Disadvantaged Schools Research Articles

2018–19 Project SEED scholars

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED has announced the winners of its 2018–19 college scholarships. The recipients, who were selected from participants in the ACS Project SEED research program, received one-year, nonrenewable scholarships of up to $5,000 to help cover tuition and fees during their first year of college. The 28 scholarships for the 2018–19 academic year, which have a total value of $140,000, were funded by private corporations and individual donors. Additionally, three Project SEED alumni in their sophomore year received the three-year renewable Ciba Specialty Chemicals scholarship, which provides $5,000 per year. Project SEED is ACS’s summer research program that enables economically disadvantaged high school students to conduct hands-on research. For more information, visit www.acs.org/projectseed. Alfred and Isabel Bader scholars Alfred Bader was one of the founders of Aldrich Chemical, now Sigma-Aldrich. The Baders have supported Project SEED for many years and contr...

School-level (dis)advantage and adolescents’ substance-use behaviours: The role of collective efficacy and norms

Drawing upon ideas stemming from social disorganisation theory, this study explores how structural and social aspects of the school context affect youth substance-use behaviours in terms of smoking, alcohol and/or drug use. A key focus is to investigate the joint effect of school collective efficacy and schools’ substance-use norms on students’ substance use. Analyses are based on combined information from two independent data collections conducted in 2014 among ninth grade students ( n = 5122) and teachers ( n = 1105) in 81 senior-level schools in Stockholm. Results from multilevel analyses confirm previous research by suggesting that the proneness to engage in substance use varies depending on the socioeconomic profile of the school. Youth in socioeconomically advantaged schools were more prone to engage in substance use than youth in disadvantaged school settings. Furthermore, collective incentives for exerting social control against substance use seem to be weaker in schools where conventional values towards substance use (anti-substance-use norms) are suppressed.

What counts? The influence of school attendance on Australia’s urban Indigenous students’ educational achievement

Formal primary and secondary school education for all students should provide a pathway to overcome inequality and disadvantage. Logically, attending school regularly and often during the compulsory years of school provides the best prospects to achieve educational success and enhance post-school opportunities, particularly for socioeconomically disadvantaged students. However, recent research of Indigenous students living in remote regions of Australia suggests school attendance frequency has little, or no correlation with academic success or failure. Our study of a disadvantaged urban school population also showed no attendance and achievement relationship at student-level for Indigenous students (or non-Indigenous peers). The findings of this study highlight the generally accepted relationship between attendance and achievement does not apply universally for all students. Many factors have potential to influence for Indigenous students’ capacity for educational achievement. We need further research to ensure Indigenous education policy and strategies for improved student outcomes target what matters most.

Factors relating to teachers’ intention to change school: A multilevel perspective

The high turnover rates in public schools, especially in those hard-to-staff schools, remains a growing problem and has become the largest component of teacher supply problems in the US school system. The purpose of the study was to examine the individual and school organizational factors that were associated with teachers’ intentions to change school by using the dataset of the US TALIS 2013 administrated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The results of the multilevel models showed that although the variance in teacher turnover intentions was, to a substantial degree, explained by the individual variables, the school organizational-specific effects have notably contributed to the outcome as well. Additionally, the analysis of the cross-level interaction has detected both direct and indirect effects of disadvantaged schools on teacher transfer intention. The implications for teacher retention policies have been discussed as well.

Disadvantaged School Contexts and Female School Leadership in Zimbabwe

The persistent systemic inequalities inherent in cultural and traditional practices shape how society views women as leaders. This article reviewed the literature to highlight the needs, opportunities, constraints, and resources of disadvantaged schools and how this context influences the leadership practices of female primary school principals. Two questions guided the study: (1) What are the needs, opportunities, constraints, and resources of disadvantaged schools and how do they influence leadership practice? (2) How do female principals adapt their practices to their school contexts? An unbounded search was conducted to identify 22 publications, consisting of 17 peer-reviewed English-language journal articles, three book chapters, and two conference papers on female educational leadership in Zimbabwe. Systematic search criteria were strictly followed to obtain the publications from 2008 to 2018. Through the lens of an African feminist perspective, this study established that the features of a disadvantaged school context influence what female principals do and how they do it. It is important to note that principals craft strategies to expand the available resources while taking advantage of the opportunities at their disposal to manage constraints in order to meet the needs of their schools.

