Critical thinking has become an essential skill required by both higher education and workforce. Prior research reported moderate learning gains in critical thinking through college. However, retention, differential participation, and students' low test-taking motivation have possibly confounded the prior conclusions. Controlling for such factors,…

In this statement to the Rhode Island State Legislature, Ian Rowe presents a case for education equality. He acknowledges that America is not perfect, but there is a need to confront the inequities faced united rather than divided. In preparing for this testimony, he pulled 8th grade NAEP reading proficiency scores for Rhode Island students since…

Predominantly white pre-service teachers typically lack awareness of white supremacist patriarchal (WSP) ideology as a system of thought and praxis. Yet, the prevalence of white people working as teachers alongside BIPOC students and families in urban contexts persists. These teachers' lack of understanding about the system that plagues the…

As teacher educators who work in relatively rural and predominantly white regions of the United States, we see a need to prepare our English teacher candidates to do antiracist work in predominantly white contexts. As such, this qualitative study focuses on the problem of preparing white English teacher candidates, many of whom have not been…

Inequities in STEM participation for people of color and women are documented extensively, often highlighting issues of representation and/or achievement. This study adds to the literature by looking at participation inequities in a high school calculus class. Equity is conceptualized as a fair distribution of opportunities for students to engage…

Statistics classes are required for postsecondary students in a variety of majors, in addition to students who are statistics majors themselves. This study uses enrollment data from a large Midwestern university as well as nationally representative data collected from National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) through the Integrated…

Black students remain under enrolled in AP courses compared to White peers, even with intentional outreach. One possible reason for this continued disparity is that Black students may choose not to enroll in AP courses where they are racially isolated. Using the 2017-2018 Civil Rights Data Collection and multilevel modeling, I examine the…

Without a better understanding of what contributes to racial/ethnic and gender underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, many U.S. citizens likely will not be able to take full advantage of the socioeconomic affordances of STEM occupations. Additionally, the increasingly diverse nation will have a STEM…

Currently, the color-blind perspective is widespread in schools, as evident in formal policies and practices, as well as informal social norms (Gillborn, 1992; Sleeter, 2004). Since race is often perceived as a taboo topic in education, proponents of colorblindness ignore the existence of race and the devastating impact of racial injustice in…

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive impact on education systems in the U.S, prompting a variety of changes to school learning environments. This study investigates student/family choices of learning modality in one large school district in the U.S and examines how these choices differ by students' race/ethnicity and performance level. Results…

This study makes use of data from NCES's High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 to ascertain the relationship of number of mathematics courses and content of mathematics courses to mathematics achievement. As one contribution, the study replicates a process to quantify mathematics course content. Results of the study show that mathematics content…

Preparing teacher candidates to enact inclusion can be challenging, particularly as teacher candidates navigate intersecting, oppressive ideologies (e.g., ableism and racism). In this paper, I present an analysis of qualitative data from a larger, multiple case study, highlighting the socio-spatial dimensions of White, non-disabled teacher…

Data shows that kids are months or even years behind where they would be in a typical year. And a deepening educational divide between majority white schools and majority black schools, between wealthier school districts and higher poverty districts. The results of this year's statewide exams made abundantly clear what other data is showing as…

This paper explores a pedagogical approach, autoethnography as praxis; a method to support white pre-service teachers in their process toward becoming accomplices for racial justice. In this qualitative study, students wrote three drafts of their autoethnography throughout a semester as part of a course assignment. They analyzed their lived…

Extant research has shown that students do better academically and socially when they are in schooling environments that are racially and socioeconomically diverse (Coleman, 1966). To date, there is very limited research which has examined the development of adolescents' racial, ethnic, and social identities within the contemporary contexts of…