Developmental or remedial education is a strategy that assists underprepared or unprepared students. Though prominent in the higher education remedial education landscape, low course and degree completion rates plague developmental mathematics courses. Research is replete with studies addressing students' underpreparedness for college-level…

Utilizing the High School Longitudinal Study, a nationally representative sample of U.S. high school students, this study investigates the factors that predict different beliefs about gendered math ability and the potential consequences for students' choices to enter gender-segregated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors…

Ethnic and racial disparities in educational outcomes, such as test scores, are a core issue of educational research. While the role of student and family factors in the formation of such disparities is well established, existing studies fail to draw a similarly clear picture of how teachers contribute to ethnic and racial achievement gaps. In…

Policymakers have long sought to raise expectations for students through standards-based reform. I examine the extent to which the Common Core State Content Standards (CC) affected student achievement and the size of achievement gaps. I merge together data on preparation for and implementation of the CC with the National Assessment of Educational…

This study uses the overlap sample of about 3,500 students who participated both in the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) and the 2013 Grade 12 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) mathematics assessment to investigate how mathematics motivation (mathematics identity, mathematics self-efficacy, and mathematics…

Recurrent catastrophic weather events on the Texas Gulf Coast led to the need to explore how Hurricane Harvey affected PK-12 education in the geographical area. Consequently, changes in student demographic characteristics and academic outcomes were correlated with 2018-2019 NERD$ finance data for Houston ISD and surrounding school districts. The…

Background/Context: Increasing evidence suggests a connection between racial differences in rates of exclusionary discipline (suspensions/expulsions) and academic achievement by (Losen & Martinez, 2020; Reardon et al., 2018). Black students receive out-of-school suspensions and expulsions at disproportionately higher rates, which is associated…

High-quality correctional education provided to juvenile offenders is crucial in helping these youth transition back into the public school system. The set of guiding principles and best practices for providing high-quality education in the juvenile justice setting are vital to understanding when working with these youths. An update on the…

Students' level of academic skills at school entry are a strong predictor of later academic success, and focusing on improving these skills during the preschool years has been a priority during the past 10 years. Evidence from two prior nationally representative studies indicated that incoming kindergarteners' math and literacy skills were higher…

Background: Physical activity at schools is an important component in combatting childhood obesity. Studies have shown that physical activity at school is positively associated with academic outcomes. The purpose of this study is to examine associations between opportunity of physical activity time at school and academic outcomes. Methods: This…

This study employed design-based logistic regression to examine the extent to which attending a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) magnet high school, school demographics, and student-level factors explain racial/ethnic differences in a student's intent to declare a STEM major in the first semester of college. Data were drawn…

This is the technical index for the research brief "Education's Long COVID: 2022-23 Achievement Data Reveal Stalled Progress toward Pandemic Recovery." Using data from 6.7 million U.S. public school students currently in grades 3-8, the study examined academic gains in the 2022-23 school year relative to pre-pandemic years. It also…

Background: Students of color are disproportionately placed in special education throughout the United States. Prior research suggests that special education is used too often in high-poverty schools partly due to limited resources available to support struggling students (Skiba et al., 2006). More recent studies, however, suggest that…

After the U.S. Supreme Court restricted the use of race in assigning students to schools, there was a surge in advocacy of school integration based on student socioeconomic status (SES). Benefits of socioeconomic integration have been supported by various studies finding significant effects of school SES on achievement after controlling for…

Today's economy demands higher order thinking skills (HOTS), and the public education system has a critical role in supporting students' acquisition of HOTS. Yet, numerous studies documented inequity in access to higher quality instruction that promotes HOTS, which could result in wide test score gaps in HOTS. In this study, I examined test score…