Do Students in Gifted Programs Perform Better? Linking Gifted Program Participation to Achievement and Nonachievement Outcomes

2021 ◽  
pp. 016237372110089
Author(s):  
Christopher Redding ◽  
Jason A. Grissom
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Student Mobility ◽  
Public Investment ◽  
Program Participation ◽  
Exceptional Students ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Low Income Students ◽  
Gifted Program ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
And Mathematics

Growing concerns about inequitable access have made public investment in gifted programs controversial in many school districts, yet advocates maintain that gifted services provide necessary enrichment for exceptional students to succeed at school. We provide evidence on whether the typical gifted program indeed benefits elementary students’ achievement and nonachievement outcomes, using nationally representative data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, 2010–2011 kindergarten cohort. Leveraging within-school and within-student comparisons, we find that participating in a school’s gifted program is associated with reading and mathematics achievement for the average student, although associations are small. We find no evidence of a relationship between gifted participation and student absences, reported engagement with school, or student mobility. Black and low-income students do not see the academic gains that their peers experience when receiving gifted services.

scholarly journals Entering the Skilled Technical Workforce After College

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xianglei Chen ◽  
Susan Rotermund
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Career Paths ◽  
College Education ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Diverse Populations ◽  
Underrepresented Groups ◽  
Science Technology ◽  
College Transitions ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
And Mathematics

This research brief uses nationally representative data from the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS:12/17) to examine post-college transitions of US undergraduates into the skilled technical workforce (STW), defined here as workers in a collection of occupations that require significant levels of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) knowledge but not necessarily a bachelor’s degree for entry. Thus far, empirical research on the STW has been limited by a dearth of data; however, based on newly available data from BPS:12/17, the findings in this report indicate that STW employment provides workers with above-median salaries, more equitable wages, a variety of benefits, and clear career paths. STW jobs attract diverse populations, especially those from underrepresented groups (e.g., Hispanics, individuals from low-income backgrounds, and those whose parents do not have college education). US community colleges and sub-baccalaureate programs play a large role in developing the STW.

scholarly journals Do Career-Engaging Courses Engage Low-Income Students?

AERA Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233285842110533
Author(s):  
Jay Stratte Plasman ◽  
Michael A. Gottfried ◽  
Daniel J. Klasik
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Low Income ◽  
School Engagement ◽  
Low Income Students ◽  
School Students ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Career And Technical ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Do So

Encouraging school engagement is crucial to promoting positive outcomes for high school students. One potential means to promote school engagement may be through career and technical education (CTE) coursework, which is specifically designed to be educationally engaging, particularly for vulnerable populations such as those from low-income backgrounds. Yet, little is known about whether these courses do in fact link to higher school engagement. Through analysis of the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009—a nationally representative data set—we explored the link between STEM-focused CTE (STEM-CTE) coursetaking and school engagement for low-income students. To do so, we employed an instrumental variable estimation technique and found that taking STEM-CTE courses related to higher school engagement for low-income students. We conclude with a discussion of implications for students, practitioners, and policymakers.

scholarly journals SMART Money: Do Financial Incentives Encourage College Students to Study Science?

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 342-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brent J. Evans
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Financial Incentives ◽  
Financial Incentive ◽  
Pell Grant ◽  
Low Income Students ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Stem Majors ◽  
Smart Money ◽  
Null Result ◽  
And Mathematics

Increasing the number of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees is a major federal education priority. I investigate whether providing a $4,000 financial incentive to low-income students in their junior and senior years of college induces them to major in a STEM field. Using administrative data from Ohio public colleges, I exploit a discontinuity in income eligibility for the National SMART Grant on the pursuit of science majors. Regression discontinuity results indicate financial incentives do not encourage students at the threshold of eligibility to choose STEM majors in their junior year. The null findings are fairly precise, ruling out modest, policy relevant effects for students near the Pell Grant eligibility threshold. I examine several potential explanations of this null result and argue that federal policy makers could improve the design of the program by creating the financial incentive earlier in students’ educational careers.

scholarly journals Gestational weight gain in low-income and middle-income countries: a modelling analysis using nationally representative data

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (11) ◽  
pp. e003423
Author(s):  
Dongqing Wang ◽  
Molin Wang ◽  
Anne Marie Darling ◽  
Nandita Perumal ◽  
Enju Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Weight Gain ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Gestational Weight ◽  
Latin America And Caribbean ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Sub Saharan

