Advanced Coursework Research Articles

Gaining Greater Adherence from Patients for Amplification.

Every audiology curriculum features coursework and clinical practicum experiences on the knowledge and skills necessary to complete a basic audiological evaluation, diagnose the source of any abnormalities, and a plan for intervention. More advanced coursework typically includes information on balance disorders, newborn infant hearing screening, hearing conservation, amplification, and other electrophysiological tests. In addition, most programs include at least one course on the basic management principles on how to start and maintain a private practice in audiology. However, educational programs rarely include any type of coursework on how to handle common objections to obtaining help in the form of amplification. This is rather surprising considering that more than 90% of patients whom an audiologist evaluates have sensory neural hearing loss where the primary treatment is amplification, except for people with severe hearing losses who are candidates for cochlear implants. This lack of training and experience often leaves clinicians intimidated by common objections to treatment involving purchasing amplification. This article will discuss common objections that patients voice each day to obtaining amplification and will offer possible solutions.

Do School Counselors Exhibit Bias in Recommending Students for Advanced Coursework?

Abstract In this paper, we seek to understand minority and female underrepresentation in advanced STEM courses in high school by investigating whether school counselors exhibit racial or gender bias during the course assignment process. Using an adapted audit study, we asked a sample of school counselors to evaluate student transcripts that were identical except for the names on the transcripts, which were varied randomly to suggestively represent a chosen race and gender combination. Our results indicate that black female students were less likely to be recommended for AP Calculus and were rated as being the least prepared. Our results have policy implications for any program that asks individuals to make recommendations that may be subject to bias – whether conscious or unconscious.

The Causes and Consequences of Test Score Manipulation: Evidence from the New York Regents Examinations

We show that the design and decentralized scoring of New York’s high school exit exams—the Regents Examinations—led to systematic manipulation of test scores just below important proficiency cutoffs. Exploiting a series of reforms that eliminated score manipulation, we find heterogeneous effects of test score manipulation on academic outcomes. While inflating a score increases the probability of a student graduating from high school by about 17 percentage points, the probability of taking advanced coursework declines by roughly 10 percentage points. We argue that these results are consistent with test score manipulation helping less advanced students on the margin of dropping out but hurting more advanced students that are not pushed to gain a solid foundation in the introductory material. (JEL H75, I21, I28)

Moving beyond reflection in a hall of mirrors: developing critical reflective capacity in teachers and teacher educators

ABSTRACTUsing reflection to merely affirm existing beliefs rather than engaging in confrontation and examination of beliefs is like reflecting in a hall of mirrors. This study explores the process of critical reflective development of practicing teachers through program reflections written to prompts during master’s-level coursework, seeking to understand: How does critical reflective capacity develop and change in practicing teachers enrolled in advanced coursework in an M.Ed. program? Researchers used a three-level reflective practice pyramid as a frame for examining teachers’ reflective writings. Specifically, 103 reflections from 26 PK-12 teachers were available for analysis. Where finding a clear trajectory in teacher’s reflective development was an anticipated outcome in which teachers would progress from the technical to contextual to dialectical levels of reflection, findings did not indicate such linear development for most teachers. As faculty analyzed the data, they engaged in critical reflection, also questioning purposes and program outcomes. This paper reports on both our study’s findings in response to the research question and on the results of faculty reflective engagement. Results reinforce the understanding that reflection is an individual journey for teachers and faculty alike; results also highlight the importance for engagement in critical reflection for both teachers and teacher educators.

Critical reflections on postgraduate andragogy from the points of view of a Kenyan student and an Australian academic

ABSTRACTIn this paper, we use Critical Reflective Practice to give voice to the experience of a Kenyan teacher who travelled to Australia to undertake advanced coursework in leadership and inclusive education studies. It also reflects upon an Australian academic as she tries to be more culturally responsive in her andragogy when teaching, supervising and mentoring postgraduate international students. We use reflective practices over an extended period to lessen the power imbalance between them as academic supervisor and postgraduate student. This eventually allowed for the student to teach and the academic to learn; and together we here shed light on what it is like to study and teach within an Australian university that annually enrols 6000 students from more than 100 countries around the globe.

