Minority High School Research Articles

Gender differences in the choice of studies of Hungarian, Slovak and Romanian ethnic minority high school graduates in Serbia

The subject of this research were the gender differences in the choice of studies of Hungarian, Slovak and Romanian ethnic minority members in the AP of Vojvodina. The aim of the paper is to analyze the status and career choices of ethnic minority students, who finish their secondary school in AP Vojvodina in their mother tongue. In order to achieve the aforementioned goal, 2192 students, both male and female, were asked to fill in a formal questionnaire in 16 municipalities in Vojvodina in 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 school years. The results show that around one third of the secondary school students migrates and studies in the nearby EU countries. The research has also shown that gender stereotypes significantly influence the career choices of female students, who usually opt for social sciences, although technical sciences would provide them with a wider range of opportunities in career development.

Early academic gaps and Title I programming in high poverty, high minority schools

Since 1965 the purpose of Title I of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act has been to improve the educational outcomes of economically disadvantaged students and reduce achievement gaps. This paper presents analysis of data from a nationally representative sample of African American and Latinx kindergartners who attended public schools operating school-wide Title I programs in the 2010–11 school year. The purpose of analysis was to examine the associations between Title I programming and achievement gaps. The results indicated that African American students in high poverty, high minority schools made greater gains in reading in schools that used Title I for reduced class size. African American and Latinx students in high poverty, high minority schools made greater gains in mathematics in schools that used Title I for professional development. Findings were scrutinized via propensity score weighting, which revealed the tangled nature of school context, child and family characteristics, and student learning. Suggestions for future research include random assignment studies and local partnerships to determine effective uses of Title I monies.

Using intercultural videos of direct contact to implement vicarious contact: A school-based intervention that improves intergroup attitudes

We aimed to create an engaging and dynamic intervention for schools that uses videos of direct school peer contact to implement a vicarious contact intervention. Participants were ethnic majority (Italian) and minority (immigrant) high school students ( N = 485; age ranging from 14 to 22 years old, Mage = 17.24 years), who were asked to watch and evaluate videos created by peers from their school for a competition for the best video on intercultural friendships. Results revealed that vicarious contact, relative to a control condition where participants were not shown any videos, improved outgroup attitudes, reduced negative outgroup stereotypes, and increased willingness to engage in contact with the outgroup. These effects only emerged when intercultural friendships in the videos were salient. Inclusion of the other in the self, but neither intergroup anxiety nor fear of rejection by the outgroup, significantly mediated the effect of the videos on outcomes. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of the findings.

Violence Victimization, Substance Use, and Suicide Risk Among Sexual Minority High School Students - United States, 2015-2017.

Youths identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or another nonheterosexual identity (sexual minority youths) report more violence victimization, substance use, and suicide risk than do heterosexual youths (1). These disparities are generally attributed to minority stress (the process through which stigma directed toward sexual minorities influences health outcomes) (2,3). Sexual minority youths might experience negative outcomes associated with minority stress differently across sexual identities, but to date, no nationally representative study has examined differences in victimization, substance use, and suicide risk within sexual minority youth. Using pooled data from the 2015 and 2017 national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys (YRBS), relationships between sexual identity groups and victimization, substance use, and suicide risk were evaluated with sex-stratified logistic regression models. Compared with heterosexual students, bisexual females and all sexual minority males reported more victimization; lesbian and bisexual females reported more use of alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana; and all sexual minority youths reported elevated high-risk substance use and suicide risk. Programmatic efforts to reduce and prevent victimization, substance use, and suicide risk among sexual minority youths might benefit from consideration of issues within group differences.

