High School Longitudinal Study Research Articles

Field-specific cultural capital and persistence in college majors

We investigate the possibility that Bourdieu's concept of cultural capital, ways of being that facilitate assimilation to the dominant culture, is field-specific in its manifestation and intergenerational transmission. We focus on a field of central economic and academic interest: STEM. Data on around 13,000 undergraduates from the large nationally representative High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 indicate that parents' STEM-specific cultural capital positively contributes to youth's selection of and persistence in STEM majors in the form of parents' STEM education. We find that transmission is enacted through youths' field-specific institutionalized cultural capital (e.g., STEM grades and test scores), field-specific embodied cultural capital (e.g., STEM attitudes), and characteristics of their educational institutions (e.g., four-year rather than two-year college). This study contributes to the theory of cultural capital by examining cultural capital through a field-specific lens, and then specifically elucidating how it is expressed and transmitted within that field.

Science Interest, Utility, Self-Efficacy, Identity, and Science Achievement Among High School Students: An Application of SEM Tree.

The current study explored the associations between non–cognitive science-related variables, i.e., science interest, utility, self-efficacy, science identity, and science achievement in a serial mediation model. The study also further explored the potential heterogeneity in the model parameters using one of the data-mining techniques, which is the structural equation model (SEM) Tree. Data on 14,815 high school students were obtained from a large-scale database High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09). The results highlighted science interest and science utility positively influencing science achievement through a sequential pathway of mediators, including science self-efficacy and science identity. The strength of direct effects considerably varied across students, resulting in classifying them into four subgroups. For instance, among females with a low SES subgroup, developing substantial science interest would result in better science self-efficacy and science identity that flourish science achievement. These valuable findings provide fruitful tailored recommendations, elevating the science achievement in the subgroups (146 words).

Academic Achievement and Postsecondary Educational Attainment of Domestically and Internationally Adopted Youth

Adopted youth often do not achieve in school as well as their non-adopted peers. We used data from the High School Longitudinal Study to examine high school and postsecondary achievement outcomes in adopted youth. We compared outcomes for domestically adopted youth, internationally adopted youth, and non-adopted youth. Results indicate that domestically adopted youth have lower grade point averages. Internationally adopted youth were less likely to enroll in four-year postsecondary institutions than were non-adopted youth.

Individual and contextual effects on science identity among American ninth-grade students (HSLS:09): hierarchical linear modeling

ABSTRACT Background Research has shown that students in the United States have been developing negative perceptions of science as a field of study, which is associated with low science identity. The science identity can be influenced by a variety of personal demographic predictors, non-cognitive science-related variables (e.g. science self-efficacy and science interest), and contextual predictors (e.g. school locale and geographical location). Purpose The current study explored the variability in the effect of student-level factors (i.e. gender, SES, ethnicity, science self-efficacy, science utility, and science interest) and school-level factors (i.e. school type, locale, and geographical location) on ninth-grade students’ science identity. Sample Data on 16,216 ninth-grade students in the United States were obtained from a large-scale national database, the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009. Design and Methods Three models were tested using Hierarchical Linear Modeling. Results The findings showed that student-level factors accounted for a significant amount (36%) of the variability in students’ science identity and a much smaller amount (< 5%) of the variability in identity was due to the variation between schools. Students’ science identity was bolstered by a higher level of science self-efficacy, utility, interest, and socioeconomic status. Females, African Americans, and Hispanics had lower levels of science identity. Science identity was lower among students in rural schools and town schools compared with students in city schools and higher among students in private schools compared with students in public schools. Students in the Northeast and South had higher science identity compared to students in the West. Conclusion Establishing valuable contributions in the STEM field is strengthened when students hold constructive science identities. The current study found that various individual and contextual variables formulate students’ science identities. These influences are salient in rural and town public schools with poor SES status.

EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES OF GENDER-DIVERSE YOUTH: A National Population-Based Study.

