No abstract

Earlier work demonstrates that career and technical education (CTE) can provide long-term financial benefits to participants, yet few have explored potential academic impacts, with none in the era of high-stakes accountability. This paper investigates the causal impact of participating in a specialized high school-based CTE delivery system on high school persistence, completion, earning professional certifications, and standardized test scores, with a focus on individuals from low-income families, a group that is overrepresented in CTE and high school noncompleters. Using administrative data from Massachusetts, I combine ordinary least squares with a regression discontinuity design that capitalizes on admissions data at three schools that are oversubscribed. All estimates suggest that participation in a high-quality CTE program boosts the probability of on-time graduation from high school by 7 to 10 percentage points for higher income students, and suggestively larger effects for their lower-income peers and students on the margin of being admitted to oversubscribed schools. This work informs an understanding of the potential impact of specific CTE program participation on the accumulation of human capital even in a high-stakes policy environment. This evidence of a productive CTE model in Massachusetts may inform the current policy dialog related to improving career pathways and readiness.

No abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the nature and quality of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) male student-athletes’ college experiences across race, sport, and divisional classifications. In recent years, the NCAA and its member institutions have faced intense scrutiny regarding the purpose of intercollegiate athletics within their educational missions. Additional concerns have been levied at the NCAA for persistent academic performance gaps along gender and racial lines across all divisions. However, limited research has engaged in multidivisional analyses of male student-athletes across racial groups and sport types. Using data from the 2006 NCAA GOALS study viewed through the lens of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, the current study examined differences in male student-athletes’ experiences across racial groups, type of sport involvement, and divisional classifications. Key findings indicated salient differences between the social experiences across divisional and sport type classifications as well as significant differences between the academic experiences of Black and non-Black male student-athletes. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.Le but de cette étude était d’examiner la nature et la qualité des expériences scolaires des étudiants-athlètes masculins de la National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) en fonction de la race, du sport et la division de pratique. Récemment, la NCAA et ses institutions membres ont dû faire face à un examen minutieux concernant l’adéquation du sport interuniversitaire avec leurs missions éducatives. Des inquiétudes additionnelles ont été exprimées par la NCAA par rapport à la persistance des écarts en termes de réussite académique en fonction du sexe et de la race dans l’ensemble des divisions. Cependant, rares sont les travaux ayant proposé des analyses multidivisionnelles sur les étudiants-athlètes en fonction des groupes raciaux et des types de sports. En s’appuyant sur les données de l’étude NCAA GOALS de 2006, et au prisme de la théorie des systèmes écologiques de Bronfenbrenner, la présente étude a examiné les différences entre les expériences des étudiantsathlètes en fonction des groupes raciaux, du type d’investissement sportif et de la division de pratique. Les principaux résultats montrent des différences saillantes entre les expériences sociales en fonction du type de sport et du niveau de pratique mais aussi des différences significatives entre les expériences académiques des étudiants noirs et non-noirs. Les implications politiques et pratiques sont discutées.

No abstract