A Technical Comment on Li and Koedel (2017): Author Response
Abstract: In this short note we respond to Judson Laughter’s technical comment on our 2017 published article in Educational Researcher.
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Background/Context Research links advanced mathematics course-taking to important later outcomes, including college graduation and earnings, yet many students fail to progress into higher math courses as they move through high school. Black and Hispanic high school students are less likely than their white peers to take advanced math courses. A complex set of factors inform decisions about student course-taking, but teachers play key roles, including providing information about courses, giving students encouragement, helping students form aspirations (e.g., through role modeling), and serving as gatekeepers via grade assignment and formal recommendations. At the same time, growing empirical evidence suggests that students from different racial/ethnic groups benefit from being taught by teachers with similar demographic backgrounds, which motivates an analysis connecting math teacher–student racial or ethnic congruence with progression into higher math courses in high school. Purpose We investigate the degree to which having a math teacher of the same race or ethnicity predicts subsequent enrollment in more advanced high school math courses, as well as in honors and Advanced Placement (AP) math courses. We also investigate potential mechanisms, including impacts of student–teacher congruence on course grades and standardized test performance, which may in turn predict a higher likelihood of advanced math course enrollment. Setting We examine student-level administrative data from high schools in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the fourth largest school district in the United States. Research Design We estimate the likelihood that a student will take a higher level math course as a function of student–teacher racial/ethnic congruence, plus student, teacher, and classroom characteristics, and school fixed effects. This research design compares later math course-taking between students with and without race/ethnicity-congruent teachers within the same school, holding a variety of other factors constant. We estimate similar models for honors and AP course-taking. We also estimate models for math course grades and end-of-course (EOC) exam scores using school-by-course and student fixed effects. Findings/Results We find that high school students with a same-race or same-ethnicity teacher are more likely to take a higher math course in the next year than other students taking the same course in the same school. Associations are largest for Black students, who are 2 percentage points more likely to advance to a higher math course when taught by a Black teacher. Having a demographically similar teacher is also associated with movement into honors and AP courses in the next term, on average, though results vary by student subgroup. Students receive higher EOC scores and higher grades when taught by a demographically similar teacher, with higher grades even than what would be predicted by their EOC score, particularly in algebra. Conclusions/Recommendations Our analysis contributes to growing evidence on the importance of teacher diversity for outcomes for students from minoritized groups and is among only a very small set of studies that demonstrate teachers’ impacts on student outcomes not just for one year, but also in subsequent years. Our results underscore the importance of efforts to recruit and retain teachers of color, particularly in high schools. We recommend future research to better understand the mechanisms linking diverse teachers to student course-taking outcomes.
Background/Context Research links advanced mathematics course-taking to important later outcomes, including college graduation and earnings, yet many students fail to progress into higher math courses as they move through high school. Black and Hispanic high school students are less likely than their white peers to take advanced math courses. A complex set of factors inform decisions about student course-taking, but teachers play key roles, including providing information about courses, giving students encouragement, helping students form aspirations (e.g., through role modeling), and serving as gatekeepers via grade assignment and formal recommendations. At the same time, growing empirical evidence suggests that students from different racial/ethnic groups benefit from being taught by teachers with similar demographic backgrounds, which motivates an analysis connecting math teacher–student racial or ethnic congruence with progression into higher math courses in high school. Purpose We investigate the degree to which having a math teacher of the same race or ethnicity predicts subsequent enrollment in more advanced high school math courses, as well as in honors and Advanced Placement (AP) math courses. We also investigate potential mechanisms, including impacts of student–teacher congruence on course grades and standardized test performance, which may in turn predict a higher likelihood of advanced math course enrollment. Setting We examine student-level administrative data from high schools in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the fourth largest school district in the United States. Research Design We estimate the likelihood that a student will take a higher level math course as a function of student–teacher racial/ethnic congruence, plus student, teacher, and