Analysis of primary sources has been recognised to have a significant impact on the development of students' historical thinking. This study explored US history teachers' attitudes and practices to using primary sources by interviewing six history teachers and observing 29 history lessons between August and November 2016 in Indiana and California.…

Secondary course assignment substantially determines a teacher's day-to-day work life, incentivizing them to realize their personal desires, which prior work shows tend to be working with more advanced students. Teachers have varying abilities to enact these desires, potentially due to their political capital, which is largely influenced by…

It is evident that more qualitative research on Advanced Placement [AP] classrooms for students from marginalized backgrounds is needed to uncover how AP practices and pedagogies might better serve students who had been historically excluded from the AP Program. I asked my former calculus students (32 total - 22 participated) from my last three…

Flipped classrooms serve as a new pedagogical approach for teaching and learning, which involves switching from the traditional teacher-centred academic agenda. Unlike the traditional classroom model, the flipped classroom enables students to understand the lesson better while learning at their own pace and enhancing their communication skills…

This study explored the achievement, engagement, and school climate perceptions of African American males in urban high schools. Hierarchical regression and focus group interviews were used to analyze male sample (n = 114) data from a larger study. Findings suggest that students' perceptions were influenced by having information about and access…

In 2018, in response to the proposed elimination of physics at a predominately Hispanic and socioeconomically disadvantaged (SED) high school, the Northern California/Nevada chapter of the AAPT investigated school demographics and their effect on physics offerings in public high schools in our region. As access was a key issue, the focus was on…

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the engagement of Hispanic Advanced Placement science learners in California's Central Valley as perceived by high school teachers. Methodology: The mixed method study surveyed 20 Advanced Placement science teachers from the region of interest. Likert surveys were used to determine:…

Rigorous learning opportunities at high schools in low-income neighborhoods are limited and ineffective, and in these settings the Advanced Placement (AP) program has mostly eluded successful implementation. In this study, Suneal Kolluri analyzes two schools in the same low-income, Latinx neighborhood that, despite comparable numerical gains, have…

The Advanced Placement (AP) program has become a key step on the path to attending a selective college. In the University of California system, for example, more than 90 percent of applicants take AP or honors courses in high school (Geiser and Santelices 2006). However, the College Board estimates that nearly 300,000 high school students with the…

Dual enrollment, which allows high school students to take college courses and earn college credits, is an important way to expand educational opportunities, improve economic mobility, and meet California's workforce needs (Education Commission of the States 2019). However, historically it has been accessible only to high-achieving students taking…

These are the appendices for the report, "Improving College Access and Success through Dual Enrollment." Dual enrollment, which allows high school students to take college courses and earn college credits, is an important way to expand educational opportunities, improve economic mobility, and meet California's workforce needs (Education…

In this report, the authors explore the patterns in mathematics course-taking among California public high school seniors. They describe what courses students are enrolled in and how course participation varies by key student characteristics, such as race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and performance level on the state's 11th grade assessments.…

The purpose of this study was to explore the achievement perceptions of African American high school males, as related to California's Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). Although the LCFF was designed to improve equity in school funding, there is grave potential for the needs of African American students to go unmet. Pearson's correlations with…

Using affiliation network data collected at a large high school, this study examined differences between who encourages Latina/o and White students to enroll in advanced courses. Previous research has shown a positive association between emotional support and academic achievement, and thus, this study shifts the focus from who informs students to…

This report presents key findings from "Learning in the Fast Lane: The Past, Present, and Future of Advanced Placement," by Chester E. Finn, Jr. and Andrew E. Scanlan, and published by Princeton University Press in 2019. American education has long been plagued by excellence gaps among the young people who make it into the highest levels…