Effects of Attending a Deeper Learning Network High School on College Experiences and Degree Attainment

• In Event: Deeper Learning in High Schools: Longer-Term Effects on Students' College, Civic Engagement, and Workforce Outcomes

Abstract

Introduction
A schoolwide focus on deeper learning (DL) is theorized to equip students with the skills they will need to succeed in college. For this study, we estimate the impact of attending a DL network high school on college experiences and degree attainment between 5 and 6 years after expected high school graduation. We asked the following research questions:
1. Are students who attended a DL network high school more likely to obtain a college degree?
2. Are students who attended a DL network high school better prepared for college?
Data and Methods
The sample includes a set of 11 DL network high schools and their matched comparison high schools. The schools in each matched pair were located in the same geographic area and had similar incoming student populations based on student demographics and prior achievement. Starting in summer 2019, the study team administered a survey to 2,329 original study participants who entered Grade 9 between 2009-10 and 2010-11, achieving an overall response rate of 27.2%. Among survey respondents, 92.8% of 250 DL network school students and 91.5% of 383 comparison school students reported attending college, a non-significant difference between groups. Analyses of college outcomes are limited to respondents who reported attending college. The study team will collect degree completion data from the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) in winter 2020 to capture degree completion within 6 years after expected high school graduation for the original sample of study participants. Analyses of these data will be completed prior to the annual meeting.
Using Grade 8 demographic and achievement characteristics, we calculated (1) propensity scores which estimate, within each school pair, students’ probability of enrolling in the DL network school and (2) a survey response weight. We estimated weighted two-level hierarchical linear models (with students nested within school pairs and treatment status measured at the student level) to estimate impacts of attending DL network high schools on degree attainment and college experiences (e.g., developmental course-taking). The survey weight applied to statistical analyses is equal to the product of the propensity score weight and the survey response weight. Models also controlled for student background characteristics.
Results
As illustrated in Exhibit 2 (see Appendix), attending a DL network school did not significantly impact reported bachelor’s degree attainment; however, students who attended DL network schools were more likely to obtain an associate’s degree or certificate by about 9 percentage points, a marginally significant difference. Network school students also were significantly more likely to report that their high school prepared them “some” or “a lot” for the first year of college by almost 17 percentage points. However, they were also more likely to report taking a remedial or developmental course by about 19 percentage points.
Significance
While many differences did not achieve statistical significance, preliminary findings suggest potentially positive impacts on college outcomes. It is possible that analyses of NSC data may reveal significant impacts, as these analyses will include all incoming Grade 9 students in participating cohorts and schools.

Author

• Kristina Lillian Zeiser, American Institutes for Research