In a time when educational leaders and stakeholders are called to do more to maximize student outcomes while drawing on dwindling resources, it is prudent to analyze all factors that contribute to increases in students' achievement trends. Earlier research has focused on the role teachers and principals have played in students' achievement. The…

Although it is well established that college entrance exams have become a key factor for admission to selective institutions, less is known about the influence of test scores in relation to other academic factors in the evaluation of a student's application file. This study conducts a randomized-controlled trial to determine whether providing…

Did the dramatic learning losses from remote learning in the context of COVID-19 stem at least partly from schools having overlooked students' socio-emotional skills--such as their ability to self-regulate emotions, their mental models, motivation, and grit--during the emergency transition to remote learning? We study this question using a…

Adult Basic Education (ABE) is a critical part of the educational landscape in the United States; its aim is to improve the basic reading, writing, and numeracy skills of the very diverse population of adults in America who lack proficiency in these skills, and more often than not, a high school graduation credential (U.S. Department of Education,…

Students enter the college application process on unequal footing--with various levels of financial, social, and cultural capital they can rely on to navigate it. At least 10 states and hundreds of colleges and universities have begun "direct admissions" programs, which proactively admit students using data like their GPA and ACT/SAT…

Researchers examined the relationship between superintendent longevity and district variables on standardized test scores for students in North Carolina. The authors used hierarchical multiple regression to understand if superintendent-specific variables explained variance in student performance over and above district-based variables documented…

Background: Instructors and students are on a continuing quest to identify predictors of learning. Objective: This study examines the associations between self-reported exam score and study techniques among students in two courses, Introductory Psychology and Computer Science. Method: We used an online survey to measure the extent students (N =…

Mathematical literacy and numeracy are critical for students during school and post-graduation, however, many U.S. students do not develop the mathematical skillset needed for college or the workplace, despite curricular importance placed on solving problems encountered in mathematics classrooms and spaces. Part of this skillset for critical…

Postsecondary student performance has been studied in great detail by higher education systems and their stakeholders in attempts to identify what may contribute to increased rates of retention and degree completion. Research on predictors of postsecondary performance has focused significantly on the relationship between performance and…

Although it is well established that college entrance exams have become a key factor for admission to selective institutions, less is known about the influence of test scores in relation to other academic factors in the evaluation of a student's application file. This study conducts a randomized-controlled trial to determine whether providing…

This study leverages naturally occurring lotteries for oversubscribed Boston Public Schools prekindergarten program sites between 2007 and 2011, for 3,182 children (M = 4.5 years old) to estimate the impacts of winning a first choice lottery and enrolling in Boston prekindergarten versus losing a first choice lottery and not enrolling on…

Learning Dashboards display analytics pertaining to student performance and attainment, often alongside scores for the class cohort average. Little research has considered the effects of this social comparison information on students' well-being, motivation, and engagement. The current study presented participants with hypothetical data that…

Given recent interest and increasing popularity of social and emotional learning (SEL) in education settings, the authors surveyed students taking the ACT test and parents/caregivers of ACT test-takers on their beliefs around social and emotional (SE) skills. The study had three primary goals. First, the authors were interested in obtaining…

The study examines the effectiveness of adaptive learning technology as a supplemental component in online precalculus courses using data from vendor software and a public university system in the southeastern United States. Outcomes examined include final exam score and course completion with a passing grade. The results highlight that not all…

The lack of students' persistence (or student's effort to continue their academic studies until degree completion) in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and the attrition of STEM students as well as the shortage of STEM workers have gathered much attention from policy makers, governmental agencies, higher education…