Effect of a Multidimensional Physical Activity Intervention on Body Mass Index, Skinfolds and Fitness in South African Children: Results from a Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial.

Obesity-related conditions impose a considerable and growing burden on low- and middle-income countries, including South Africa. We aimed to assess the effect of twice a 10-week multidimensional, school-based physical activity intervention on children’s health in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. A cluster-randomised controlled trial was implemented from February 2015 to May 2016 in grade 4 classes in eight disadvantaged primary schools. Interventions consisted of physical education lessons, moving-to-music classes, in-class activity breaks and school infrastructure enhancement to promote physical activity. Primary outcomes included cardiorespiratory fitness, body mass index (BMI) and skinfold thickness. Explanatory variables were socioeconomic status, self-reported physical activity, stunting, anaemia and parasite infections. Complete data were available from 746 children. A significantly lower increase in the mean BMI Z-score (estimate of difference in mean change: −0.17; 95% confidence interval (CI): −0.24 to −0.09; p < 0.001) and reduced increase in the mean skinfold thickness (difference in mean change: −1.06; 95% CI: −1.83 to −0.29; p = 0.007) was observed in intervention schools. No significant group difference occurred in the mean change of cardiorespiratory fitness (p > 0.05). These findings show that a multidimensional, school-based physical activity intervention can reduce the increase in specific cardiovascular risk factors. However, a longer and more intensive intervention might be necessary to improve cardiorespiratory fitness.

Distributed leadership, professional collaboration, and teachers’ job satisfaction in U.S. schools

This study uses hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) to investigate relationships among distributed leadership, professional collaboration, and teachers' job satisfaction in U.S. schools. Data are from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 2013 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). Results revealed teachers’ perceptions of distributed leadership were significantly, positively associated with their job satisfaction after accounting for other individual and school culture variables, with reciprocal mediation between distributed leadership and professional collaboration. This study has policy implications for leadership in disadvantaged schools in addition to research implications, particularly regarding how leadership is reflected in the responses of different school stakeholders.

The longitudinal associations between personal belief in ajust world and teacher justice among advantaged and disadvantaged school students.

The Just World Hypothesis states that people need to believe in a just world in which they get what they deserve and deserve what they get. This study examines the longitudinal associations between personal belief in a just world (BJW), the belief that events in one's own life are just and teacher justice in different status groups. It is posited that the more individuals believe in a personal just world, the more they feel they are treated justly by others, and this should be particularly true for students with a low-status background. Longitudinal questionnaire data were obtained from students with German and Turkish/Muslim backgrounds over a period of 3-4 months. The pattern of results revealed that personal BJW was important for the Turkish/Muslim students in evaluating teachers as more just over a given period of time, but not for the German students. That is, the buffering effect of personal BJW was crucial for the disadvantaged students.

The Australian national exceptional teaching for disadvantaged schools programme: a reflection on its first 8 years

ABSTRACTThis paper describes the aims, origins and principles of the Australian National Exceptional Teaching for Disadvantaged Schools programme and reflects on findings from its first eight years. As a well-established, mainstream university-based initial teacher-education programme designed to prepare social justice teachers for low socio-economic or high-poverty schools, NETDS has had significant impact on recruiting and retaining high-performing teachers in the schools that need them most. In this paper we discuss how it works, but also outline some of the complexities that arose in trying to design a teacher-education programme with equity at the centre and some of the changes we made along the way.

