Do the Rich Always Get Richer? A Group-Based Analysis of Students' Growth Patterns in Reading Achievement

• In Event: Poster Session 17
  In Poster Session: Division L Graduate Student Poster Session

Abstract

Educational researchers have long been concerned with processes in which the advantages or disadvantages of particular groups accumulate over time. This study investigates the development of social disparities by measuring students’ rank-order stability in reading achievement from kindergarten to eighth grade. Considering a nationally representative sample (the ECLS-K cohort) of more than 10,000 students, we use a group-based modelling approach to identify groups of individuals who follow similar developmental trajectories. Contrary to the Matthew effect hypothesis, we found that while 43% of the students reveal a high rank-order stability, the remaining students demonstrate some rank-order mobility. At the same time, preliminary results suggest that ethnicity and socioeconomic status are factors explaining rank-order mobility.

Authors

• Rafael Quintana, University of Pittsburgh

• Richard James Correnti, University of Pittsburgh