Blogs

By Thomas Torre Gibney

When it comes to designing equitable college and career readiness policies, context matters. From decades of research on inequalities in schooling, we know that students’ educational trajectories are not solely a function of individual choices. They are shaped by the classroom, school, and neighborhood conditions in which students learn. Yet, today’s students learn within highly stratified educational systems, in which racial and economic segregation is on the rise and access to rigorous curricula, high-quality postsecondary pathways, and prosperous careers remains out of reach for many. This stratification of opportunity begins early and compounds as students progress through their educational journeys. The practice of tracking students into different classes and course sequences based on their perceived abilities, for instance, can influence their subsequent access to advanced coursework, their college-going behaviors, and the types of jobs available to them.

By Kathy Booth

The COVID-19 pandemic upended education in numerous ways, making clear that issues ranging from daily attendance to college-going rates are deeply impacted by public health and economic factors. Many interest holders, including school administrators, policymakers, and community organizations, are seeking access to holistic information that could reduce barriers to educational attainment and illuminate widening equity gaps. This push for data corresponds with advances in technology that make it possible to share, combine, and store information in ways that are faster, more flexible, and secure. As a result, some states are now contemplating how to modernize their longitudinal data systems.

By Kathy Booth

Across the country, a narrative is growing that completing college isn’t necessary and that a couple of well-chosen courses can lead to jobs with strong wages. This story is gaining traction, despite decades of research that shows earning a bachelor’s degree yields stronger earnings over the course of a lifetime. One reason it may resonate is that a significant number of students do take one or two community college courses and net meaningful earning gains. However, new research from the University of Michigan shows that these “skills builder” students rarely increase their salaries enough to move up an economic rung.