When and How Do Students Benefit From Ethnic Diversity in Middle School?

Abstract

The effects of school-based ethnic diversity on student well-being and race-related views were examined during the first year in middle school. To capture the dynamic nature of ethnic exposure, diversity was assessed both at the school-level (n = 26) and based on academic course enrollments of African American, Asian, Latino, and White students (n = 4,302; M = 11.33 years). Across all four pan-ethnic groups, school-level ethnic diversity was associated with lower sense of vulnerability (i.e., feeling safer, less victimized, and less lonely) as well as perceptions of teachers' fair and equal treatment of ethnic groups and lower out-group distance. Underscoring the role of individual experiences, exposure to diversity in academic classes moderated the association between school-level diversity and the two aforementioned race-related views.

You've got a friend(ly school): Can school prosocial norms and friends similarly protect victims from distress?

“…Given that ethnic diversity is associated with the outcomes in this study (Juvonen, Kogachi, & Graham, ; Juvonen, Nishina, & Graham, ), it was included as a covariate. Data from the California Department of Education were used to compute Simpson's index ().…”

From Backlash to Inclusion for All: Instituting Diversity Efforts to Maximize Benefits Across Group Lines

“…Recent research on middle school students demonstrates the far‐reaching benefits of diversity for students of all races and ethnicities: Asian, Black, Latino, and White students all felt safer, less victimized, and less lonely in more diverse schools. They also perceived teachers’ treatment of marginalized group members to be more fair (Juvonen, Kogachi, & Graham, ). Although this study examined the benefits of diversity for middle school students, the same insights can be extrapolated to anticipate the all‐inclusive benefits of diversity for older students (i.e., college) who exist in more identity‐safe environments that explicitly value and support diversity and inclusion.…”

Toward a New Understanding of Ethnic‐Racial Settings for Ethnic‐Racial Identity Development

“…More proximal investigations are needed, but are intensive. For example, Juvonen, Kogachi, and Graham () examined students’ course schedules and assessed the heterogeneity of each of their four core courses (math, science, English, and social studies) to develop a person‐centered index of the school setting through the day. Such an approach is innovative and valuable, but also clearly resource‐intensive and requires a level of access to schools that not all researchers enjoy.…”