The re-design of a fourth year Bachelor of Education programme using the Constructive Alignment Approach

The focus of this article is on the re-design of a fourth year Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) programme at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). Due to the changes in teacher qualifications, as outlined in the 2015 Minimum Requirements for Teacher Education Qualification (MRTEQ) policy document, Higher Education Institutions were required to adapt their Initial Teaching Education (ITE) programmes to meet the requirements of the new policy document. This article describes the use of a backward mapping approach, in conjunction with the application of a constructive alignment framework, used by the education faculty at UWC to adjust the teaching and learning in the B.Ed programme to address the outcomes and standards required by the MRTEQ policy document. Given the type of student enrolled at UWC, the article provides a discussion on the challenges involved in developing a programme for students who might not have been adequately prepared for their tertiary studies due to the disadvantaged school contexts they come from. The article thus provides a reflective discussion on the challenges involved in the re-design process that used the pre-service teacher competencies expected at the end of the B.Ed programme at UWC, to develop the teaching and learning programme and assessment tasks for the fourth year B.Ed course.Received: 02 August 2018Accepted: 31 October 2018Published online: 29 November 2018

Why do graduates from prestigious universities choose to teach in disadvantaged schools? Lessons from an alternative teacher preparation program in China

Experiences of alternative teacher preparation programs that target high achieving university graduates have sparked global debate. This study probes the sociological mechanisms by which exceptional graduates compete for temporary school teaching posts in disadvantaged schools. Interview data produced with 16 participants were analysed. The analyses reveal that reasons behind program participation can be attributed to the participants’ socio-educational privileges (capital) and dispositions of entrepreneurialism, resistance, and altruism (habitus). These findings invite discussion around the emerging habitus of a current generation of young people in China, as well as understanding of the implications of neoliberalism in teacher education in China.

Effect of a 20-week physical activity intervention on selective attention and academic performance in children living in disadvantaged neighborhoods: A cluster randomized control trial.

ObjectivesTo evaluate the effect of a 20-week school-based physical activity intervention program on academic performance and selective attention among disadvantaged South African primary school children.DesignCluster randomized control trial.MethodsThe study cohort included 663 children from eight primary schools, aged 8–13 years. Data assessment took place between February 2015 and May 2016 following the implementation of a 20-week school-based physical activity program. The d2 test was employed to assess selective attention, while the averaged end-of-year school results (math, life skills, home language, and additional language) were used as an indicator of academic performance. Physical fitness was assessed using the 20-m shuttle run test (VO2 max) and grip strength tests. We controlled for cluster effects, baseline scores in selective attention or academic performance, and potential confounders, such as children’s age, gender, socioeconomic status, self-reported physical activity (as determined by a pre-tested questionnaire), body mass index, hemoglobin (as a proxy for anemia, as measured by blood sampling), and soil-transmitted helminth infections (as assessed by the Kato-Katz technique).ResultsOur multivariate analysis suggested that the physical activity intervention had a positive effect on academic performance (p = 0.032), while no effect was found on selective attention (concentration performance; p = 0.469; error percentage; p = 0.237). After controlling for potential confounders, the physical activity condition contributed to the maintenance of academic performance, whereas a decrease was observed in learners in the control condition. Furthermore, physically active and fit children tend to have better concentration performance (CP) than their less fit peers (self-reported activity; p<0.016, grip strength; p<0.009, VO2 max p>0.021).ConclusionA 20-week physical activity intervention contributes to the maintenance of academic performance among socioeconomically deprived school children in South Africa. School administrators should ensure that their school staff implements physical activity lessons, which are a compulsory component of the school by the curriculum.

Comparison of individual-level and contextual-level socioeconomic status indicators in schoolchildren in Ireland: a repeated cross-sectional survey

