Self-efficacy has been linked to academic performance, motivation, and progression within engineering degree programs. Such associations are context specific, and an understanding of sources of self-efficacy is paramount to guiding policy and practice enhancements. We sought to understand the self-efficacy beliefs held by 1st year engineering…

The anatomy lab has traditionally been a cornerstone of medical education, combining technical skill acquisition with professional identity formation. However, a predominant focus on academic performance, coupled with the intensity of this experience, has raised concerns about learner burnout and diminished humanistic development of students. To…

We evaluate the effects of grade retention on students' academic, attendance, and disciplinary outcomes in Indiana. Using a regression discontinuity design, we show that third-grade retention increases achievement in English Language Arts (ELA) and math immediately and substantially, and the effects persist into middle school. We find no evidence…

This manuscript style dissertation investigates the impact of a brief positive psychology group intervention on both wellbeing and academic achievement among adolescents. Two experimental research studies were conducted to address this. Participants from a local high school engaged in a brief small group positive psychology intervention in both…

Extracurricular programs offered in the K-5 school setting are places in which students can affirm their sense of belonging and make developmental, social, and academic progress. This study examines students' participation in one or more of thirteen extracurricular programs offered at a Southern California elementary school; the year in which the…

This Practice to Policy brief, based on insights from UnidosUS's Affiliate Network of community-based organizations and public charter schools in Illinois, Florida, Texas, Arizona, and California, highlights the critical role of Out-of-School Time (OST) programs in supporting the Latino community, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19…

Homelessness is rising among public school students in large cities across the US. Using nine years of student-level administrative data, we examine how homelessness affects students' mathematics and attendance outcomes within the Los Angeles Unified School District, including the differential effects of homelessness based on duration and timing…

This dissertation studies different social factors that affect students' cognitive, non-cognitive skills, and behaviors. The first chapter provides evidence on the immediate effects of exposure to violent crimes on academic performance and externalizing behaviors among high school students. I find that exposure to violent crimes decreases PSAT,…

This study addressed the need expressed by education stakeholders in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to better understand their high school students' social-emotional competencies and how those competencies might be associated with students' academic and behavioral outcomes in high school and college. Social-emotional competencies…

This Study Brief highlights key findings from a study that addresses the need expressed by the education stakeholders in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to better understand their high school students' social-emotional competencies and how those competencies might be associated with students' academic and behavioral outcomes in…

The "Associations between High School Students' Social-Emotional Competencies and Their High School and College Academic and Behavioral Outcomes in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands" study addressed the need expressed by education stakeholders in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to better understand their…

This Study Snapshot highlights key findings from a study on the associations between high school students' self-reported social-emotional competencies and students' high school and college academic and behavioral outcomes in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). In May 2019 grade 11 and 12 students in public high schools in the…

Prior work has shown that students' reports of their levels of social-emotional skills predict achievement levels and gains, but we have little evidence on whether within-student changes in student reports of social-emotional skills are predictive of changes in theoretically related academic and behavioral outcomes. We use large-scale data from…

Prior work has shown that levels of self-reported student social-emotional learning (SEL) predict student achievement levels--as well as student achievement gains--but little has been done to understand if within-student changes in student reports of SEL are predictive of changes in theoretically related academic and behavioral outcomes. We use…

This research brief summarizes key points from a technical report (published separately), examining analyses of the influence of SEL on student-level outcomes since the implementation of SEL in AISD in 2010-2011. [For the technical report, see ED629324.]