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Obsessing over the achievement gap and ignoring two other important "gaps" is self-defeating, says education broadcaster John Merrow. Even when schools do raise their scores, he says, it's often the result of mind-numbing drill, cuts in PE, art and music, and other steps that sap the life out of schooling." Our public education system has THREE gaps," Merrow proposes -- gaps in opportunity, expectations and outcomes. Given the first two gaps, "a pronounced difference in outcomes is inevitable." A video podcast available free at The Merrow Report webpage "shows what happens when enlightened leadership addresses the first two gaps--and eliminates them." The school in question is in "the hard scrabble city of Mount Vernon, NY. Against all odds, virtually every student in the school passes the state tests, a feat unheard of in the inner city." Merrow says the video offers "a road map for school success."

Merrow, J. (2006). The achievement gap [video segment]. The Merrow Report. Retrieved from PBS 12 May 2008. http://www.pbs.org/merrow/rss/media/23.mp4

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