This study analyzed the impact of athletics on the academic achievement of middle school students in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina. This study determined whether middle school athletics impact athletes' achievement more than middle school nonathletes. The study further analyzed achievement based on race and gender, and English and Math…

The racial/ethnic disparities and average declines in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) motivation during adolescence are worrisome. Although STEM motivational beliefs are theorized to function in conjunction with one another, the unique patterns and how they change over time for different racial/ethnic groups remain…

This work extends examination of African American students' attitudes toward learning and achievement to contrast the oppositional culture (Ogbu and Fordham) and cultural integrity perspectives. We assessed 200 students' responses to classrooms designed to support competitive, individualistic, communal or high-verve thinking, and behavior.…

Middle school is an important crossroad in a student's academic journey. As students enter middle school, their academic achievement and engagement frequently declines. This is true particularly for Black and Latinx students. Poor middle school grades are often a harbinger of poor performance in high school and beyond. In particular, having a…

The "Academic Mindsets and Behaviors, Prior Achievement, and the Transition to Middle School" study examined the relationship between 2016/17 grade 5 student responses to a Clark County School District (Nevada) survey on levels of academic mindsets and behaviors and the predicted probability of earning a low GPA (below 2.0) at the end of…

This Study Snapshot highlights key findings from a study on why students often experience a decline in academic achievement as they transition to middle school. Academic mindsets, such as a belief in the malleability of ability (growth mindset) or a reluctance to engage academically because of embarrassment or a fear of failure (performance…

The current study examined the developmental trajectory of same-race friendship preference of racially/ethnically diverse students over the course of middle school. Participants were African American, Asian, Latinx, and White youth recruited at the start of middle school in 6th grade (N = 4,361; M[subscript age] = 11.33 years) and followed across…

Math and science motivational beliefs are essential in understanding students' science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) achievement and choices in high school and college. Drawing on the Eccles' expectancy-value theory and Arnett's emerging adulthood framework, this study examined the relations among high school students' motivational…

This study examines the association between college-bound friends and college enrollment using restricted transcript data from the High School Longitudinal Study. Propensity score matching and school fixed effects models suggest that having close college-bound friends is positively associated with enrolling in college. However, Black and Latino…

The Supreme Court has agreed to weigh in on the legality of racial preferences, in part thanks to a lawsuit against Harvard College alleging that the school discriminates against Asian-Americans. Proving discrimination at a specific school is an arduous task, requiring access to private, detailed admissions records--as the legal documents in that…

Previous research has shown that adolescent peer groups play a role in maintaining and exacerbating demographic differences in achievement. However, there is still limited knowledge about the malleable factors that contribute to these achievement disparities. This short-term longitudinal study examined one such malleable factor--namely, perceived…

Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest partnered with the Arkansas Department of Education to examine Arkansas's middle school and high school indicators of postsecondary readiness and success, building on an earlier study of these indicators (Hester et al., 2021). Academic indicators include attaining proficiency on state academic…

Ninth grade is a critical juncture for students--and can be a jarring transition. Even students a strong track record in the middle grades can experience academic difficulty, and those who enter high school with poor course grades, weak attendance, or behavior problems are especially at risk. An early misstep can have lasting implications:…

This is the technical appendix for the report: "Social-Emotional Learning and Academic Growth: Insights from an Innovative Research-Practice Partnership." Contents of the appendix include: (1) Sample; (2) The Student Success Network (SSN) Survey; and (3) Analytic Framework and Estimates. [For the full report, see ED615830.]

Young people need a combination of academic skills and other key mindsets and behaviors to succeed in school and become healthy, employed, civically engaged adults. In recent years, there has been growing interest in the relationship between academics and social-emotional learning (SEL)--a broad set of competencies that includes, for example,…