Despite the growing population of youth identifying with a transgender or nonbinary gender identity, research on gender-diverse individuals' educational outcomes is limited. This study takes advantage of the first nationally representative, population-based data set that includes measures of gender identity and educational outcomes: the High School Longitudinal study of 2009. Using minority stress and structural symbolic interactionist frameworks, we examine the association between gender identity and high school and college educational outcomes. We compare the educational outcomes of gender-diverse youth-binary transgender, nonbinary, and gender unsure-with those of cisgender youth, and also examine differences within the gender-diverse population. Given the strong link between minority stress and educational experiences among gender-diverse youth, we examine differences in outcomes before and after accounting for school belonging and emotional distress. We also account for individuals' social-structural location, arguing that social positionality shapes both gender identity and educational outcomes. Results indicate important differences in educational outcomes within the gender-diverse population: Whereas binary transgender and gender-unsure youth exhibit educational disadvantage, relative to cisgender youth, nonbinary youth do not. The gender-unsure disadvantage remains even after accounting for differences in social-structural location and social-psychological factors associated with minority stress.

Planning for College and Careers: How Families and Schools Shape the Alignment of Postsecondary Expectations

Students with aligned educational and occupational expectations have improved college and labor market outcomes. Despite extensive knowledge about the ways social background and school context contribute to educational expectations, less is known about the role of social intuitions in shaping expectational alignment. Drawing on data from the 2009 High School Longitudinal Study, I estimate the magnitude of socioeconomic inequality in alignment. I examine how differences in observed student characteristics contribute to, and whether school-based postsecondary planning initiatives mitigate, that inequality. Results from multinomial regression models show large socioeconomic differences in ninth-grade alignment, and I identify achievement, attitudes about college and careers, and relationships with significant others as contributors to those differences. Participation in postsecondary planning is associated with reduced uncertainty and increased alignment, but this relationship does not differ by social background, indicating that the examined college and career planning policies do little to address inequality in alignment.

STEM Pathways of Rural and Small-Town Students: Opportunities to Learn, Aspirations, Preparation, and College Enrollment

Using the nationally representative High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09), this study documents that rural and small-town students were significantly less likely to enroll in postsecondary STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) degree programs, compared with their suburban peers. This study also shows that schools attended by rural and small-town students offered limited access to advanced coursework and extracurricular programs in STEM and had lower STEM teaching capacity. Those opportunities to learn in STEM were linked to the widening geographic gaps in STEM academic preparation. Overall, our findings suggest that during high school rural and small-town students shifted away from STEM fields and that geographic disparities in postsecondary STEM participation were largely explained by students’ demographics and precollege STEM career aspirations and academic preparation.

The Color of Education: Discriminación Y Comportamientos

ABSTRACT Discrimination is overwhelming immigrant communities across the U.S.A. and impacting educational outcomes and the fragmentation of families. This article employs intersectionality and Latina/o critical theory (LatCrit) as its theoretical framework to analyze education and the institution of familismo as a counterweight to anti-Latinx discrimination. Specifically, we investigate the relative importance of feeling discriminated against, family composition (dual-parent), and demographic variables (family composition, urbanicity – whether or not the student attends school in a city – region, SES, nativity) affect academic behavior for a national sample of Latinx students. Utilizing the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS), we employed hierarchical regression modeling and found (1) that for females two-parent households had no effect on academic behavior when demographic variables were held constant; and (2) for males, those in households with more children possessed less positive academic behavior. Differences between female and male student groups speak to, among other things, the importance of educators employing more advanced theoretical frameworks and nuanced methodologies to fully understand the academic behaviors of Latinx students. Practice and policy recommendations that follow data findings are offered.

Black Girls in Mathematics: (Re)envisioning an Inclusive Parent Involvement Measure

Building upon research utilizing Martin’s Mathematical Socialization and Identity Framework, we examine factors related to community and family involvement to advance the current discourse that informs policies. Data from the High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS:09) public-use file provided a sample of 1,029 Black girls for our analyses. We developed a theoretically-sound inclusive measure, as defined by Black girls, titled the Community and Family Involvement Predictive Scale for Mathematics Outcomes utilizing Nonlinear Principal Components Analysis with a Categorical Principal Components Analysis program. Results are an intersectional measure that considers family, peers, and teachers. Implications for policy include a need for federal, state, and district policymakers to consider a wider variety of contexts, specifically for Black girls, in which community and family partnerships are empowered and prioritized in policies focused on parental involvement.