BackgroundEpidemiological studies mostly focus on individual-level measures of socioeconomic status (SES). Contextual measures can provide a wider picture of a person's environment. We aimed to investigate whether family SES measures are associated with school SES in schoolchildren. MethodsWe included a nationally representative cross-sectional sample of 2929 children aged 6–7 years (51·3% girls) who participated in one of the three measurement rounds (2010, 2012, or 2015) of the Irish Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative. Family SES indicators on parental education (high or low), parental occupation (employed or unemployed), housing type (detached or semi-detached house, terraced house, or apartment), and housing ownership (rented or owned) were reported by parents. Schools were split into disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged according to the Department of Education and Skills definition. χ2 tests were conducted to test associations. Ethical approval was obtained by the UCD Human Research Ethics Committee. Parents or children's guardians signed an informed consent form. FindingsThe proportion of mothers with low education level was significantly higher in disadvantaged schools than in non-disadvantaged schools (2010, 62·5% [n=35] vs 36·7% [n=348], p<0·001; 2012, 61·3% [n=49] vs 37·5% [n=346], p<0·001; 2015, 64·9% [n=50] vs 33·9% [n=270], p<0·001), irrespective of the measurement round. Similar results were observed with fathers' education and school SES. Disadvantaged schools had significantly higher percentages of unemployed parents than did non-disadvantaged schools in 2012 (mothers 54·3% [n=44] vs 41·7% [n=384], p=0·028; fathers 27·4% [n=20] vs 13·0% [n=115], p=0·001) and 2015 (46·7% [n=35] vs 30·2% [n=239], p=0·003; 18·7% [n=12] vs 7·4% [n=55], p=0·002), but not in 2010. The percentage of families owning a house was significantly lower in disadvantaged schools than in non-disadvantaged schools (2010 64·8% [n=35] vs 83·8% [n=816], p<0·001; 2012 53·1% [n=43] vs 80·9% [n=758], p<0·001; 2015 55·3% [n=42] vs 83·4% [n=665], p<0·001). InterpretationSchool SES was significantly related to individual-level SES measures over the three study rounds. These findings show that contextual and compositional SES indicators are equally important and should be considered. Ideally, studies should simultaneously examine the effects of both individual-level and contextual-level SES variables. FundingNone.

The Role of Content Knowledge in Mathematics Teacher Preparation: A Study of Traditional and Alternative Teacher Preparation in Texas

Employing data from a stratified random survey of newly certified teachers in Texas, we compare the mathematical content preparation of traditional teacher program graduates with graduates of alternative programs. We find that graduates of traditional programs have statistically significantly higher content preparation even when taking precollege preparation into account. These findings were consistent across different types of alternative programs. Alternatively certified teachers reported higher college entrance exam scores in mathematics, but this was statistically significant only for Grades 4 to 8. After merging survey results with NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) data about the schools at which teachers were employed, we found similar demographic characteristics between the two types of teachers—alternatively certified teachers were not more likely to teach in disadvantaged schools. Finally, while the content preparation of teachers was consistent across types of schools, teachers in disadvantaged schools tended to have lower SAT and ACT scores for both alternatively and traditionally prepared teachers.

Creative arts outreach initiatives in schools: effects on university expectations and discussions about university with important socialisers

ABSTRACT For youth in disadvantaged schools, university expectations and participation are often limited by access to social and cultural capital that support expectations. This study investigated the utility of creative arts outreach initiatives (CAI) in supporting students’ university expectations and building cultural capital in homes, schools and neighbourhoods in the southwest corridor of Perth, Western Australia. Cultural capital was operationalised as discussions about university with parents, teachers and friends as important socialisers. The CAI provided task-based programs that connected students with industry professionals and university academics to access new social and cultural capital, develop skills that satisfied learning objectives and increase navigational capacity for higher education participation. Multi-group latent growth models were estimated for university expectations across 3 time points and university discussions with important socialisers at time 3 using a propensity-score matched sample comprising 176 students aged between 11 to 18 years from eight high schools (program group = 88, control group = 88, females = 64%). Results indicated stability in levels of university expectations for program participants and increased discussions about university with parents, teachers and friends. Findings support the inclusion of people-rich, co-curricular creative arts programs such as CAI in disadvantaged schools to build social and cultural capital that supports and potentially widens higher education participation in this region.

Educational resources and student achievement: Evidence from the Save Harmless provision in New York State

A long-standing debate in the economics of education literature is whether increasing educational resources moves the needle on student achievement. Education finance reformers advocate delivering extra resources to disadvantaged school districts to close academic achievement gaps, but their efforts are subject to criticism from skeptics who believe that extra resources do not actually improve performance. This study leverages variation in per-pupil expenditures from a specific provision of the state aid formula in New York State that allows districts to maintain prior levels of total state aid even as their student enrollment declines. We uncover achievement gains of approximately 0.047 standard deviations in math and 0.042 standard deviations in English corresponding to $1000 in additional per-pupil spending. This study strengthens the case that school resources matter, and that sustained financial investments can help districts maintain and improve quality of public education.

