Research shows that “environmental exposures may contribute to the etiology of the achievement gap”. Connections have been found between childhood lead exposure and increased cognitive disadvantages, such as decreased performance on standardized intelligence quotient (IQ) tests and cognitive functioning tests, worse end-of-grade (EOG) test scores, and increased neurobehavioural, behavioural, and attention deficits (see here). Many people understand the existence and severity of the achievement gap; however, the general public is often only informed about the obvious contributors, such as lack of funding and difficulties attracting and retaining quality teachers (see here). A more hidden, but equally severe, contributor to the achievement gap in the United States is environmental factors, specifically lead exposure.
Lane, Ben, and Ben Lane. “HUD: Children Still Overexposed to Lead Paint Dangers.” HousingWire.com, HousingWire, 31 Aug. 2016.
Medical and public health professionals and several federal agencies believe there is no safe threshold for lead exposure and the adverse effects on people’s health are irreversible (see here). While lead negatively impacts people of all ages, with connections found between adults and diseases including cardiovascular disease, spontaneous abortion, and cataracts, the consequences are more detrimental for children. The World Health Organization claims “children can absorb 4 to 5 times more lead than an adult”. In a study conducted in Detroit looking at the effects of lead exposure on school outcomes among children living and attending public schools, findings suggest that children exposed to lead experience “increased risk for reading problems, school failure, delinquency, criminal behaviour, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and antisocial behaviour” (see here).
One of the main places people are being exposed to lead is in their homes. Evidence suggests there is a higher presence of lead in public housing complexes, as the buildings were often built before the federal government banned the use of lead-containing paint in 1978 (see here and here). Consequently, due to previous government-sanctioned discriminatory practices, people of colour disproportionately experience increased poverty and segregation and therefore suffer from increased exposure to lead. Between 2012 and 2016 testing revealed that 820 children you below age six, who were also living in New York City’s public housing complexes, tested positive for blood-lead levels of five to nine micrograms per deciliter (mg/dL) (see here). Further, Emily Benfer, a visiting scholar at the Yale Law School Solomon Center for Health Law and Policy, found that black children are nearly three times more likely than white children to have elevated blood-lead levels (see here).
It is essential to recognize that lead exposure is not solely occurring in run-down homes, but also in degenerated schools. Public schools, especially in low-income neighbourhoods, have limited access to capital and are therefore unable to address significant health hazards within the school. Lauren Camera, an education reporter at U.S. News, states “in more than half of the states in the United States, the poorest school districts do not receive funding to address their students’ increased needs” (see here).
The impact of lead exposure on the education of particularly lower-income families and children of colour is made apparent by several psychology studies. Miranda et al. (2009) analyzed the relationship between blood-lead levels and EOG test scores in North Carolina. The results indicated average EOG test scores were lower for children with greater exposure to lead, standardized test scores were seventy-five percent lower for black students than white students, and lower-income families and children of colour experience an increased average lead exposure. Overall, the findings demonstrate that lead explains part of the achievement gap. A study conducted by Zhang et al. (2013) analyzing childhood lead exposure and academic achievement in Detroit public schools found similar results, with high blood-lead levels before age six being strongly associated with worse academic performance in grades three, five, and eight.
As evidenced above, environmental factors, especially lead exposure, not only have serious health consequences for people, but also contribute to the persistence of the achievement gap in the United States. Policy makers and the population at large need to be made more aware of the detrimental effects the environment has on children’s ability to learn.
Post by: Sophie Wood