Minorities and Preschool-- Scholarly Article Response

Policy-makers have found that between 40%-60% of California's 2nd and 3rd graders are not not achieving grade level proficiency in core subjects. However, these percentages are higher within minority groups such as African Americans, Latinos, children from families with families from low education levels, and children in economically disadvantaged families. After reading this article I think I have narrowed down from a broader topic to a more specific one. That being from public funding for preschools to how preschool improvement would benefit children in economically disadvantaged families. Oh and Rachel, you were wondering how and when children are tested--I found out that their academic proficiency is tested through California Standard Tests (CSTs). Children take these tests in the 2nd grade and 3rd grade. However, it is believed that their perfromance below state standards comes from early roots AKA, their preschool education or lack there of. It is important to note that oftentimes the minority groups also fall in the economically disadvantaged or in the parents with low education, therefore, all of these groups are often the same people. Simply put, the children falling short of state standards fit into more than one category of the groups lacking proficiency. I may begin to shift my focus toward minority/low-income groups and how closing their achievement gap could be beneficial on a great scale.
http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/2007/RAND_RB9306.pdf
p.s. I don't expect anyone to read the links provided. They are mostly for my own sake of future reference :)