Examining High School Students' Gendered Beliefs about Math: Predictors and Implications for Choice of STEM College Majors.

Utilizing the High School Longitudinal Study, a nationally representative sample of U.S. high school students, this study investigates the factors that predict different beliefs about gendered math ability and the potential consequences for students' choices to enter gender-segregated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors in college. Among other results, analyses reveal that while about 25 percent of students report a traditionally stereotypical belief in male superiority, about 20 percent report a counter-stereotypical belief in female superiority; among female students, such beliefs are more common among black students. Further, models reveal a robust association between holding counter-stereotypical beliefs and the likelihood that women choose biological science majors, which are female dominated, compared to non-STEM fields. Among men, holding counter-stereotypical beliefs is associated with a lower likelihood of majoring in physical science, computer science, math, and engineering fields, which are strongly male dominated, versus non-STEM fields. Implications for gender inequality in STEM fields are discussed.

Gender by racial/ethnic intersectionality in the patterns of Adolescents’ math motivation and their math achievement and engagement

Individuals' math motivational beliefs are theorized to shape their STEM achievement and engagement in high school and beyond. Combining situated expectancy-value theory and intersectionality framework, the goals of this study were to (a) identify the unique patterns of U.S. high school students' math motivational beliefs, (b) examine differences in the patterns based on the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity, and (c) test the extent to which these patterns predicted differences in students' math achievement and classroom behavioral engagement for each of the gender by racial/ethnic groups. The current study included 16,120 high schoolers (50% female; 63% White, 17% Latina/o, 11% Black, and 9% Asian Americans; Mage = 14.46 at Grade 9) from the High School Longitudinal Study. There were six unique patterns of students' math motivational beliefs: Overall High, Above Average but not Identified, Identified but Average Value, Average, Low Identity, and Overall Low. Pattern membership at the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity showed nuances that could not be represented by gender or race/ethnicity alone; for example, male and female Asian American adolescents had similar patterns, but many male and female adolescents of other racial/ethnic groups had different patterns. Adolescents' math motivational belief patterns were associated with their Grade 11 math achievement and behavioral engagement even after controlling for prior math achievement and family socioeconomic status, and the associated varied by the gender and racial/ethnic groups.

A National Analysis of Music Coursetaking, Social-Emotional Learning, and Academic Achievement Using Propensity Scores

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between curricular high school music participation, academic achievement, and social-emotional learning. The analysis involved a “doubly robust” approach combining propensity score weighting and nested multiple regression using data from the nationally representative High School Longitudinal Study of 2009. Results of the study were mixed. Preliminary tests revealed many significant differences between the choral and instrumental students and the control group, but the propensity score weighting moderated almost all of these effects to nonsignificance. The only unambiguously positive finding was that instrumental music students had higher reading scores than comparable students who did not enroll in music. Yet, subpopulation effects emerged for certain categories of music students based on factors such as race, sex, and prior school achievement. Although the lack of widespread main effects in this study coheres with prior research, the results for certain subpopulations suggest intriguing future directions for research on potential extramusical benefits of music education.

Mathematics identity and discrepancies between self-and reflected appraisals: their relationships with grade 12 mathematics achievement using new evidence from a U.S. national study

While substantial research has shown the relationship between earlier mathematics coursetaking and later mathematics achievement, recent research suggests that mathematics motivation is an important predictor of grade 12 mathematics achievement as well. The current study extends this research by examining the role of mathematics identity at grade 11 for grade 12 mathematics achievement, and whether differences in self- versus other- appraisals of whether a student is “a mathematics person” are related to mathematics achievement after taking mathematics motivation into account. We use a unique dataset from a sample of U.S. students who participated in both the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 and grade 12 National Assessment of Educational Progress mathematics assessment. The analyses reveal that the stronger the students’ mathematics identity the better their grade 12 mathematics achievement even after accounting for students’ mathematics and science course-taking patterns, their STEM grade point average (STEM GPA), prior mathematics achievement (measured at grade 9) and background characteristics. While initial analyses suggested that higher mathematics achievement is also associated with perceived appraisals by others being more positive than self-appraisals with respect to being “a math person,” that relationship was found to be non-significant when other variables in the model are included. The theoretical implications of the study’s findings are discussed.