Motivation, Fortitude and Success: The Impact of Academic Efficacy and Academic Commitment on Academic Performance among Minority High School Students

<em>The importance of understanding the elements of success in the education of minority high school students is immense. Recognizing the causes of academic success for these students allows educators to employ better educational and motivational strategies. It has been shown that academic efficacy and academic commitment have a positive impact on academic performance. However, the interaction and relationship between these two variables in having a positive effect on education outcomes among minority high school students is not clear. This paper looks at the relationship between academic efficacy and academic commitment on academic performance among minority high school students. The findings reveal that academic commitment is positively associated with academic performance. However, while academic efficacy has a positive impact on academic commitment the results show that academic efficacy has no direct impact on academic performance among the respondents.</em>

Perceived Stress Mediates Hurricane Harvey’s Impact on the Weight of Low Income, Ethnic Minority Middle and High School Students

Perceived Stress Mediates Hurricane Harvey’s Impact on the Weight of Low Income, Ethnic Minority Middle and High School Students

Sexual Risk Behavior Differences Among Sexual Minority High School Students — United States, 2015 and 2017

Sexual minority youths (i.e., those identifying as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or another nonheterosexual identity or reporting same-sex attraction or sexual partners) are at higher risk than youths who are not sexual minority youth (nonsexual minority youth) for negative health behaviors and outcomes, including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), pregnancy (1),* and related sexual risk behaviors (2). Less is known about sexual risk behavior differences between sexual minority youth subgroups. This is the first analysis of subgroup differences among sexual minority youths using nationally representative Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) data. CDC analyzed pooled data from the 2015 and 2017 cycles of the national YRBS, a cross-sectional, school-based survey assessing health behaviors among U.S. students in grades 9-12. Analyses examined differences in eight sexual risk behaviors between subgroups of sexual minority youths and nonsexual minority youths, as well as within sexual minority youths. Logistic regression models controlling for race/ethnicity and grade found that bisexual females and "not sure" males reported higher prevalences for many behaviors than did heterosexual students. For behavior-based subgroups, the largest number of differences were seen between students who had sexual contact with both sexes compared with students with only opposite-sex sexual contact. Findings highlight subgroup differences within sexual minority youths that could inform interventions to promote healthy behavior.

Minority High School Students in Non-Math-Science-Oriented and Math-Science-Oriented Majors: Do They View the Environment Differently?

The aim of the study was to investigate differences, if any, in environmental attitude, knowledge, experience and participation, between non-math-science (NMS) and math-science (MS) high school students from minority ethnic groups. A 16-item survey instrument was used for data collection. Participants were students at eight high schools in Madison County, Alabama, USA who were enrolled in North Alabama Center for Educational Excellence’s (NACEE’s) 2014 and 2015 summer programs. Eighty-six completed questionnaires were collected, the majority from Black/African-American and Hispanic minority ethnic groups. Pearson’s chi-square test and Spearman rho correlation were applied to assess differences and relationships between the groups. We found high level of positive attitude (NMS [95%] and MS [98%]) towards environmental protection among both groups; however, no statistically significant differences were evident. While both groups had low levels of participation and engagement in environmental protection and outdoor recreation activities, the MS group had comparatively higher participation than the NMS group. The relationship between participation and satisfaction was significantly positive for MS students and significantly negative for NMS students. To increase minority students’ knowledge and participation in pro-environmental activities in the future, Alabama’s Environmental Education Program should emphasize selective activities (e.g., involving students’ families and communities in environmental initiatives, providing opportunities to students to socialize and have fun with nature, and encouraging age-appropriate teaching and learning approaches).

Immersed in academic English: vocabulary and academic outcomes of a CLIL university preparation course

ABSTRACTThis article reports on an English for academic purposes course designed following the tenets of content and language integrated learning (CLIL) to address the needs of language minority (LM) high school graduates entering Canadian universities. The language used in and required of post-secondary study is challenging for many LM students, particularly those with marginal English language arts grades, contributing to a difficult transition into university. The goal of this course was to improve academic English language skills to mitigate this transition; academic language skills and strategies were embedded, and the content and materials mimicked mainstream university courses. To determine what, if any, vocabulary gains took place during the course, data from pre-/post-testing and writing samples of the ten consenting participants were analyzed using t-tests. These data consisted of lexical measurement tools including the Gates MacGinitie Test of Reading (Vocab) and the Productive Academic Word Test, along with writing analysis using TAALEs and Lextutor software to evaluate lexical sophistication. Each measurement indicated vocabulary gains occurred during the six-week CLIL course. Qualitative examples of student work are provided, and subsequent academic performance of participants is presented. This research concludes with recommendations for future research and CLIL implementation in higher education.