classroom characteristics, and school fixed effects. This research design compares later math course-taking between students with and without race/ethnicity-congruent teachers within the same school, holding a variety of other factors constant. We estimate similar models for honors and AP course-taking. We also estimate models for math course grades and end-of-course (EOC) exam scores using school-by-course and student fixed effects. Findings/Results We find that high school students with a same-race or same-ethnicity teacher are more likely to take a higher math course in the next year than other students taking the same course in the same school. Associations are largest for Black students, who are 2 percentage points more likely to advance to a higher math course when taught by a Black teacher. Having a demographically similar teacher is also associated with movement into honors and AP courses in the next term, on average, though results vary by student subgroup. Students receive higher EOC scores and higher grades when taught by a demographically similar teacher, with higher grades even than what would be predicted by their EOC score, particularly in algebra. Conclusions/Recommendations Our analysis contributes to growing evidence on the importance of teacher diversity for outcomes for students from minoritized groups and is among only a very small set of studies that demonstrate teachers’ impacts on student outcomes not just for one year, but also in subsequent years. Our results underscore the importance of efforts to recruit and retain teachers of color, particularly in high schools. We recommend future research to better understand the mechanisms linking diverse teachers to student course-taking outcomes.
Background Private schools have a big part in the educational landscape in the United States, both in terms of the number of students they educate and in the number of resources they command. That said, despite expectations to increase equity and access to opportunity for all students, little is known about racial, gender, or socioeconomic achievement trends in this setting. Unlike public schools, there is very limited national-level achievement data infrastructure for private schools. Analyses of individual schools can begin to illuminate trends in particular contexts. Purpose of Study This study examines how achievement differs by race, gender, and socioeconomic status in one private school in the United States, Gardenview Preparatory School (GPS; a pseudonym). Setting GPS is a traditional private school serving students pre-kindergarten to 12th grade, located in a wealthy, predominantly White suburban area of a larger metropolitan region. Leadership in the school have attempted to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work. One of their attempts was to seek a research collaboration with the authors of this article. Participants The primary focus of this article included a quantitative sample of all students graduating from GPS between the years of 2010 to 2017 (N =1216). Research Design While the larger research collaboration included mixed methods, this article presents multivariable regression models using secondary data. Significant features of the regression models include (1) achievement measures at both admissions to GPS and graduation from GPS, (2) multiple measures of achievement at graduation, and (3) intersectional analyses. Findings A key takeaway from this analysis is that demographics are not largely predictive of admissions test performance at GPS. A second key takeaway, however, is that once GPS students reached high school graduation, larger and more widespread racial, gendered, and socioeconomic disparities emerged. The third major takeaway from the analysis is that intersections of race and gender do impact achievement upon graduation from GPS. Conclusions This study is one of the first of its kind to use advanced multivariable regression to map achievement disparities—at multiple timepoints in a student's career and using multiple measures of achievement—in a traditional, private school. Without understanding the existence, nature, and extent of achievement disparities, stakeholders cannot act intentionally to promote equity in private schools and beyond.
Undergraduate Grading Practices of International and Domestic Faculty: Evidence From Three Large U.S. Public Universities
Given the prominence of international instructors in higher education, understanding their grading practices is essential for informing college grading debates. This first large-scale assessment of undergraduate grading practices highlights how different demographic, classroom and departmental factors shape international instructors’ grading behaviors. Using a unique dataset of over 2,000 randomly selected instructors from three public universities, we examine (a) whether undergraduate-level grading practices differ between domestic and international instructors, (b) what factors contribute to the differences, and (c) whether the differences vary across key subgroups. We find that international instructors grade lower than domestic instructors—about 35% of a standard deviation lower on average. Part of this gap is explained by the concentration of international instructors in particular departments. International instructor grading practices differ across regions of origin, prior U.S. higher education experience, gender, and race. Our results provide insights into U.S. college grading debates and supporting the international instructor workforce.
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