Interventions for Postsecondary Success for Low-Income and High-Potential Students: A Systematic Review

Research indicates that high-potential students from low-income backgrounds have decreased educational attainment and success in college compared with their higher income peers. The purpose of this review is to synthesize the interventions that support postsecondary success for this group. Using a systematic review protocol, we identified five categories of support for these students: a summer intervention, advanced coursework, financial aid, college information, and a program that provides year-round supports. Findings suggest these programs differentially help certain groups, but can provide support in accessing college, persisting and attaining degrees, and helping with noncognitive supports such as peer support.

Goal Setting and MOOC Completion

Despite providing advanced coursework online to learners around the world, massive open online courses (MOOCs) have had notoriously low completion rates. Self-regulated learning (SRL) frames strategies that students can use to enhance motivation and promote their engagement, persistence, and performance self-monitoring. Understanding which SRL subprocesses are most relevant to the MOOC learning context can guide course designers and instructors on how to incorporate key SRL aspects into the design and delivery of MOOCs. Through surveying 643 MOOC students using the Online Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire (OSLQ), the present study sought to understand the differences in the use of SRL between those who completed their course and those who did not. MOOC completers were found to have significantly higher applications of one SRL specific subprocess, namely goal setting. Additional SRL subprocesses of task interest/values, causal attribution, time management, self-efficacy, and goal-orientation also emerged from an analysis of open-ended responses as key contributors to course completion. The findings from this study provide further support regarding the role of SRL in MOOC student performance and offer insight into learners’ perceptions on the importance of SRL subprocesses in reaching course completion.

The in-between spaces of capital and wealth: creating and sustaining academic success for English learners in middle school

Yosso’s community cultural wealth (CCW) shifted conversations about educational inequality from deficit perspectives to those that acknowledge the assets People of Color bring to school. CCW represents the accumulation of students' unique forms of capital, many of which have historically gone unrecognized by schools. This study applies CCW to the schooling experiences of bilingual middle school students who achieved English proficiency and enrolled in advanced coursework. Observations and in-depth interviews with students and their teachers revealed that merely possessing and identifying forms of capital is not enough to guarantee academic success. While students in this study benefitted from some forms of capital, they also possessed resources that lie dormant. Activating capital to transform into wealth required both student agency and support from outsiders. Implications from this study call for educators and researchers to work in spaces between capital and wealth.

An Empirically Derived Index of High School Academic Rigor

AbstractWe derived an index of high school academic rigor (HSAR) by optimizing the prediction of first‐year college GPA (FYGPA) based on high school courses taken, grades, and indicators of advanced coursework. Using a large data set and nominal parameterization of high school course outcomes, the HSAR index capitalizes on differential contributions across courses and nonlinear relationships between course grades and FYGPA. Test scores from eighth grade were incorporated in the model to isolate the contribution of HSAR. High school courses with the largest relationships with FYGPA were English 11, English 12, Chemistry, English 10, Calculus, and Algebra 2. Participation in Advanced Placement, accelerated, or honors courses increased HSAR. The correlation of the HSAR index and FYGPA was .52 and the HSAR index led to modest improvement in overall prediction when combined with high school GPA and ACT Composite score. HSAR index subgroup differences were smaller than subgroup differences in ACT Composite score. Implications for high school counselors, researchers, and postsecondary student service personnel are discussed.

How College Students Use Advanced Placement Credit

Millions of high school students take Advanced Placement (AP) courses, which can provide college credit. Using nationally representative data, I identify a diverse set of higher education outcomes that are related to receipt of AP college credit. Institution fixed effects regression reduces bias associated with varying AP credit policies and student sorting across higher education. Results indicate college credits earned in high school are related to reduced time to degree, double majoring, and more advanced coursework. Bounding exercises suggest the time to degree and double major outcomes are not likely driven by bias from unobserved student characteristics. Policies used to support earning college credits while in high school appear to enhance undergraduate education and may accelerate time to degree.

