Journal article
Measuring middle school achievement trajectories for college readiness
2021
Educational Policy https://doi.org/10.1177/08959048211006833
By: Angela Johnson, Megan Kuhfeld, Greg King

Abstract
This study identifies studentsā academic trajectories in the middle grades relative to a set of college readiness benchmarks. We apply math and reading college readiness benchmarks to rich longitudinal data for more than 360,000 students across the nation. Student-level and school-level demographic characteristics significantly predict academic trajectories. Compared to White and Asian students, higher proportions of Black and Hispanic student are always off-track throughout middle school. Among students who started 6th grade on track, being male, Black, Hispanic, and attending schools with a higher percentage of low-income students are positively associated with falling off track.
See MoreThis article was published outside of NWEA. The full text can be found at the link above.
Topics: Equity, College & career readiness, Middle school
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