Orlando is seeing some success in closing the academic performance gap between students from lower and higher income families, according to a new national report called the “Education Equality Index.”
Orlando ranked 16th out of 100 urban centers examined in the report.
Researchers also used standardized testing data from 2011 through 2014 to gauge any changes in the academic performance gap between poor students and their wealthier peers. Orlando was 7th on the list that focused on cities narrowing the gap.
On the state level, Florida had the second smallest gap among the 35 states with available data, after New Mexico.
The Education Equality Index is billed as the “first-ever national comparative tool to chart progress” in closing the gap. The report was released by Education Cities, a non-profit focused on improving public schools, and the ranking site GreatSchools.
