairedabilitytopayattentioncaneasilybemisconstruedasa
behavioralissue,andthereforeaproblemoriginatingwiththechildandnottheirsurroundings.
Thefactthatthesechildrencanhavesuchcomplicationsbeforetheyevenentertheschool
systemisatestamenttohowrelevantthistopicis.
Theinequalitydoesntstopthere,however.Thesestudentsthenhaveamuchhardertime
catchinguptotherestoftheirclass.Intheirattemptstoclosethegap,thesedisadvantagedkids
actuallyenduplaggingfurtherandfurtherbehindastheyprogressintheirprimaryschooling
(Caro,2009,p.558590).Thiswideninggapisoftenattributedbyscholarstoaphenomenon
calledthe
cumulativeadvantageprocess
.Thisisaprocesswhere,asdescribedbyColumbia
professorsThomasDiPreteandGregoryEirich,afavorablerelativepositionbecomesa
resourcethatproducesfurtherrelativegains(Diprete&Eirich,2005).Inotherwords,being
betteratschoolmakesiteasiertofurtheryourskill,andviceversa.Thisprocesscausespoverty
tohavealastingeffectonyoungstudentsiftheystartbehindeveryoneelse,chancesaregood

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thattheywillkeepfallingfurtherandfurtherbehinduntiltheyleavethepubliceducationsystem
forgood.Itcomesasnosurprisethatthehighschooldropoutrateisthehighestamongpoor
familiesat16.7%aratethatis13.5pointshigherthanthatoftheirrichercontemporaries.
Thesocioeconomicachievementgapisinterestingbecause,eventhoughitisa
consequenceofeconomicclass,itthencomesfullcircle,havingnegativeeffectsontheeconomy
asawhole.Forinstance,theUnitedStateslikestoprideitselfinbeinganequalopportunitystate
whereeverybodyhasthechancetomakeitbigaslongastheyarewillingtoputinthework.
ResearchlikethatcitedearlierinthisessaycastsdoubtuponAmericaneconomicequityifpoor
kidscantcompeteacademically,theywillnotbeabletocompeteaswellinthejobmarket,no
matterhowmuchworktheyputin.Thiscouldthenconceivablyleadtofamiliesstayingpoorfor
generationstocome.Inthiswaytheproblemperpetuatesitself,andcausespovertyand
economicinequalitytoremainprevalentintheUnitedStates.
ThesocioeconomicachievementgapisalsoahugecontributortowardAmericanstudents
losinggroundintheincreasinglycompetitiveglobalmarket,whereothercountriesarepumping
outstudentswhoaremuchmorequalifiedthanAmericans(Edelman,2010).Additionally,
researchdonebyMcKinsey&CompanysuggeststhattheGDPin2008couldhavebeen$400
billionto$670billionhigheriftheincomeachievementgaphadbeenclosed,and$1.3trillionto
$2.3trillionhigherifweclosedthegapbetweenAmericanandinternationalstudentsaswell.In
fact,McKinseyandCo.likenedtheimpactofthesocioeconomicachievementgaptothe
economicequivalentofapermanentrecessiononthenation.
Whenoneislaggingbehindinanysortofcompetition,itislogicaltolooktowardthose
whoareaheadofthepackforguidance.ThisiswhatmanyproposethattheUnitedStates

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governmentshoulddoinordertofixtheireducationsystem.Specifically,manypolicymakers
thinkthatFinlandseducationsystemisafantasticexampleofhowAmericanpublicschools
shouldwork.Fordecadesnow,Finlandseducationsystemhasbeenamongthebestinthe
world,trailingonlyKoreain2009(
EducationalScorePerformance,OECD
).WhileKoreaand
otherglobalpowerhousesinAsiaemploycutthroatentranceexamsandthethreatoffailure,
Finlandusesmanyunorthodoxstrategiesthatfocusongivingstragglersaboost.Thisfocuson
inclusionisveryeffectivedespitenotbeingthefirstcountrymostpeoplethinkofwhenthey
imagineaworldpower,theyconsistentlyoutrankcountriesmuchricherandmoreinfluential
thanthemintheeffectivenessoftheirschools.
ThewaythatFinnishschoolstreattheirstudents,especiallyatayoungerage,wouldbe
consideredinclusivetothepointofabsurditytomostotherwesternnations.Forinstance,Finns
dontdohomeworkortakequizzesuntiltheyareintheir7thyearofschooling(Anderson,
2011).Infact,thesechildrenarenotmeasuredatall.Instead,Finnishschoolsputanemphasison
havingfun,cooperating,andlearningwhatyourpassiontrulyis.OneFinnishprincipalputsitas
makingsuretopreparekidsforlife(
WhyAreFinland'sSchoolsSuccessful?
).Also,every
childistaughtinthesameclassroom,fromtheleastintelligenttothemostgifted,further
promotingtheideaofcooperation.Thisalsohelpsinthesensethatthosewhostrugglewith
academicsarentlabelledassuchfromayoungageliketheyareinAmerica,whichcanaffect
confidenceandperformancethroughouttheiracademiccareerduetothecumulativeadvantage
process.Ultimately,throughouteachstudentsacademiccareer,theyarebeingaccommodated
insteadofweededoutlikewhathappensinmostotherindustrializednations.

