Half of kindergarten teachers split children into higher and lower ability groups for reading or math. In national data, we predicted kindergarten ability group placement using linear and ordinal logistic regression with classroom fixed effects. In fall, test scores were the best predictors of group placement, but there was bias favoring girls,…

Prior research has shown that English learner (EL) classification is consequential for students; however, less is known about how EL classification affects student outcomes. In this study, we examine one hypothesized mechanism: teacher perceptions. Using a national data set (Early Childhood Longitudinal Study--Kindergarten Cohort of 2010-2011 or…

This article explores how the associations between student achievement and achievement growth influence our understanding of the role schools play in academic inequality. Using nationally representative data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011 (ECLS-K:2011), we constructed parallel growth and lagged score…

Policymakers have advocated academic skills building at kindergarten as a way of improving student achievement. However, early childhood educators have concerns with this policy as gains in achievement may come at the expense of children's social-emotional skills. Using a nationally representative data set of kindergartners, we find that advanced…

This study examined the relationships among school support, parental school involvement, and academic and social-emotional outcomes for children who are English language learners (ELLs). The sample included 1,020 third-grade ELLs who participated in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS-K). Results from structural equation modeling showed…

Using longitudinal data on a nationally representative U.S. cohort, this study examined the roles of language minority (LM) status and English proficiency in English reading growth across the elementary and middle school years. Piecewise growth modeling was used to compare English reading growth trajectories for native English speakers and LM…

Using K-8 national longitudinal data, the authors investigate males' and females' achievement in math and reading, including when gender gaps first appear, whether the appearance of gaps depends on the metric used, and where on the achievement distribution gaps are most prevalent. Additionally, teachers' assessments of males and females are…

This study attempted to untangle how two dimensions of school racial/ethnic composition--racial/ethnic diversity of the student body and racial/ethnic matching between children and their peers--were related to socioemotional and academic development after the transition into elementary school. Analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal…

Working from a core perspective on the developmental implications of economic disadvantage, this study attempted to identify "family-based" mechanisms of economic effects on early learning and their potential "school-based" remedies. Multilevel analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort revealed that…

A latent growth model was used to investigate the longer term efficacy of phonics and integrated language arts instruction as well as amount of such instruction on children's reading development, using the nationally representative Early Childhood Longitudinal Study data set (kindergarten through fifth grade). Type and amount of instruction were…

This article describes the developmental patterns of Hispanic-White math and reading achievement gaps in elementary school, paying attention to variation in these patterns among Hispanic subgroups. Compared to non-Hispanic White students, Hispanic students enter kindergarten with much lower average math and reading skills. The gaps narrow by…