This study examines the impact of early Algebra I coursework on advanced Carnegie credits among 12th graders from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds, using data from the NCES HSTS (1990-2019). Findings indicate that early Algebra students, particularly Black and Latinx, earn more advanced credits, revealing a widening gap in advanced course…

School District Effectiveness Research (SDER) works to identify unusually effective organizations for in-depth qualitative study that significantly outperform peer districts over multiple years. Yet, critiques of SDER include a focus on cross-sectional data, individual states, and percent proficient metrics. Here, we analyze the Stanford Education…

Background/Context: Observational studies often employ regression discontinuity (RD) designs and multiple control-group designs to explore the causal quantities of interest. RD designs assess policy and program effectiveness by assigning subjects to treatment based on whether they exceed a pre-defined cutoff. RD designs are classified into two…

The State NAEP program only reports the mean achievement estimate of a subgroup within a given state if it samples at least 62 students who identify with the subgroup. Since some subgroups of students constitute small proportions of certain states' general student populations, these low-incidence groups of students are seldom sufficiently sampled…

Background/Context: Some observational studies involve multiple layers of treatment selection, specifically in the context of the extended time accommodation (ETA) for English language learners (ELLs). In ETA settings, the first selection occurs due to the eligibility rule, where students whose ELL English proficiency is below a certain threshold…

The Oregon Statewide Report Card is an annual publication required by law (ORS 329.115), which reports on the state of Oregon's public schools. The purpose of the Statewide Report Card is to monitor trends among school districts and Oregon's progress toward achieving the goals referred to in ORS 329.015. This report also provides a tool that makes…

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected student learning; according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (2022), scores for students in the United States have shown a decline in mathematics. . One way educators can strengthen students' current mathematical knowledge and bridge to new content is through Number Talks. Number Talks are brief…

We used the Stanford education data archive (SEDA) data to examine the heterogeneity among urban school districts in the United States. The SEDA 2.1 includes data sets on students' mathematics (Math) and English language arts (ELA) achievement from 2008 to 2014 at the district level. Growth mixture modeling was used to uncover the underlying…

This dissertation researched the scope of mathematics achievement disparities in the United States and how these disparities can be minimized through a self-efficacy lens. To answer pertinent research questions with data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 2019 mathematics assessment in Grades 4, 8, and 12, gap analyses,…

In 1993, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts dramatically overhauled its K-12 education system and created a new school finance formula, building an educational accountability structure to ensure every child has access to a high-quality education. The Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA) established academic standards in core subjects, mandated…

The purpose of this study was to examine the demographic characteristics and music achievement of eighth-grade students in the United States using evidence from the 2016 National Assessment of Educational Progress in the Arts (NAEP). Analyzing NAEP data from a nationally representative sample of 4,340 eighth graders attending public and private…

The Massachusetts 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Grade 4 reading results showed that nearly one quarter of students scored below basic. Only 45% of students scored proficient or higher on the reading assessment. Moreover, the 2019 scores represent a decline in the percentages of students reading at basic, proficient, or…

The Oregon Statewide Report Card is an annual publication required by law (ORS 329.115), which reports on the state of public schools and their progress towards the goals of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century. The purpose of the Statewide Report Card is to monitor trends among school districts and Oregon's progress toward achieving…

K-12 gifted and talented programs have struggled with racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, native language, and disability inequity since their inception. This inequity has been well documented in public schools since at least the 1970s and has been stubbornly persistent despite receiving substantial attention at conferences, in scholarly journals, and…

This study investigates the relationship between text-to-speech (TTS) usage and item-by-item performance in the 2017 eighth-grade National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) math assessment, focusing on students with disabilities (SWDs), English language learners (ELLs), and their general education (GE) peers. Results indicate that all…