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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

One-Stop Social Services Efforts May Improve Community College Outcomes

Nov 30, 2016

Students participating in programs that provide a comprehensive range of support services are more likely to persist in attending community college.
Research Brief

The Promise of Community Schools

Jan 28, 2020

The New York City Community Schools Initiative is based on a holistic strategy of education reform. Academics, health and wellness, youth development, and family engagement are integrated into each school. This approach had positive effects on most of the examined student outcomes.

Explore Disadvantaged Students

Journal Article

Journal Article

Can Broad Inferences Be Drawn from Lottery Analyses of School Choice Programs? An Exploration of Appropriate Sensitivity Analyses

Researchers can use sensitivity analyses to evaluate whether they, or stakeholders, should be careful in extending their findings on school choice programs to populations or locations beyond those studied.

Apr 1, 2016
Commentary

Battered by War, Syrian Refugee Kids Need to Be Taught

More than 700,000 Syrian refugee children are not receiving formal education. Host countries are struggling to create enough spaces to accommodate them in schools, and there are no formal programs to teach children who have missed years of instruction.

Jan 15, 2016
Research Brief

Research Brief

A Costly Divide: The Economic Impact of Gaps in Student Performance in Pennsylvania

Analysis of Pennsylvania public school student performance showed significant achievement gaps for subgroups defined by race-ethnicity and family economic status. Closing these gaps would produce considerable economic benefits.

Dec 17, 2015
News Release

News Release

Urgent Attention Is Needed to Improve Education for Refugee Children from Syria

Only half of Syrian refugee children have access to education, with nearly 700,000 not attending any formal education in Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan. Classes are overcrowded and teachers are inexperienced in handling classroom conditions that include traumatized students, some of whom have missed years of school.

Nov 23, 2015
Report

Urgent Attention Is Needed to Improve Education for Syrian Refugee Children

Only half of Syrian refugee children have access to education, with nearly 700,000 not receiving any formal instruction in Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan. Classes are overcrowded and teachers are inexperienced in handling classroom conditions that include traumatized students, some of whom have missed years of school.

Nov 23, 2015
Commentary

How School Choice Could Disadvantage Low-Income Students

The flexibility to allow Title I-A funds to follow students across schools has a certain appeal. But it could have negative consequences for some of the poorest students.

Sep 1, 2015
News Release

News Release

Eliminating Racial and Socioeconomic Performance Gaps for Pennsylvania Students Could Have Boosted Economy by $44 ...

Eliminating race-ethnic and socioeconomic performance gaps for public school students in Pennsylvania could have boosted the state's gross domestic product by as much as $44 billion after 10 years.

Jul 13, 2015
Report

The Economic Impact of Achievement Gaps in PA Public Schools

Although Pennsylvania ranks high among U.S. states in average student performance, the achievement gaps between students classified by race-ethnicity, economic status, and parent education are among the widest nationally. Race-ethnic academic achievement gaps amount to an estimated annual cost of $1 billion to $3 billion in lost earnings.

Jul 13, 2015
Research Brief

First Outcomes from the National Summer Learning Study

Five urban school districts are offering voluntary summer learning programs free of charge to struggling elementary students as part of a project to determine whether these kinds of programs improve low-income student outcomes.

Feb 13, 2015
Journal Article

Is It Possible to Distinguish Good Teaching from Classroom Composition?

Measuring disadvantaged students' access to effective teachers requires examining the relationship between teachers' value-added estimates and the characteristics of their students. Research simulations investigate this relationship and may also help inform analysts' choices for the appropriate value-added models.

Jan 19, 2015
Journal Article

Incarcerated Youths' Perspectives on Protective Factors and Risk Factors for Juvenile Offending: A Qualitative Analysis

Juvenile offenders admit bad judgment but think a better path is still achievable.

Jan 7, 2015
Commentary

College Ratings and Affordable Education

There are reasons to believe American students from the middle- and lower-income tiers aren't making affordable college choices. Can a new ratings system help them make better, more affordable decisions?

Dec 24, 2014
News Release

News Release

Students Attending Summer Learning Programs Returned to School in the Fall with an Advantage in Math

Students who attended voluntary, school district-led summer learning programs in five urban areas began the academic year with stronger math skills than their peers who did not attend the programs.

Dec 16, 2014
Report

Students Who Attended Summer Learning Programs Gained an Advantage in Math

Summer learning loss disproportionately affects low-income students and therefore likely contributes to the achievement gap between these students and their higher-income peers. Students who attended voluntary, school district-led summer learning programs in five urban areas began the academic year with stronger math skills than their peers who did not attend.

Dec 16, 2014
Journal Article

Equity in Competency Education: Realizing the Potential, Overcoming the Obstacles

Examines equity concerns in competency education through the lens of family income, exploring the effects and implications, as well as proposing potential mitigations.

Nov 1, 2014
Journal Article

Equity in Competency Education

Equity is a basic goal and value of competency education. Competency-based approaches should promote equity by preventing students from falling or staying behind. Family income can influence this equity and has effects and implications that can limit opportunities for some students to excel in school.

Nov 1, 2014
Commentary

Flexibility Is Key in Administration's Call for Teacher Equity Plans

Thirteen years of research have clarified that metrics like teacher experience and licensure reveal little about teachers' impact on student learning. The focus should be on disadvantaged students' access to effective teachers.

Aug 22, 2014
Commentary

The Price for Student Satisfaction and Success in Higher Education

Choosing the right university and the best course of study is one of the most important decisions young people and parents will make. Not everyone makes the right decision. Of the wide range of factors involved in choosing a university, how important are university tuition fees to young people and their parents?

Aug 14, 2014
Research Brief

Competency-Based Education in Three Pilot Programs: What It Is, How It's Implemented, and How It's Working

In 2011, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation extended grants to three organizations involved with competency-based education approaches. RAND examined these organizations' implementation, student experiences, and student outcomes.

Aug 4, 2014
Report

Examining Competency-Based Education

Competency-based education meets students where they are academically, provides opportunities for choice, and awards students credit for evidence of learning, not time spent studying a subject. Researchers identify lessons for policy, partnerships, and practice regarding this approach.

Aug 4, 2014

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RAND Topic:
Disadvantaged Students

Research conducted by

RAND Education and Labor