- The number of tracks in schools apparently is not determined by differences in the population distributions across schools.
- Although the size of tracks in these schools appears to be sensitive to the ability distribution of the student population, it is more heavily influenced by organizational factors that are independent of characteristics of the students’ achievement distribution.
- The organizational constraints that create across-track differences in homogeneity are a source of unequal learning opportunities.
- Another consequence of the influence of organizational factors on the tracks structure is that students at the same track level differ in ability across schools.
- Organizational effects no the track structure make mobility across tracks difficult.
- A relationship between organizational factors and track structure results in differences both within and across schools in the relevant characteristics of tracks, in the likelihood of students being assigned to a given track, and in the permanence of the track assignments.
- The strongest background influence on placement was SES.
- Older students were more likely to be assigned to lower tracks and girls in the largest school district were more likely to be assigned to lower English tracks.
- If lower tracks are associated with fewer learning opportunities, then poorer students, older students, and girls are disadvantaged by tracking. This disadvantage becomes exacerbated over time as students actually fall behind their peers, but because they have been deprived of equal opportunities to learn.