Ending Isolation: The Payoff of Teacher Teams in Successful High-Poverty Urban Schools

Background/ContextMany urban schools today look to instructional teams as a means to decrease professional isolation, promote teachers’ ongoing development, and substantially reduce well-documented variation in teachers’ effectiveness across classrooms. Recent research finds that teams can contribute to teachers’ development and increased student achievement. However, research also suggests that teams often fail and that most schools are not organized to ensure their success. Therefore, it is important to learn more about how teams function in successful schools, how teachers experience them, and what factors contribute to their success.Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of StudyData for this article were drawn from a comparative case study focusing on the human-capital practices in six successful high-poverty, high-minority schools (traditional, turnaround, restart, and charter), all located in one Massachusetts city. Each school was affected by a distinct set of state and local policies. Here, we focus on the schools’ approaches to professional learning and collaboration among teachers. Did they rely on teams, and, if so, what purposes did the teams serve, and how were they organized? How did teachers assess their experience with teams? What role did administrators play? Were there notable school-to-school differences in how these teams were organized and managed?Research Design/Data Collection and AnalysisFor this qualitative, comparative case study, we conducted semistructured interviews with 142 teachers, administrators, and other staff in six elementary and middle schools. Interview protocols encouraged participants to discuss their school's approach to teachers’ professional learning and work with colleagues. During school visits, we also observed a wide range of day-to-day practices and collected documents describing school policies and practices. We coded our data with both emic and etic topical codes and used various matrices to analyze responses within and across the sites.Conclusions/RecommendationsFive schools relied on teams as a central mechanism for school improvement, dedicating substantial blocks of time each week to teachers’ meetings. Teams focused on matters of content (curriculum, lesson plans, and student achievement) and the student cohort (individual progress, group behavior, and organizational culture). Teachers valued their work on teams, saying that it supported their instruction and contributed to their school's success by creating coherence across classrooms and shared responsibility for students. Factors that supported teams included having a worthy purpose in support of the school's mission; sufficient, regular time for meetings; engaged support by administrators; and facilitation by trained teacher-leaders.

Israeli Arab Minority Students’ Help Seeking for Bullying From School Counselors

Minority students are less likely to seek help to deal with bullying at school than their majority counterparts. Nonetheless, very little is known about the factors that influence their willingness to seek help, or the role of school counselors as potential help providers. Thus, in the present study we examined Israeli Arab minority high school students’ help seeking from school counselors for coping with verbal, physical, and social bullying. A national representative sample of 730 high school students participated in the study. Our findings revealed that the vast majority of students did not seek help at all. Students who sought help, in comparison with those who did not, reported more positive relationships with their school counselors, and noted that their counselors were more available for them. Students who experienced higher levels of victimization were more willing to seek help than those who experienced lower levels. Implications for help seeking and the role of counselors in schools are discussed.

Changing the face of STEM with stormwater research

BackgroundThe University of Maine Stormwater Management and Research Team (SMART) program began in 2014 with the goal of creating a diverse science-technology-engineering-math (STEM) pathway with community water research. The program engages female and underrepresented minority high school students in locally relevant STEM research. It focuses on creating educational experiences that are active and relevant to students that build confidence, connect knowledge and skills directly to solving problems in local communities, and support student cultural identities. The core tools of the SMART program are resources and relationships: university-designed or commercial water data collection equipment, data loggers and chemistry supplies, on-campus science and engineering training for teacher-mentors and students, and a community mentor network. The program supports an annual summer institute that trains both students and teacher-mentors and academic-year student research projects. SMART groups are formed at local schools or community centers. Activities revolve around engaging students in citizen-science to expand their understanding of the environment, developing community strategies to address the complex problem of stormwater pollution, and using the tools of science, engineering, and technology effectively. In addition, the program supports teachers and students in reaching out to local science and engineering professionals to form a mentor network for student research.ResultsOver 3 years, 220 students and 25 teachers have been trained in the science and engineering of stormwater, having taken and recorded over 4000 local water measurements (i.e., temperature, conductivity, pH). In all cohorts to date, over 75% of student participants have self-identified as either female or a racial minority. Of approximately 125 currently college-eligible former and current SMART students, more than 41% have been accepted or are enrolled in a secondary STEM degree program. In pre- and post-program surveys, female and underrepresented minority students reported that SMART activities and their relationship with mentors have increased their awareness of how stormwater affects the community and increased their interest in pursuing a STEM career.ConclusionWith its focus on problem-solving at the community level, SMART supports students in active, local, and culturally relevant science and engineering experiences that contribute to building their confidence and affirming their decision to pursue post-secondary STEM careers.

