U.S. public schools are increasingly segregated by income, resulting in substantial educational inequality among U.S. schoolchildren. We conducted a nationally representative survey to explore the relationship between parental beliefs about and preferences regarding school segregation. Using experimental manipulation, we tested if learning about…

Community college completion has been proven to be a ticket to a middle-class life. Moreover, we know that poverty causes educational barriers, including community college completion. Community colleges across the nation are identifying significant equity gaps between students from poor versus middle-class or affluent households. One solution to…

Each year, policymakers, educators, and the general public engage in debates around the statewide average teacher pay figure that the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) publishes on its website and reports to the National Education Association. These debates take up the important consideration of whether or not teachers are…

Evidence on educational returns and the factors that determine the demand for schooling in developing countries is extremely scarce. We use two surveys from Tanzania to estimate both the actual and perceived schooling returns and subsequently examine what factors drive individual misperceptions regarding actual returns. Using ordinary least…

This article seeks to examine some of the problems in current policy, pedagogy and practice through the concept of reductionism. It examines various forms which this may take involving inappropriate scientific methodologies, a diminished sense of structure (or, conversely, agency), temporal confusion and teleological/ethical reductionism, drawing…

Education stakeholders have used descriptors of poverty and race as if they were synonymous. This 'synonymization' of identities is particularly evident for black and poor students. We define 'synonymization' as a policy threat that emerges when policymakers conflate two marginalized identities, resulting in policies that ostensibly, but not…

This article looks at the American Dream as a merit narrative to understand how it supports barriers to educational success for educators working to improve the lives of students in urban schools. Hard work/perseverance and individualism are interrogated as components of merit narratives used to sustain the American Dream. We analyze data from six…

This study examined the preconceived notions of preservice teachers toward those from poverty backgrounds at a medium-sized public university in Pennsylvania, USA. Results of the study indicate that cultural stereotypes about those who are poor persist in preservice teachers and that these views differ significantly based on when, how and in what…

To equitably and effectively serve children, families, schools, and communities, school psychologists must appreciate the dynamic interaction that exists between many variables. Using Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory as an example, this comprehensive conceptual framework provides a model for understanding how interconnected…

This conceptual work examines the misappropriation of culturally responsive pedagogy by identifying ways in which misappropriations commonly occur in urban teaching and learning environments. They include culturally responsive practices as a smokescreen of good intentions, culture as a hook to gain students' attention, and culturally responsive…

The number of American homeless youth has skyrocketed in the twenty-first century. In 2015, for example, this number reached a record high, becoming twice as high as it was before the recession. Educators should be concerned about this problem because homelessness is more harmful to children than to adults and interferes dramatically with their…

Research has yet to fully explore counselor advocacy for undocumented students and the leadership they use in their advocacy. This study asks the following questions: (1) What motivates counselors to pursue educational access for undocumented K-12 students? and (2) How do school counselors advocate for undocumented K-12 students? We integrate…

The recent economic downturn highlights that poverty continues to be a significant social problem. Mindful of this demographic reality, it is imperative for teacher educators to pay close attention to the manner in which teachers are prepared to educate students from impoverished backgrounds. Given the number of frameworks that offer reductive…

To examine the public's attitudes about the nature of teaching and learning and what they mean for educational policy, the author surveyed almost 3,000 individuals nationwide in 2015, weighting results by race, poverty, and education level. Results show: (1) There is a wide gap between the public's understanding of good educational practice and…

The Center for Public Education has been examining the research and data related to school choice in hopes of informing the conversation about effective policies. This report turns from looking at the impact of school choice to examining access to options within the public education system. It first estimates how many students are able to choose…