Bunny Hill or Black Diamond: Differences in Advanced Course‐Taking in College as a Function of Cognitive Ability and High School GPA

AbstractCollege students commonly have considerable course choice, and they can differ substantially in the proportion of their coursework taken at an advanced level. While advanced coursework is generally viewed as a desirable component of a student's education, research has rarely explored differences in student course‐taking patterns as a measure of academic success in college. We examined the relationship between the SAT, high school grade point average (HSGPA), and the amount of advanced coursework taken in a sample of 62 colleges and 188,985 students. We found that both the SAT and HSGPA predict enrollment in advanced courses, even after controlling for advanced placement (AP) credits and demographic variables. The SAT subtests of Critical Reading, Writing, and Math displayed differential relationships with advanced course‐taking dependent on student major. Gender and race/ethnicity were also related to advanced course‐taking, with women taking more advanced courses in all major categories except for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) where they took fewer, even after controlling for other variables. Socioeconomic status had a negligible relationship with advanced course‐taking. This research broadens our understanding of academic achievement in college and the goals of admissions in higher education.

STEM Excellence and Leadership Program: Increasing the Level of STEM Challenge and Engagement for High-Achieving Students in Economically Disadvantaged Rural Communities

High-achieving students in economically disadvantaged, rural schools lack access to advanced coursework necessary to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educational and employment goals at the highest levels, contributing to the excellence gap. Out-of-school STEM programming offers one pathway to students’ talent development. Using a concurrent triangulation mixed-methods research design, this study was conducted to evaluate the experiences of 78 high-achieving students and their 32 teachers, participating in an extracurricular, school-based, STEM talent development program for rural students from economically disadvantaged communities. Findings suggest that students and teachers expressed satisfaction with program participation and that they thought more creatively and critically about their work. Results also showed that students’ perceptions of the mathematics and science activities were significantly different, which informs ways to improve programming for future high-achieving, rural students. These findings expand the literature supporting the use of informal STEM education environments for underserved gifted populations to increase engagement in and access to challenging curricula.

Advance Placement and The Achievement Gap in the 21st Century: A Multiple Linear Regression of Marginalized Populations in AP Enrollment

The analysis of the College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) enrollment focused on marginalized populations' (i.e., African American, Hispanic, and poor students) limited access and the schools' efforts to bridge the gaps. Little research has been done on marginalized populations' AP passage rates. The researchers of this correlational study investigated AP enrollment and passage rates in public and charter high schools in Florida (n = 355) by comparing the enrollment and passage proportions amongst Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic students as well as the proportions of students who received free or reduced lunch. The results showed a weak, positive relationship between proportions of Hispanic, African American, and Caucasian students passing AP exams and the proportion of AP students enrolled. There was a strong, positive relationship amongst the proportions of African-American, Hispanic, and Caucasian students who passed the exam. However, a weak, negative relationship was found between the proportions of students who were enrolled in AP classes and those who received free or reduced lunch. There was also a negative relationship between Hispanic, African American, and Caucasian students passing the AP exam and the percentage of the school's population enrolled in free or reduced lunch. The findings suggest that schools with high poverty rates have a low enrollment rate of students in AP courses. The focus on AP enrollment rates for minority students has led to increased rates of minorities successfully completing advanced coursework, but there is still a need for similar focus on high poverty schools.

A Cornerstone Course in Sociology: Providing Students with Theory, Methods, and Career Preparation Early in the Major

Cornerstone courses bridge introductory content from lower-level survey courses with the more advanced theoretical and methodological content of upper-level, major-only courses. Cornerstones are implemented with the goal of better preparing students for advanced coursework and/or assisting them with understanding their major and its associated career options. Although cornerstones are common in psychology, biology, and business, they are seemingly less popular in sociology curriculums. This article uses evaluation data from a newly instituted cornerstone course in sociology to illustrate the potential benefits these courses can have for students as well as the discipline more generally.

Friends and family: A literature review on how high school social groups influence advanced math and science coursetaking

In this study, we synthesized the literature on how informal contexts, namely friends and family social groups, shape high school students’ likelihood of pursuing advanced math and science coursework. Extending scholarly understandings of STEM education, we turned to the body of literature with three guiding questions: (1) What influence do friends have on advanced math and science coursetaking? (2) What influence does family, particularly parents, have on advanced math and science coursetaking? (3) Do the effects vary by gender among each social group? By synthesizing existing literature on the influence of family and friends on advanced math and science coursetaking in high school, we find that both friends and families can influence the number of advanced math and science courses students complete, but the amount of advanced coursework students complete also varies based on the gender of the individual student, the gender of his/her friends, as well as by mother or father. Implications and limitations are discussed.