IntroductionGestational weight gain (GWG) has important implications for maternal and child health and is an ideal modifiable factor for preconceptional and antenatal care. However, the average levels of GWG across all low-income and middle-income countries of the world have not been characterised using nationally representative data.MethodsGWG estimates across time were computed using data from the Demographic and Health Surveys Program. A hierarchical model was developed to estimate the mean total GWG in the year 2015 for all countries to facilitate cross-country comparison. Year and country-level covariates were used as predictors, and variable selection was guided by the model fit. The final model included year (restricted cubic splines), geographical super-region (as defined by the Global Burden of Disease Study), mean adult female body mass index, gross domestic product per capita and total fertility rate. Uncertainty ranges (URs) were generated using non-parametric bootstrapping and a multiple imputation approach. Estimates were also computed for each super-region and region.ResultsLatin America and Caribbean (11.80 kg (95% UR: 6.18, 17.41)) and Central Europe, Eastern Europe and Central Asia (11.19 kg (95% UR: 6.16, 16.21)) were the super-regions with the highest GWG estimates in 2015. Sub-Saharan Africa (6.64 kg (95% UR: 3.39, 9.88)) and North Africa and Middle East (6.80 kg (95% UR: 3.17, 10.43)) were the super-regions with the lowest estimates in 2015. With the exception of Latin America and Caribbean, all super-regions were below the minimum GWG recommendation for normal-weight women, with Sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa and Middle East estimated to meet less than 60% of the minimum recommendation.ConclusionThe levels of GWG are inadequate in most low-income and middle-income countries and regions. Longitudinal monitoring systems and population-based interventions are crucial to combat inadequate GWG in low-income and middle-income countries.

scholarly journals The Potential of Advanced Placement to Improve College Outcomes and Narrow Racial/Ethnic and Socioeconomic Disparities

2021 ◽  
pp. 1932202X2110186
Author(s):  
Sarah Fierberg Phillips ◽  
Brett Lane
Keyword(s):  
Advanced Placement ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Latino Students ◽  
Socioeconomic Disparities ◽  
Low Income Students ◽  
College Outcomes ◽  
Highly Educated ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Racial Ethnic ◽  
Better Than

The U.S. economy requires a highly educated workforce, yet too few black, Latino, and low-income students attend, persist, and graduate from college. The present study examines the college outcomes of participants in a model Advanced Placement® (AP) intervention to shed light on its effectiveness and determine whether improving AP participation and performance is a promising strategy for closing persistent racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in college outcomes. Findings suggest the college outcomes of program participants are better than those of similar students statewide while also highlighting variation within and across subgroups. At the same time, they confirm that AP participation and performance predict college outcomes and suggest that improving AP participation and performance among low-income white, black, and Latino students could be a useful strategy for closing persistent racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in college outcomes.

Equitable Access, Locale, Funding, and the Alignment to Performance Ratings in Texas Gifted Programs

2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-30
Author(s):  
Jaret Hodges ◽  
Kacey Crutchfield ◽  
Lindsay Ellis Lee
Keyword(s):  
Program Evaluation ◽  
Hispanic Students ◽  
Proportional Representation ◽  
Performance Ratings ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Gifted Children ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Gifted Program ◽  
Self Assessments ◽  
Talented Students

Self-assessments utilizing designated, objective standards are critical in program evaluation. Although 2013–2014 Texas policy mandated districts self-assess their gifted programs using the community and student engagement performance rating system, little is known about how districts determined their self-assessment ratings. Following gifted program evaluation guidelines from the Texas State Plan for Gifted/Talented Students and the National Association for Gifted Children Pre-K–Grade 12 Gifted Programming Standards, researchers used logistic ordered regression to examine Texas districts’ 2014–2015 locale, proportional representation, and budgetary allotments in relation to gifted program self-assessed performance ratings. Results indicate proportional representation of Black and Hispanic students in gifted programs did not influence school district self-assessed ratings. On the contrary, locale, proportion of Black and Hispanic students to the overall district population, and budget allocation did relate to self-assessed ratings of gifted programs. Future research directions and implications for the use of self-assessments within gifted program evaluation are discussed.

Pricing Out the Disadvantaged? The Effect of Tuition Deregulation in Texas Public Four-Year Institutions

2014 ◽  
Vol 655 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stella M. Flores ◽  
Justin C. Shepherd
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
College Enrollment ◽  
Hispanic Students ◽  
State Legislature ◽  
Pell Grant ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Low Income Students ◽  
Difference In Differences ◽  
Four Year Institutions ◽  
Tuition Deregulation

This article examines whether tuition deregulation in Texas (in 2003 the state legislature gave tuition-setting authority to institutional governing boards) has affected the college enrollment of underrepresented and low-income students. Using a difference-in-differences research design, we find that Hispanic students have been most negatively affected by tuition deregulation. Results for black students are largely mixed, in that we find an increase in college enrollment after deregulation in some specifications, while Pell Grant recipients, incoming and returning, appear to have experienced an increase in college enrollment following deregulation. Implications and recommendations for state governments considering this contentious legislation are provided.

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