This study illuminated the experiences and perceptions of high school counselors in low-performing schools. The study specifically explored the impact of the role of high school counselors on student engagement and outcomes (i.e., chronic absenteeism, dropout rate, and graduation and completion). A literature review revealed a need for research to…

There is growing evidence that investment in school facilities, and new school construction in particular, can improve K-12 student outcomes, particularly for low-income students. Funding for school infrastructure, however, is inequitably distributed. Moreover, given a lack of national data on school facilities, researchers have focused on…

Purpose: This qualitative study interrogates the barriers that historically disadvantaged higher education students in South Africa face when it comes to access and success. It specifically explores the challenges black students encounter in gaining epistemic access within the South African higher education system. Design/methodology/approach:…

Purpose: This study examined the influence of social media use on graduateness and the employability of exit students in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach: The study used quantitative and descriptive research designs to test the proposed hypotheses. An online survey was used to collect the data from a study sample. A sample of 411…

Universities may offer students from disadvantaged personal or socioeconomic contexts a lower threshold for entry compared to students from a more stable or affluent background; this is termed a contextual offer. Examples may include having a health condition, disability or living and going to school in a less affluent area. While there has been…

This research explored the attitudes and experiences of 10 primary school parent governors whose schools (for pupils aged 5 to 11) were located in a disadvantaged South Wales Valley community to understand how they developed strategies to mitigate the effect of socioeconomic disadvantage and identify the benefits that accrue from a close…

Recent work suggests that young children develop strong intuitions about inequitable resource distribution when it arises due to fair and unfair procedures (merit, structural, or random chance). Here, we investigated an understudied form of inequality: one that arises due to a single suboptimal choice (referred to as self-inflicted inequality).…

Permanent school exclusions continue to be a topic of keen interest to UK schools and policymakers. The debate over the practice has recently intensified owing to the perceived negative outcomes directly resulting from the exclusion event. Research has indeed shown that pupils who have been permanently excluded are at a greater risk for a variety…

This study investigated the long-term impact of the science writing heuristic (SWH) approach on students' science achievement, focusing on differences between low and high socioeconomic status (SES) groups. Through a longitudinal design, students were divided into control and treatment (at least 1 year of SWH) groups. Polynomial growth mixed…

Integrating drone and geospatial technologies with participatory techniques offers a promising approach to culturally responsive STEM education. However, these areas are rarely combined in existing literature. Drone and geospatial education for youth generally focuses on technical skills, while participatory methods in youth-led initiatives often…

The Foundation Phase is a pioneering early years education reform that was introduced across Wales in 2008. Based on a progressive, child-centred design, this reform aimed to improve educational outcomes in Wales and reduce achievement gaps for young learners. This paper reports a number of findings from a mixed-methods study that assessed the…

South African communities may be viewed in three categories -- rural, semi-urban and urban. These communities are unequal in terms of infrastructure and economic opportunities, among other things. The inequities among the communities extend to schools as microcosms of communities. Schools in urban areas enjoy inter alia better infrastructure,…

Despite a large earnings premium for bachelor's degree completion in general, graduates from low-income families earn substantially less than graduates from high-income families. While prior research has documented the role of college quality and major choice in explaining these gaps, we examine undermatching on a different margin: the first…

Substantial shares of college students, and especially those from minoritized and marginalized backgrounds, struggle to meet their daily material needs, hindering their well-being and ability to attain college success. In response, colleges have implemented an array of campus basic needs services. However, prior research is fragmented and tends to…

Over the last few decades global attention on and access to early childhood education and care (ECEC) has surged. In England, successive governments have expanded funded ECEC based on evidence of its positive effects on children's development. The Study of Early Education and Development (SEED) is a longitudinal survey which tracked nearly 6,000…