THE IMPLICATIONS OF ARREST FOR COLLEGE ENROLLMENT: AN ANALYSIS OF LONG‐TERM EFFECTS AND MEDIATING MECHANISMS*

This study draws on labeling theory and education research on the steps to college enrollment to examine 1) whether and for how long arrest reduces the likelihood that high‐school graduates will enroll in postsecondary education and 2) whether any observed relationships are mediated by key steps in the college enrollment process. With 17 years of data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) and propensity score matching, we derived matched samples of arrested and nonarrested but equivalent youth (N = 1,761) and conducted logistic regression and survival analyses among the matched samples to examine the short‐ and long‐term postsecondary consequences of arrest. The results revealed that arrest reduced the odds of 4‐year college enrollment directly after high school, as well as that high‐school grade point average and advanced coursework accounted for 58 percent of this relationship. The results also revealed that arrest had an enduring impact on 4‐year college attendance that extended into and beyond emerging adulthood. Two‐year college prospects were largely unaffected by arrest. These findings imply that being arrested during high school represents a negative turning point in youths’ educational trajectory that is, in part, a result of having a less competitive college application. Implications are discussed.

Advanced Placement and Rural Schools

Completing Advanced Placement (AP) coursework is an important part of the selective college admissions process, and access to AP coursework can be viewed as a measure of equal opportunity. Relatively little research has fully examined how access to AP coursework is mediated by school characteristics. Rural schools are at a particular disadvantage in promoting AP success due to a lack of sufficiently prepared students, teaching constraints, and other logistical challenges. This study uses regression to analyze AP access, enrollment, and success across a rich data set of U.S. school districts. We find that remote, small, and poor rural schools are considerably less likely to offer any AP courses. Even for rural schools that do offer AP coursework, enrollment and success rates lag well behind more urban and affluent schools. We explore potential policy solutions and examine alternative advanced coursework options for those rural schools that do not offer AP.

Supporting Online AP Students: The Rural Facilitator and Considerations for Training

ABSTRACTOnline courses supplemented by on-site facilitators help many rural students pursue advanced coursework, but research is warranted to better understand facilitator role and training needs. This study examined facilitation experiences, demographic characteristics, and professional development activities of rural on-site facilitators associated with an online Advanced Placement (AP) program. Themes in qualitative data collected aligned with challenges related to facilitator role that have been documented in existing literature. One theme included facilitator engagement in direct AP instruction despite the facilitator role not requiring that responsibility. Self-reported facilitator demographic characteristics and professional development activities were then compared with those of on-site AP teachers in the same state. Results showed that facilitators demographically resembled teachers but lacked similar engagement with AP professional development. The role of facilitator excludes direct instruction, but specialized professional development like that for AP may match the needs and interests of these facilitators.

Efficacy Versus Equity

We investigate the efficacy and equity of college admissions criteria by estimating the effect of multiple measures of college readiness on college performance in the context of race-blind automatic admissions policies. We take advantage of a unique institutional feature of the Texas higher education system to control for selection into admissions. We find that SAT/ACT scores, high school exit exams, and advanced coursework are all predictors of student success in college. However, when we simulate changes in college enrollment and outcomes with additional admissions criteria, we find that adding SAT/ACT or exit exam criteria to an existing rank-based admissions policy significantly decreases enrollment among minorities, low-income students, and students who attend low socioeconomic status high schools, with the most negative effects generated by the SAT/ACT, while inducing only minimal gains in college grade point average and 4-year graduation rates.

The promise of a college scholarship transforms a district

Promise programs are place-based scholarships, generally tied to a city or school district, offering near-universal access to all living in the “place.” While Promise programs share some characteristics with other scholarship programs, they’re unique because they seek to change communities and schools. Underlying such promise programs is the belief that having access to a guaranteed college scholarship will encourage students to remain in schools, encourage families to remain in a community, and change how educators work with students. This article focuses on the El Dorado Promise in El Dorado, Ark., which began in 2007. From analyzing student data and interviewing educators, the authors learned that the Promise did lead to several changes in the district: enrollment increased; student learning improved; discussions of college permeated the district from kindergarten onward; expectations for all students rose; and enrollment in advanced coursework increased for all students.