Food environments in and around post-primary schools in Ireland: Associations with youth dietary habits

BackgroundThe food environment within and surrounding schools may influence children's diets. This study explored if the internal and external school food environments were associated with intake of specific food groups among adolescents. MethodsParticipants were a subset of 5344 post-primary school students that took part in the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. Four school-level variables were created: urban/rural, disadvantaged status, percentage fast food premises within one kilometer of the school and food sold in the school. Logistic regression models were used to examine school-level influences on daily food consumption controlling for individual and family food environmental factors. ResultsFor students in disadvantaged schools, the odds of having soft drinks (OR 1.79, 95% CI 1.30–2.47) or chips (OR 1.82, 95% CI 1.17–2.83) daily were larger and the odds of consuming fruits (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.62–0.99) or vegetables (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.60–0.88) daily were smaller than for students at other schools. Girls and those from higher socioeconomic classes also had healthier eating habits. Attending a school where more than 10% of the food premises within one kilometer of the school were fast food outlets was associated with a 0.78 (95% CI 0.64 to 0.94) and a 0.79 (95% CI 0.66 to 0.93) decreased odds of daily fruit and vegetable intake, respectively. ConclusionsFast food environments around post-primary schools are associated with less fruit and vegetable intake. Children in disadvantaged schools and from lower social classes are more likely to report poorer dietary habits than children in other schools or from higher social classes, respectively. Multiple contexts influence diet, and children at an economic or social disadvantage are at most risk of poor dietary habits.

More Harm than Good?

By analyzing a French program that targeted low-achieving and socially disadvantaged junior high schools we provide evidence that school-based compensatory education policies create sorting effects. We use geocoded original data and a regression discontinuity framework to show that the program decreases the individual probability of attending a treated school and symmetrically increases the probability of attending a private school. The effects are driven by pupils from high socioeconomic backgrounds, resulting in an increase in social segregation across schools.

The Impact of School Disadvantage on Senior Secondary Science: a Study of Patterns of Participation and Achievement in Government Secondary Schools in Victoria, Australia

Science and science education are recognised internationally as essential for ensuring a sustainable and prosperous future. At the same time, significant equity issues are apparent in science education. This study used enrolment and academic result data, routinely collected from government schools in Victoria, Australia, to examine the impact of socioeconomic status and school location on patterns of participation and achievement in senior school Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Physics and Psychology. This research shows that though non-metropolitan students are less likely to have the sciences provided by their school, where they are provided they enrol in similar proportions to metropolitan students. In line with other research, it shows that high SES students are more likely than other students to study senior secondary Chemistry and Physics, and outperform low SES students in all senior sciences. While the findings of this study suggest that non-metropolitan students underperform their metropolitan counterparts in senior sciences, they suggest the gap in performance is not dramatic. More promising, the variation in school performance revealed in this study suggests that non-metropolitan schools can achieve just as well as metropolitan schools in the sciences. The study also suggests location has a moderating effect on SES not noted in the current literature, where science achievement in non-metropolitan schools appears less impacted upon by SES than similar schools in urban environments. This provides impetus for further research into high science performing non-metropolitan schools as a step towards addressing some of the equity concerns in science education.

«‘Invisible schools’. The public image of rural schools in Southern Italy in photographic inquiries and photo-reportages (1925-55)

La difusión de una determinada imagen pública de las escuelas rurales —desde siempre las escuelas más pobres y desfavorecidas— ha sido utilizada frecuentemente por las clases dirigentes y/o los partidos políticos de la oposición para documentar la tasa de modernización y/o de atraso del sistema educativo nacional, de acuerdo con las respectivas necesidades propagandísticas. El artículo ―moviéndose entre las primeras encuestas fotográficas realizadas en las regiones del Sur de Italia por asociaciones meridionalistas en los años 20 y los reportajes fotoperiodísticos publicados en algunas revistas en los años 50, pasando por la cesura fascista― pretende estudiar las alteraciones de la imagen pública de este tipo particular de escuelas comprobables en Italia en el período de tiempo indicado a través del análisis de fotografías escolares publicadas en periódicos diarios y revistas, centrándose en el uso propagandístico que de las mismas se hizo a lo largo de treinta años.