Near-Peer Teaching Outreach Programs to Increase Minority Physician Recruitment

Problem Health disparities among racial and ethnic groups exist in the United States despite improvements in health status and access to care. These inequalities may be reduced by increasing minority physician recruitment; however, how best to recruit these physicians remains unclear. Approach Near-peer teachers are not professionally trained, but have recently learned material that they themselves teach. Near-peer teaching in minority student outreach programs may be effective in increasing minority physician recruitment. The authors used a near-peer teaching model to promote interest in medicine, specifically ophthalmology, as a potential career path for both volunteer near-peer teachers and minority high school students participating in an educational outreach program. Twenty-one college and graduate-school near-peer teachers of various racial and ethnic backgrounds participated to teach 31 inner-city high school students. The program was evaluated using pre- and posttest surveys assessing students' knowledge about and interest in science, medicine, and ophthalmology; analysis used pairwise t-test comparisons. Qualitative responses and an end-of-training survey also assessed students' and near-peer teachers' satisfaction with the program and perceptions about medicine as a career. Outcomes Students' knowledge about and interest in medicine and ophthalmology increased significantly after participation. Near-peer teachers agreed that teaching in the program was beneficial to their careers and made it more likely that they would enter medicine and ophthalmology. Next Steps The authors will track the near-peer teachers' career paths and, in the next iteration, will increase the number of program days. This intervention may serve as a model for outreach for other specialties beyond ophthalmology.

Parental Guidance Required: How Parents Could Help Reduce the Shortage of Minority Physician Assistants.

Physician assistants (PAs) are essential to the health care system, and there are not nearly enough of them to meet the needs of our ethnically diverse population. Factors contributing to a lack of minorities in PA schools are related to academic performance, commitments outside work/school, and social and economic deprivation. From 2014 to 2016, the Texas Area Health Education Center East worked with the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to implement Physician Assistant Learner Support programming. This program, targeting minority high school students, promoted and educated both students and parents about PA careers with the objective of alleviating one of the main barriers to minority higher education-lack of understanding of educational and career opportunities. This study found that parental knowledge about PA application requirements, PA degree requirements, financial aid, and career prospects at the high school level is essential to securing parental support of student selection of PA careers.

Are School Districts Allocating Resources Equitably? The Every Student Succeeds Act, Teacher Experience Gaps, and Equitable Resource Allocation

Ongoing federal efforts support equalizing access to experienced educators for low-income students and students of color, thereby narrowing the “teacher experience gap.” I show that while high-poverty and high-minority schools have larger class sizes and receive less funding nationally, school districts allocate resource equitably, on average, across schools. However, the least experienced teachers are still concentrated in high-poverty and high-minority schools, both across and within districts. I then show that additional state and local funding is associated with more equitable district resource allocation. The study offers recommendations for state and federal education policy related to the Every Student Succeeds Act.

DO LEADERS’ EXPERIENCE AND CONCENTRATION AREA INFLUENCE SCHOOL PERFORMANCE?