Does Delivery Location Matter? A National Study of the Impact of Dual Enrollment on College Readiness and Early Academic Momentum

Background/ContextAlthough dual enrollment (DE) programs have indicated positive impact on various high school and postsecondary outcomes, access to DE programs remains unequal; historically marginalized students are less likely than other students to attempt college credits in high school. Despite DE being a widely adopted program at the state level, these programs vary greatly by eligibility criteria, funding models, delivery location, and modality.Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of StudyGuided by prominent learning theories, we hypothesize that the influence of early DE on later educational pathways and outcomes may vary by the location in which DE is delivered. This study examines whether the delivery location of DE (i.e., on a college campus or otherwise) influences students’ college readiness and first-year academic momentum in college, with a special focus on its heterogeneous effect among students of diverse racial and socioeconomic background.Research DesignUsing the restricted-use data from High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09), we use a quasi-experimental approach (i.e., inverse probability weighting models) with a nationally representative sample of students who have taken at least one DE course by 11th grade.Findings/ResultsThe findings reveal that students who took at least one DE course on a college campus do not differ in their cumulative high school GPA, in their probability of attending college, in whether they took developmental courses, in whether they attended college immediately after high school graduation, and in their probability of full-time enrollment when compared with those who took DE course(s) elsewhere. However, the findings are not applicable to all students of varying background defined by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status.Conclusions/RecommendationsThis study provides several implications: (1) Because DE courses taken on a high school or college campus equally fuel students’ college readiness and early academic momentum, advising practices should acknowledge the benefits of DE courses regardless of delivery location. (2) DE participation with college exposure may particularly benefit students of higher socioeconomic status (SES), so interventions that offer holistic college experiences beyond academic work are needed to effectively prepare lower SES students for college life and accumulate academic momentum are needed. (3) States and educational entities should be mindful about the potential disparate effect of DE programs and provide regulation, oversight, and quality assurance so that these programs can narrow the postsecondary achievement gap.

School Music and the Transition to College

This study explored the transition from secondary to postsecondary education among a national sample of students who had or had not studied music in high school. Using evidence from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009, a nationally representative longitudinal study of 21,440 American high school students who were ninth graders in the 2009–2010 school year, music and nonmusic students were compared for college admission outcomes. Specifically, music and nonmusic students were compared in terms of participation in the college admission process, the selectivity of colleges applied to and attended, scholarship and grant receipt, and election of either an arts or STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) major. Comparisons controlled for the well-documented preexisting differences among those students who do and do not elect high school music study. Results showed that music and nonmusic students dropped out of high school, applied to college, attended college, received college scholarships and grants, and majored in STEM fields at statistically similar rates. However, music students were considerably more likely to major in a visual or performing arts field than nonmusic students. These results suggest that school music study does not disadvantage students in the transition to college even when compared with peers who elected additional “academic” subjects in lieu of music.

Stepfamily Involvement in and out of School and (Step)children’s College Preparation Behaviors: A Latent Cluster Analysis

Using a latent class analysis (LCA) with data from a subsample of children in stepfamilies ( N = 6,637) from the 2009 High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS), this study examined how stepfamily involvement in their (step)child’s education in and outside of school influenced their (step)child’s college preparation. Stepfamily involvement in their (step)child’s education in school (e.g., help with homework) and outside of school (e.g., educational experiences such as going to a museum) may help overcome challenges associated with academic and college preparation for children in stepfamilies. Results broadly indicate students with higher stepfamily involvement in education in and out of school had (step)parents who believed that college was attainable, students engaged in more activities that would prepare them for their future, and students took more AP/IB level courses and tests. Together, findings suggest that stepfamily involvement in education both in and out of school is important for their (step)child’s college preparation behaviors.

