1
|
Muskens M, Frankenhuis WE, Borghans L. Math items about real-world content lower test-scores of students from families with low socioeconomic status. NPJ Sci Learn 2024; 9:19. [PMID: 38491021 PMCID: PMC10943209 DOI: 10.1038/s41539-024-00228-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/18/2024]
Abstract
In many countries, standardized math tests are important for achieving academic success. Here, we examine whether content of items, the story that explains a mathematical question, biases performance of low-SES students. In a large-scale cohort study of Trends in International Mathematics and Science Studies (TIMSS)-including data from 58 countries from students in grades 4 and 8 (N = 5501,165)-we examine whether item content that is more likely related to challenges for low-SES students (money, food, social relationships) improves their performance, compared with their average math performance. Results show that low-SES students scored lower on items with this specific content than expected based on an individual's average performance. The effect sizes are substantial: on average, the chance to answer correctly is 18% lower. From a hidden talents approach, these results are unexpected. However, they align with other theoretical frameworks such as scarcity mindset, providing new insights for fair testing.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marjolein Muskens
- School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University & KBA Nijmegen, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
| | - Willem E Frankenhuis
- Evolutionary and Population Biology, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands & Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, Netherlands & Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law, Germany, Security and Law, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Lex Borghans
- School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Silverman DM, Hulleman CS, Tibbetts Y. Identifying the psychological mechanisms of utility-value activities to inform educational research and practice. Br J Educ Psychol 2023; 93:960-977. [PMID: 37248208 DOI: 10.1111/bjep.12614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2022] [Revised: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 05/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Utility-value interventions have been shown to promote students' achievement and motivation in mathematics through encouraging them to identify connections between course content and their real lives. To extend the benefits of these interventions, additional research is necessary to test their efficacy in diverse high school contexts, as well as investigate the psychological mechanisms through which they benefit students. AIMS To inform efforts within broader learning contexts to develop activities and messages based on utility-value interventions that effectively target the psychological mechanisms that support student learning. SAMPLES Study 1 (N = 375) and Study 2 (N = 2894) include racially and socioeconomically diverse samples of students enrolled in mathematics courses across four high schools in the United States. METHODS We conducted two randomized field experiments to test the effects of brief utility-value activities on students' motivation. Using multi-level path analyses, we then investigated the mechanisms through which utility-value activities bolster students' interest and achievement in mathematics. RESULTS In pre-registered analyses, we found that the utility-value activities promoted students' perceived value of mathematics, as well as their novel engagement and sense of social identity congruence with mathematics. In turn, these outcomes mediated the indirect effects of the activities on students' grades and interest in mathematics. CONCLUSIONS Our results underscore the potential of utility-value activities to promote students' success. Based on our mediation findings, we also provide a roadmap for how learning contexts can develop activities and messages that effectively target key processes to advance student success.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- David M Silverman
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Chris S Hulleman
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
| | - Yoi Tibbetts
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Walton GM, Murphy MC, Logel C, Yeager DS, Goyer JP, Brady ST, Emerson KTU, Paunesku D, Fotuhi O, Blodorn A, Boucher KL, Carter ER, Gopalan M, Henderson A, Kroeper KM, Murdock-Perriera LA, Reeves SL, Ablorh TT, Ansari S, Chen S, Fisher P, Galvan M, Gilbertson MK, Hulleman CS, Le Forestier JM, Lok C, Mathias K, Muragishi GA, Netter M, Ozier E, Smith EN, Thoman DB, Williams HE, Wilmot MO, Hartzog C, Li XA, Krol N. Where and with whom does a brief social-belonging intervention promote progress in college? Science 2023; 380:499-505. [PMID: 37141344 DOI: 10.1126/science.ade4420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
A promising way to mitigate inequality is by addressing students' worries about belonging. But where and with whom is this social-belonging intervention effective? Here we report a team-science randomized controlled experiment with 26,911 students at 22 diverse institutions. Results showed that the social-belonging intervention, administered online before college (in under 30 minutes), increased the rate at which students completed the first year as full-time students, especially among students in groups that had historically progressed at lower rates. The college context also mattered: The intervention was effective only when students' groups were afforded opportunities to belong. This study develops methods for understanding how student identities and contexts interact with interventions. It also shows that a low-cost, scalable intervention generalizes its effects to 749 4-year institutions in the United States.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gregory M Walton
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Mary C Murphy
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Christine Logel
- Department of Social Development Studies, Renison University College, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada
| | - David S Yeager
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - J Parker Goyer