The purpose of this study was to examine the educational background of leaders in small, high poverty, high minority schools in an effort to determine if the leader’s concentration area and background were related to the academic success of the students. Through a causal comparative design, a modified version of the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) Self- Assessment (CCSSO, 2000) was used to collect data from principals and assistant principals to answer the following research questions: Is there a difference between the leader’s concentration area (counseling, mathematics, language arts, science, etc.) and school rating? Is there a difference between the number of years of experience and school rating? This study used the Chi Square Test of Independence, a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and a post-hoc comparison to identify differences between the variables and research questions. The findings revealed that two or more years of experience at the same school had a significant impact on the academic rating of the school, while concentration area did not significantly impact the overall academic school rating. Keywords: educational leadership, minority, poverty, tenure, concentration area

Contributing to the future of diversity in medicine: A powerful outreach program at the SUNY Downstate College of Medicine

The Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP) at Downstate is a powerful education outreach platform that promotes and supports pools of under represented students interested in choosing careers in medicine and other health care professions. Despite a steady increase in the proportion of the American population comprised of racial and ethnic minority groups, the percentage of minority physicians has remained relatively stagnant over the last 20 years. African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans comprise 26% of the U.S. population yet make up only 6% of practicing physicians.1 The Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP) at Downstate aims to minimize this disparity by offering 30 minority high school students in 9th through 11th grade the opportunity to engage in lectures and participate in small group workshops where they learn anatomy, physiology, and some practical clinical applications of the basic sciences. With the help of medical student facilitators, many of whom are also from minority groups, program participants complete a research project on a pre‐approved topic for presentation during the final week of the program. Pre‐ and post‐tests are carried out at each session in order to quantify student learning by grade‐level. Results have shown consistent significant (P<0.05) improvement between pre‐ and post‐test scores as of their first use in 2014. In addition, a pre‐ and post‐program questionnaire is given to assess the program's impact on students' intent to pursue a career as a health professional with the vast majority of participants answering favorably. As HPREP offers early exposure to minorities underrepresented in medicine, it is our goal to better prepare them for completing the rigors required for successful entrance into the field, thereby bringing greater diversity to the physician workforce.

Principals’ perceptions of public schools’ professional development changes during NCLB

This study investigated public school principals’ reports of professional development implementation at the school level while working in different state- and local-level contexts (state accountability level, geographic locations, socioeconomic status, demographics, and grade levels). I attempted to measure principals’ reported changes in levels of teacher involvement and alignment of professional development with standards, student learning outcomes, school goals, resources, and district goals during No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Using two-level, Hierarchical Generalized Linear Proportional Odds modeling (HGLM-PO), and three pooled waves of a national sample from the Schools and Staffing Survey (National Center for Education Statistics, 2000, 2004, 2007), I implemented a quantitative, repeated cross-sectional, self-report, extant secondary survey analysis design. Principals reported a decrease in teachers’ planning and presentation of professional development during NCLB implementation across all settings, indicating a potential reduction in teachers’ participation in the professional development process. Principals who worked in urban, elementary, low-SES, and high minority school contexts were more likely to report teachers’ participation in the planning and presentation of professional development, but were also more likely to report an increase in the direction and alignment of professional development with school and district goals, standards, student achievement outcomes, and resources. There is evidence that a school community’s location, socioeconomic status, and school demographics plays a role in how schools may interpret accountability environments and implement teachers’ professional development. In all settings, school leaders need to purposefully focus on and retain collaborative professional development practices with teachers in the context of continued accountability pressures.

19.4 Violence Victimization Among Sexual Minority High School Students: Impact of School Disorganization on Mental Health Outcomes

19.4 Violence Victimization Among Sexual Minority High School Students: Impact of School Disorganization on Mental Health Outcomes

Same-Sex Sexuality and Educational Attainment: The Pathway to College

ABSTRACTResearch finds lower levels of academic performance among sexual minority high school students, but some studies suggest sexual minorities have higher levels of educational attainment in adulthood. To further our understanding of how and why sexual orientation is associated with educational success, this study turns attention to the pathways to college completion, examining points along educational trajectories in which sexual minorities fall behind or surpass their heterosexual peers. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we find that sexual minority women are less likely than women with no same-sex sexuality to complete college, in part due to their high school performance and transition into college. Men who experience same-sex sexuality only in adolescence struggle in high school, but men who experience same-sex sexuality for the first time in adulthood are more likely to earn a college degree than men who do not experience same-sex sexuality.