Mixing It Up: How Detracking Affects Students' Academic Self-Concept

• In Event: Self-Concept and Self-Efficacy

Abstract

Detracking, the abolishment of ability grouping, is hotly debated. Its proponents argue the reform to increase low achievers’ academic self-concept due to the elimination of the low track membership stigma. However, it has also be shown that equally able students have lower self-concept in high achieving classrooms, the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE). As detraking raises class-average achievement for low achievers, the BFLPE predicts such a reform to decrease these students’ academic self-concept due to unfavorable social comparisons. We evaluated both hypotheses using data from Austria’s educational standard assessment which tested N = 91,102 students before and after detracking. In line with BFLPE theory, we found the reform to more negatively affect the self-concept of low achievers as opposed to high achievers.

Authors

• Moritz Fleischmann, University of Tübingen, Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology

• Nicolas Huebner

• Benjamin Nagengast, University of Tübingen

• Ulrich Trautwein, University of Tubingen