2010 - School Composition and Contextual Effects on Student Outcomes

Attribution: Willms, Douglas
Researchers: Douglas WillmsJ. Douglas Willms
University Affiliation: University of New Brunswick
Email: willms@unb.ca
Research Question:
This study examines the relationships among school composition, several aspects of school and classroom context, and students’ literacy skills in science.
Published: Yes
Journal Name or Institutional Affiliation: Teacher College RecordTeachers College Record
Journal Entry: Vol. 112, No. 4, pp. 1008-1037
Year: 2010
Findings:

– In every country, there is a significant relationship between science performance and SES.
– In many school systems, the inequality in schooling outcomes associated with SES is entrenched in the mechanisms through which students are allocated to schools, including residential segregation, private schooling, special programs in the public sector, and selective tracks that channel students into different schools based on their prior achievement or ability.
– An understanding of the nature of socioeconomic gradients and the role of school composition is central to discussions about educational quality, equality, and equity.

Scholarship Types: Journal Article Reporting Empirical ResearchKeywords: InternationalSchool CompositionScienceSES CompositionSocioeconomic StatusRegions: InternationalMethodologies: QuantitativeResearch Designs: Secondary Survey DataAnalysis Methods: Hierarchical Linear Modeling Sampling Frame:15-year-old students in 57 countries
Sampling Types: Nationally RepresentativeAnalysis Units: CountrySchoolStudentData Types: Quantitative-Cross Sectional
Data Description:

The study uses data from the 2006 PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) for 57 countries.

DV: The outcome measure in the analyses is students’ performance in science literacy.

IV: Quality of instruction, Instruction is relevant, Instruction is interesting, Curriculum coverage, Science time, School resources, SES, School mean SES. (All contextual factors were scaled on a 10-point scale, with higher scores indicating a positive response.

Theoretical Framework:
Relevance:Factors Related to STEM Readiness
Archives: K-12 Integration, Desegregation, and Segregation AbstractsK-16 STEM Abstracts