The Role of College-Bound Friends in College Enrollment Decisions by Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

This study examines the association between college-bound friends and college enrollment using restricted transcript data from the High School Longitudinal Study. Propensity score matching and school fixed effects models suggest that having close college-bound friends is positively associated with enrolling in college. However, Black and Latino male students are much less likely to benefit from having college-bound friends than others, suggesting that structural and cultural factors that are tied to race, ethnicity, and gender may limit the beneficial potential of friends, especially for these male Black and Latino students. Implications for addressing racial and ethnic disparities in college enrollment and for the role of friends in college enrollment decisions are discussed.

Expectancy-value profiles in math and science: A person-centered approach to cross-domain motivation with academic and STEM-related outcomes

The need to enhance the STEM workforce and, in turn, the STEM educational pipeline is a prevailing issue in the U.S. One critical component in this pipeline is students’ interest in STEM majors and their persistence in such majors, theorized to be a function of both students’ perceived value and expectancy beliefs in the subject matter. Using an expectancy-value lens, we examined cross-domain patterns of high school students’ expectancy beliefs and values in both mathematics and science using a person-centered or profile approach. With data from the High School Longitudinal Study, latent profile analysis revealed five profiles characterized as Low Math/Low Science (i.e., endorsing low levels of expectancy and value beliefs in math and science), Moderate Math/Moderate Science, High Math/High Science, Low Math/High Science, and High Math/Low Science. Taking into account aspects of students’ background and school context, we found that motivational profile membership predicted math and science high school achievement, college persistence, and both STEM major intentions and major choices. Moreover, there were a number of gender and racial/ethnic differences and contextual variation in profile memberships as well. Implications for theory and educational practice are discussed in relation to study findings.

Ability self-concepts and parental support may protect adolescents when they experience low support from their math teachers

IntroductionExperiencing low support from teachers can be associated with low academic achievement. Nonetheless, individual- (i.e., ability self-concepts) and contextual-level (i.e., parental support) protective factors may help adolescents to display academic resilience. This study examined whether high school students’ math ability self-concepts and parental support can mitigate the possible negative association between perceived low math teacher support and their math achievement. MethodCorrelational data were drawn from the High School Longitudinal Study (N = 14,580, Mage = 17.42 in 11th grade, 51% female), a nationally representative study of high school students in the U.S. The measures of protective factors (i.e., math ability self-concepts and parental support) were obtained from the surveys administered to students and parents in 9th grade. Students’ perceived teacher support and their math achievement score were measured in 11th grade. A series of linear regression analyses were estimated to test our hypotheses. Results & ConclusionsPerceived low teacher support was negatively associated with adolescents’ math achievement. Adolescents’ math ability self-concepts were directly and positively associated with their math achievement. The interaction between perceived low teacher support and ability self-concepts in predicting adolescents’ achievement varied by parental support. The association between perceived low teacher support and adolescents’ math achievement was not statistically significant when adolescents were high on one of the protective factors. That is, high parental support may be protective for adolescents with low math ability self-concepts. This study highlights the interaction between adolescents’ academic motivation and parental support in demonstrating resilience to perceived low teacher support.

College-Going in the Era of High Expectations: Racial/Ethnic Disparities in College Enrollment, 2006 to 2015.

Adolescents with high educational expectations are more likely to enroll in college. Although most adolescents today report high educational expectations, there remains important racial/ethnic heterogeneity in college enrollment patterns. In particular, at every level of socioeconomic status, minority youth have higher educational expectations than their white peers yet enroll in college at lower rates. The rapidly increasing size and college enrollment of the Hispanic population motivate renewed examination of the expectation-enrollment relationship. Using data from the Education Longitudinal Study (ELS) and the High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS), the author examines whether the relationship between adolescent educational expectations and enrollment in a four-year college within two years of high school graduation differs by race/ethnicity and whether this relationship changed over time. The author finds that the expectation-enrollment relationship is positive for all students but is smaller for black and Hispanic students in the ELS cohort. However, by the HSLS cohort, the gaps have largely closed.