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Shannon T Brady
- Department of Psychology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Katherine T U Emerson
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - David Paunesku
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- The Project for Education Research that Scales (PERTS), San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Omid Fotuhi
- Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Alison Blodorn
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Kathryn L Boucher
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | | | - Maithreyi Gopalan
- Department of Education Policy Studies, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA
| | - Amy Henderson
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Kathryn M Kroeper
- Department of Psychology, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT, USA
| | | | | | - Tsotso T Ablorh
- Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Shahana Ansari
- Department of Psychology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | | | - Peter Fisher
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Manuel Galvan
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | | | - Chris S Hulleman
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | | | - Christopher Lok
- Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada
| | - Katie Mathias
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Gregg A Muragishi
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Melanie Netter
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Elise Ozier
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Eric N Smith
- Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Dustin B Thoman
- Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Heidi E Williams
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Matthew O Wilmot
- Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Cassie Hartzog
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - X Alice Li
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Natasha Krol
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Silverman DM, Rosario RJ, Wormington SV, Tibbetts Y, Hulleman CS, Destin M. Race, academic achievement and the issue of inequitable motivational payoff. Nat Hum Behav 2023; 7:515-528. [PMID: 36823370 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-023-01533-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023]
Abstract
As racial inequities continue to pervade school systems around the world, further research is necessary to understand the factors undergirding this pressing issue. Here across three studies conducted in the United States (N = 8,293), we provide evidence that race-based differences in student achievement do not stem from a lack of motivation among Black, Latinx and Indigenous (BLI) students, but a lack of equitable motivational payoff. Even when BLI and non-BLI students have the same levels of motivation, BLI students still receive maths grades that are an average of 9% lower than those of their non-BLI peers (95% confidence interval 7 to 11%). This pattern was not explained by differences in students' aptitude, effort or prior achievement but was instead linked to teachers' diminished expectations for their BLI students' academic futures. We conclude by discussing statistical power limitations and the implications of the current findings for how researchers consider the sources of, and solutions for, educational inequity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- David M Silverman
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
| | - R Josiah Rosario
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | | | - Yoi Tibbetts
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Chris S Hulleman
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Mesmin Destin
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.,School of Education & Social Policy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.,Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Hernandez IA, Silverman DM, Rosario RJ, Destin M. Concern about experiencing downward socioeconomic mobility generates precarious types of motivation among students of color. Soc Psychol Educ 2023; 26:1-32. [PMID: 36743269 PMCID: PMC9885402 DOI: 10.1007/s11218-023-09763-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Students' beliefs about whether they will experience changes in their socioeconomic status influence their academic motivation. We propose that students who are concerned about downward socioeconomic mobility will focus their attention on negative academic outcomes and exhibit motivational goals oriented towards preventing negative possibilities and that this relationship will be particularly pronounced among students of color. Two studies investigated the relationship between college students' concerns about downward socioeconomic mobility and their adoption of academic achievement goals. The more that students of color expressed concerns about experiencing downward socioeconomic mobility, the more they adopted academic mastery-avoidance goals (β = 0.76), whereas there was no significant relationship between concerns about downward socioeconomic mobility and mastery-avoidance goals among White students (β = - 0.24; Study 1). Experimentally induced concerns about downward socioeconomic mobility increased academic mastery-avoidance goals among students of color (β = - 0.58) but decreased mastery-avoidance goals among White students (β = 0.46; Study 2). Together, results indicate that there is a strong relationship between concerns about downward socioeconomic mobility and mastery-avoidance goals among students of color, highlighting the importance of understating how students of color make sense of their future socioeconomic prospects in order to most effectively support their academic trajectories positively. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11218-023-09763-5.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ivan A. Hernandez
- San Diego State University, 6475 Alvarado Rd., Suite 135, San Diego, CA 92120 USA
| | | | | | - Mesmin Destin
- Department of Psychology, School of Education & Social Policy, Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL USA
| |
Collapse
|