This study aimed to (a) identify mentoring quality profiles based on characteristics of informal mentoring relationships, (b) examine how mentor and youth demographic characteristics were related to the profiles, and (c) investigate whether the profiles were related to youth's academic outcomes. Participants were 411 ninth-grade urban, low-income…

Static reading labels are problematic not only because youths demonstrate varying reading skills and identities across secondary classrooms but also because being labeled as "struggling" can undermine literacy learning. Little research has investigated how "struggling" and "proficient" readers' interactions with…

Background: The present study sought to determine whether the cognitive triad serves as a moderator or mediator in the association between perceived everyday discrimination (PED) and depressive symptoms among inner-city youth by examining if discrimination is related to both cognitive processes and depressive symptoms in adolescents. Previous…

Background: Youth of color from low-income urban communities are crucial participants in research, as their involvement can shape effective, culturally responsive interventions and policy to promote youth health and well-being. These young people, however, are an often-neglected research population, due in part to perceived challenges associated…

Current scholarship suggests that many youths identify with hip-hop, especially youths of color. Study of this artistic form has been suggested as a means of helping youths acquire and become fluent in literacy practices. This article explores how the use of a hip-hop literacies curriculum addressed the literacy skills of urban ninth-grade English…

A hands-on game based upon principles of oil accumulation and drilling was highly effective at generating enthusiasm toward the geosciences in urban youth from underrepresented minority groups in Newark, NJ. Participating 9th-grade high school students showed little interest in the geosciences prior to participating in the oil game, even if they…

Students who fail algebra are significantly less likely to graduate on time, and algebra failure rates are consistently high in urban districts. Identifying effective credit recovery strategies is critical for getting students back on track. Online courses are now widely used for credit recovery, yet there is no rigorous evidence about the…

Students who fail algebra are significantly less likely to graduate on time, and algebra failure rates are consistently high in urban districts. Identifying effective credit recovery strategies is critical for getting students back on track. Online courses are now widely used for credit recovery, yet there is no rigorous evidence about the…

This essay charts the experiences of a group of Year 10 students studying literature together. I challenge the current educational thinking that the literature classroom should consist exclusively of a set of canonised texts handed down from teacher to student. Instead I consider the importance of ensuring students have space to explore themselves…

The college and career readiness movement figures prominently in the nation's educational reform and policies, including strategies to increase graduation rates among disadvantaged students in urban schools. As part of a multi-pronged approach to help youth transition to post-secondary education and the workforce, the present study evaluated a new…

The transition from middle school to high school can be difficult for many students due to increases in school size, the structure of an academic schedule, and the complexity of social interactions in high school. However, Black boys face unique challenges during this transition period due to racism and structural inequalities. In response to…

An ethnographic study of youth creating media was conducted to examine new literacies at an urban high school in northern California. The school primarily served students from low-income, non-dominant racial and ethnic backgrounds. This article reports on a 9th-grade social studies multimedia project about migration and immigration--called…

This report describes a follow-up qualitative study, conducted in 2006 by the Annenberg Institute for School Reform, of a small group of New York City high schools that were "beating the odds" in preparing low-performing 9th-grade students for timely high school graduation and college going. The 13 schools included two long-established…

In the inner-city of Washington, D.C., lives a generation of young people for whom violence, discrimination, and poverty are a daily reality. This article describes one youth organization that encourages these young people to voice their hopes and concerns for their community and work to create solutions. The out-of-school-time programming of…

This article builds upon the concept of hybridity to affirm the relevance of poetry, music, and other forms of popular culture in the lives of urban youth. Its focus examines the blending of seemingly disparate forms to understand how young people, in particular young people of color, negotiate their multilayered social worlds. One of these worlds…