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Whatisarguablymoreimportantthanthetreatmentofstudentsbyteachersarethe
teachersthemselves.InFinland,beingateacherisdistinctlydifferentfrombeingoneinthe
UnitedStates.Forexample,a1979mandaterequiresthateverypotentialteachergetafifthyear
mastersdegreewhichisfullysubsidizedbeforeenteringthejobmarket.Furthermore,
schoolsonlyhirefromthetop10%ofeachgraduatingclass,ensuringeachnewgroupof
teacherstobetheabsolutecreamofthecrop.Withselectivitylikethis,teachersbecomeoneof
themostrespectedprofessionsinFinnishsocietyonparwithadoctororalawyer.
ApolicysuchasaFinlandstyleeducationwouldbestbeimplementedbystate
governments.Thisisbecausestatesarebetterabletochangesomeoftheminutiaeofsucha
policytofittheirconstituentsneeds.Also,publiceducationisalreadysomethingthatislargely
handledbystategovernments.TheUnitedStatesisjusttoohugeacountrytohaveasingle,
umbrellalikeeducationalpolicythrustuponitscitizenswithoutproblemsoccurring.One
probablecaveatwiththispolicyistheglutofpublicfundingitwouldrequire.Duetothisneed
forfunding,thepolicywouldhavetoprovidesomesortofplanfortheredistributionoffunds,
whichwouldbedifferentfromstatetostatedependingontheirindividualbudgets..Also,taxes
wouldprobablyneedtoberaised,withaprogressiveincometaxthemosteffectiveinhelping
fundthiseducationsystem.Iftheentirepolicycouldntbeimplementedatoncewhichis
likelylegislatorscouldfeedonepieceatatimetoCongressforthemtodeliberateover.For
example,stategovernmentscouldstartbymakingthecriteriaforbecomingapublicteacher
morestringent.Then,thesebettertrainedteacherscouldworkonmodellingthecurriculumina
waythatimitatestheFinnishsystem,focusingonthekidsindividualneedsasstudents.

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Despitesomenecessaryfiscaloverhaul,thispolicyisultimatelypassable,especiallyif
donepiecebypieceasopposedtoallatonce.Educationreformisahottopicnowadaysina
postrecession,increasinglyglobalizedeconomy.Manycitizensunderstandtheproblemsthatthe
Americansystemhas,andthatafixisinorder.Also,Finnisheducationhastakenupanalmost
mythicalqualityintheeyesoftheAmericanpublic,withbookswrittenonthesubjectsellingout
withinweeksofpublication(Hancock,2011).Also,seminarsareheldattheFinnishembassyin
thenationscapital.SincepublicopinionisalreadyswayedinfavoroftheFinns,passingsucha
policywouldnotbeasmuchofanissue.Intermsoftheactualimplementation,thefeasibility
remainsthesame.Whiletheinfrastructurechangewouldtaketime,itwouldnotbeimpossibleto
carryout.
Furthermore,thereisreasontobelievethatthispolicywouldworkverywell.Aswas
mentionedbefore,Finlandhashadoneofthebestrankededucationsystemsontheplanet.66%
oftheirstudentsattendedcollege,whichisundoubtedlythehighestrateinEurope.Most
importantly,thedifferencebetweentheweakestandstrongeststudentsisthelowestintheentire
world(Hancock).ThisiscompellingevidencethattheFinnishsystemisthebestwaytodeal
withtheachievementgapthathasbeendevisedyet.Byclosingthisgap,itwillmakelifefor
manypoorchildrenfairer,givingthemthetoolstheyneedtosucceedintheAmericaneconomy.
WhileitistruethatFinlandandtheU.S.arentverysimilardemographically,Finlandexcels
evenwhencomparedtootherScandinaviancountries,suchasNorway,whoemploysasimilar
testheavysystemtothatoftheUnitedStates.Thisresearchmakesitveryapparentthatthe
Finnishsystemworks,anditworkswell.

