This study investigated the impact middle school tracking has on outcomes in high school and the factors associated with those outcomes. Utilizing data from a large, diverse school district, this quantitative study investigated the relationships between middle school and high school English course enrollment among 4,503 middle school students. The…

There is a problematic but widespread perception that we do mathematics with our minds, and sport and Physical Education (PE) with our bodies. Strong identification with sport and PE could therefore pose a barrier to mathematics learning. I explore this troubling possibility using data from a mixed-methods study of 450 Year Nine students (age…

The literature linking adulthood criminality to cumulative disadvantage and early school misbehavior demonstrates that understanding the mechanisms underlying student behavior and the responses of teachers and administrators is crucial in comprehending racial/ethnic disparities in actual or perceived school misbehavior. We use data on 19,160 ninth…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not adopting a blended learning model led to significant difference in the Algebra I standardized test scores on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) End-of-Course (EOC) exam between secondary students who experienced a blended learning model in their classrooms and…

Dual enrollment (DE) is one of the fastest growing programs that support the high school-to-college transition. Yet, there is limited empirical evidence about its impact on either students' college application choices or admission outcomes. Using a fuzzy regression discontinuity approach and data from two cohorts of ninth-grade students in one…

Objective: Sleep is vital for healthy development, yet most adolescents do not meet recommended nightly hours. Although racial/ethnic minorities often experience relatively worse sleep outcomes compared with White peers, little is known about how the sleep-mental health relationship holds across diverse groups or how family relationships affect…

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the educational experiences of diverse student populations throughout the country and among Virginia public schools. English Learners (ELs) had a unique set of needs and services prior to the pandemic, and potentially were more vulnerable to pandemic-related disruptions in typical school operations than other student…

This study was grounded in the social cognitive career theoretical framework (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994). The purpose of this four-year longitudinal study was to examine the factors that may have contributed to students' motivation to develop STEM interest during secondary school years. The participants in our study were 9th-11th grade high…

Within secondary English language arts (ELA), concerns about the use of whitestream curricula have fueled numerous studies regarding the authorship of works included in anthologies (Applebee, 1991; Hansen, 2005; Mikkelson, 2009; Pace, 1992; Rojas, 2010) and on the lists of required full-length titles (e.g., Applebee, 1989; Hoffman, 2007;…

Self-control has provided a useful framework for understanding both offending behavior and victimization risk. As a theory of victimization, research has established that low self-control is directly related to victimization risk beyond a range of other factors. This finding raises the issue of whether other personality traits are associated with…

Today's hyper-partisan world makes civil discourse across differences seem almost impossible for many adults, let alone young people. U.S. public schools are tasked with educating our young people with the goal that they each can be productive members of society. High-school students participating in an intergroup dialogue on race as part of their…

The tables in this report provide national-level estimates of the extent to which students ages 12-18 enrolled in grades 6-12 experience bullying during school. The tables show how bullying victimization varies by student and school characteristics such as sex, race/ethnicity, grade, household income, region, school locale, school enrollment size,…

Background: The importance of high school completion for jobs and postsecondary opportunities is well- documented. Combined with federal laws where high school graduation rate is a core performance indicator, school systems and states face pressure to actively monitor and assess high school completion. This proposal employs machine learning…

In comparison to children, adolescents achieve significantly less physical activity (PA). Additionally, activity differences exist among genders and race/ethnicities. One means of influencing the PA habits of adolescents is high school physical education. Although PE class reaches students of all ages, genders, and races, motivation and…

To maintain its dominance as a leader in STEM, as well as to disrupt persistent economic and social inequalities, the United States must invest in Black and Hispanic students who are among the largest subgroups who have been historically underrepresented in STEM spaces. Research has shown that science self-efficacy facilitates students' interest,…