The Role of Science Course Pathways in Shaping College Enrollment: Insight From an Urban District

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 9:50 am Four Seasons Ballroom 4
  In Roundtable Session: Trends and (In)Equities in Science Education and Course Pathways (Table 11)

Abstract

Students who enroll in college immediately after high school are more likely to persist and on-time enrollment is particularly important for students pursuing STEM majors. However, wide variation in science courses in which high schools enroll students may introduce unnoticed forms of tracking out of college-going tracks. The study develops an updated approach to mapping science course-taking by encoding the pathways of science courses in which students are enrolled and test their predictability for college enrollment. The finding that science course pathways account for far more of the variance in on-time college enrollment than school and student characteristics and taking a full core science pathway predicts college enrollment demonstrate the significance of careful planning of students’ science curricular pathways.

Authors

• Vandeen Campbell, Rutgers University - Newark

• Jiwon Hwang, California State University - Los Angeles

• Jessica Zulawski-Riccio, Rutgers University - Newark