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Manydifferentpolicieshavebeenproposedorenactedinordertodealwiththeproblem
oftheeconomicachievementgap.Oneexampleisthevouchersystem,wherelowincome
parentsaregivenvoucherstohelppayforaprivateschooltuition.Thishasbeenmetwith
widespreaddistastefrommanyeducationexperts,sayingthatitisgivinguponpublic
educationandalsounderminingpublicedbyputtingtaxpayermoneytowardalreadywealthy
privateschoolsinlieuofthestrugglinginnercityschoolsthesevoucherswouldtarget
(AntiDefamationLeague,2012).AnothercontroversialsolutionwasonepresentedbyPresident
GeorgeW.BushtitledNoChildLeftBehind.NCLBincentivizedachievementbydetermining
publicschoolfundingfromthetestscoresoftheirstudents.Intheend,therewasnorecorded
increaseintestscores,andschoolsendedupspendingmoremoneythantheywerereceivingin
benefitsfromthegovernment(Dee&Jacob,2010).TheFinnishsystemhasnotyetruninto
problemslikethesetwoplanswould,andthereisnoevidencetosuggestthatiteverwould.
EverybodywithaninterestinAmericasfutureagreesthattheeconomicachievement
gapisanissuethatmustbeaddressedbysomebody.ItisabsolutelyessentialforAmerican
schoolstobeworkingaseffectivelyaspossibleifthiscountryseconomyweretostayas
powerfulontheglobalmarketasithasbeenoverthepastdecades.Also,itisextremely
importantthatweworktomaketheworldabetterandfairerplaceforchildrenwhowereborn
intopoverty,whichnowadaysispracticallyadeathsentenceforonesacademiccareer.There
havebeenothersolutionsproposedandimplementedthatwereshowntobeunsuccessfulin
thelongrun.Atthispoint,itseemslikeacompleteoverhaulofAmericanpubliceducationis
necessary,andtheFinnishsystemmayjustbetheperfectmodelbecauseithasshowntimeand
timeagainhoweffectiveitis.Implementationneednotbeswiftjustquickenoughtocurethe

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ailinginstitutionthatisAmericanpubliceducation.Asisoftensaid,educationisaninvestment
inAmericasfuture.Thecountryneedstomakesurethatitismakingtherightkindsof
investments.

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WorksCited
Anderson,Jenny."FromFinland,anIntriguingSchoolReformModel."TheNewYorkTimes12
Dec.2011:n.pag.Print.
Caro,DanielH."SocioEconomicStatusandAcademicAchievementTrajectoriesfrom
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2015.
"ChildPoverty."NCCP.NationalCenterforChildreninPoverty,n.d.Web.30Mar.2015.
Dee,Thomas,andBrianA.Jacob.TheImpactofNoChildLeftBehindonStudents,Teachers,
andSchools.Rep.N.p.:BrookingsPapersonEconomicActivity,2010.Print.
DiPrete,ThomasA.,andGregoryM.Eirich."CumulativeAdvantageasaMechanismfor
Inequality:AReviewofTheoreticalandEmpiricalDevelopments."Review.n.d.:n.pag.SSC.
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<
http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/soc/faculty/docs/diprete/CA_AR112205.pdf
>.
Edelman,MarianW."TheHugeEconomicImpactoftheAchievementGap."TheHuffington
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"EducationalScorePerformanceCountryRankings."EducationalScorePerformanceCountry
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Hancock,LynNell.WhyAreFinland'sSchoolsSuccessful?Rep.WashingtonD.C.:Smithsonian
Institute,2011.Print.
Hart,Betty,andToddR.Risley.MeaningfulDifferencesintheEverydayExperienceofYoung
AmericanChildren.Baltimore,Md:PaulH.Brookes,1995.Print.

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Lee,ValerieE.,andDavidT.Burkam.InequalityattheStartingGate:SocialBackground
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Institute,2002.Print.
Novotney,Amy."TheRecession'sTollonChildren."MonitoronPsychologySept.2010:42.
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SchoolVouchers:TheWrongChoiceforPublicEducation.Rep.NewYork,NY:
AntiDefamationLeague,2012.Print.