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Disadvantaged Students

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Disadvantaged students are those whose family, social, or economic circumstances hinder their ability to learn at school. RAND conducts research on after-school programs and other out-of-school time issues, the effects on students of natural disasters, and other factors that contribute to educational disparities.

Report

Has COVID-19 Led to Divergent and Inequitable Pathways in Education?

May 27, 2021

Remote schooling is associated with fewer instructional opportunities and potentially poorer student outcomes compared with in-person schooling. Nevertheless, many schools will continue to offer a remote option after the pandemic has passed.
Commentary

Making Preschool Investments Count Through the American Families Plan

Jun 3, 2021

The American Families Plan would address disparities in preschool access by adding $200 billion for high-quality preschool for all three- and four-year-olds. How can we make sure that this historic investment, if approved by Congress, counts?

Explore Disadvantaged Students

Research Brief

Six Skills for Success: How the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program Can Support Participants in Developing Portable Skills Employers Value

The authors of this research identify a set of common skills among high-paying, growing occupations that do not require a bachelor's degree for possible incorporation into the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program curriculum.

Jun 30, 2022
Report

Developing Outcome Measures for the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program

The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe is a residential program for youth experiencing difficulties in traditional high school. This capstone report describes some of RAND's research and analyses on the ChalleNGe program from late 2017 through mid-2020.

Mar 2, 2022
Report

What Are the Skills Required to Obtain a Good Job? An Analysis of Labor Markets, Occupational Features, and Skill Training for the Youth ChalleNGe Program

The authors of this report identify a set of common skills among high-paying, growing occupations that do not require a bachelor's degree and describe how to incorporate such broader skills into the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program curriculum.

Feb 4, 2022
Report

Evaluation of Delaware's Opportunity Funding and Student Success Block Grant Programs: Second Year

This is the second of three annual reports evaluating the implementation and effects of two Delaware funding programs for disadvantaged K–12 schools in the 2019–2020 to 2021–2022 school years: Opportunity Funding and the Student Success Block Grant.

Jan 27, 2022
Report

Changes in School Composition During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications for School-Average Interim Test Score Use

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has exacerbated concerns about using school-aggregate test scores to monitor school performance. In this report, researchers investigate how changes to school composition may contaminate aggregate scores.

Jan 19, 2022
Report

Summer for All: Building Coordinated Networks to Promote Access to Quality Summer Learning and Enrichment Opportunities Across a Community

In this eighth report in RAND's Summer Learning Series, the authors chronicle early efforts in four communities to create coordinated approaches to summer programming, noting their challenges, enablers, and early outcomes.

Nov 10, 2021
Report

Expanding Charter School Capacity: The Case of Propel Montour

Researchers examine the expansion of Propel Schools, a small, regional charter school network in southwestern Pennsylvania, to describe the academic and behavioral experiences of continuing and expansion students from fall 2017 to spring 2020.

Sep 29, 2021
Journal Article

Benefits of Extracurricular Activities for Children: A Focus on Social Inclusion and Children from Disadvantaged and Vulnerable Backgrounds

This research note summarises the existing evidence on the benefits of extracurricular activities, how they can be used to support social inclusion, and how access for disadvantaged children can be improved.

Jun 9, 2021
Commentary

Commit Now to Get Summer Programming Right

When summer programs are targeted to needs, intentionally designed, and well attended, they produce positive outcomes in math and reading. But these programs need federal support, and they require early planning.

Apr 15, 2021
Report

Getting to Work on Summer Learning: Recommended Practices for Success, 2nd Ed. — Executive Summary

The authors distill lessons about implementing and improving summer learning programs gleaned from a six-year study in the five urban districts participating in the National Summer Learning Project.

Mar 25, 2021
Research Brief

How Does Corequisite Remediation Change Student Experiences? Results from a Randomized Study in Five Texas Community Colleges

Corequisite remediation for non–college-ready students provides early opportunities to earn credit, more-intensive instruction, greater rigor, greater alignment, and increased opportunities to learn from peers.

Mar 24, 2021
Report

Student Experiences in English Corequisite Remediation Versus a Standalone Developmental Education Course: Findings from an Experimental Study in Texas Community Colleges

In this report, researchers use data from a randomized control trial at five community colleges in Texas to examine contrasts in student experiences between corequisite remediation and standalone developmental education courses.

Mar 24, 2021
Report

Evaluation of Delaware's Opportunity Funding and Student Success Block Grant Programs: Early Implementation

The authors examine the 2019-2020 implementation of two newly expanded Delaware weighted education funding programs, the Opportunity Fund and Student Success Block Grant, and emerging best practices, as reported by local education agency leaders.

Jan 21, 2021
Report

Building and Sustaining Innovative High Schools: Findings from the Opportunity by Design Study

The Opportunity by Design initiative gave support to small schools of choice to adopt a set of design principles intended to prepare students for college and careers. This final report describes the methods and findings of the five-year study.

Dec 17, 2020
Research Brief

Designing and Sustaining Innovative High Schools: Successes, Challenges, and Student Outcomes

In a five-year study, high schools adopted a set of design principles intended to prepare students for college and careers.

Dec 17, 2020
Report

Every Summer Counts: A Longitudinal Analysis of Outcomes from the National Summer Learning Project

This seventh report in a series presents longitudinal findings on the effectiveness of voluntary summer learning programs in five school districts. The authors also offer implications for policy on narrowing the achievement gap between students.

Dec 17, 2020
Report

Benchmarks for Success: Expected Short- and Long-Term Outcomes of National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Participants

National Guard Youth ChalleNGe is a residential intervention program to help teens who have dropped out of high school. Sites can compare the outcomes of their cadets with this set of population benchmarks derived from public datasets.

Dec 10, 2020
Essay

How Schools Adjusted to Life Under COVID-19

In spring 2020, nearly every school in America had to figure out how to make distance learning work. Some handed out thick packets of homework for students to do on their own. Others handed out laptops. Most principals agree that better planning for future closures should be a priority.

Nov 2, 2020
Journal Article

When Financial Aid Is Scarce: The Challenge of Allocating College Aid Where It Is Needed Most

This study estimates the effects of the Wisconsin Grant, a state-funded, need-based financial aid program for Wisconsin residents attending in-state colleges and universities.

Oct 9, 2020

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RAND Topic:
Disadvantaged Students

Research conducted by

RAND Education and Labor