Study after study shows the achievement gap starts off very young.

WHITEHOUSE: The White House

The Democrats and the teachers want to wait another year, when a study of appropriate standards for student achievement in the state is expected to be ready.

ECONOMIST: Mine! No, mine!

It total, 80% of teachers surveyed said they believed poverty had a negative impact on pupils' attainment - with problems including under-achievement, not having a quiet place to study at home, inability to concentrate and lack of access to computers and the internet.

BBC: Poverty hitting pupils' learning, survey suggests

But they also say the study shows a "wide range of achievement, with a large difference between the scores of the highest and lowest achievers".

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Over the three-year observation period, the African-American students who took part in the study had higher grade-point averages relative to multiple control groups, and the minority achievement gap overall was reduced by a dramatic 50%.

CNN: The importance of belonging