STEM Workforce Development 
Broadening Participation in STEMAssessing the Impact of Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Academies on Students' Learning Environments, Educational Outcomes, and Career Path Decisions
Effective Years: 2017-2021
Maintaining U.S. global competitiveness in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) industries requires increasing participation among traditionally underrepresented groups including people of color and women. Studies show creating more equal educational opportunities in the K-12 education system is an effective, socially just approach to expanding STEM participation. This study examines the impact of Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (T-STEM) academies on (a) STEM teacher labor markets and (b) students' educational and workforce outcomes. T-STEM academies are public high schools focused on improving instruction and academic performance in science and mathematics-related subjects and expanding the number of students entering STEM careers, particularly students who are underrepresented in STEM fields. Analyses draw on a statewide longitudinal student-level dataset covering all students in Texas over a 20-year period. This project is supported by the Education and Human Resources Core Research Program, which funds fundamental research in STEM learning and learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development. The project objectives are three-fold. First, the study documents whether students traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields have equitable access to high-quality STEM teachers across classrooms, schools, and districts. Although prior studies identify a teacher quality gap where disadvantaged students are assigned to less qualified and less effective teachers, no prior studies explore exposure to highly-qualified STEM teachers for advantaged and disadvantaged youth. Second, the study analyzes whether T-STEM academies reduce the STEM teacher quality gap. The third aim of the study is to assess the impact of T-STEM academies on student achievement in math, science, and reading, the likelihood of high school graduation, postsecondary enrollment and completion, as well as students' labor market earnings and the likelihood of employment in a STEM field.
10 Publications Related to This Project:
- Does the Middle School Model Make a Difference? Relating Measures of School Effectiveness to Recommended Best Practices
- Accounting for Teacher Labor Markets and Student Segregation in Analyses of Teacher Quality Gaps
- The Texas Special Education Cap: Exploration into the Statewide Delay and Denial of Support to Students with Disabilities; [o Limite DE Educação Especial Do Texas: Explorando O Atraso E a Negação DE APOIO a Alunos Com Deficiências Do Estado]; [EL Límite DE Educación Especial DE Texas: Exploración Del Retraso Y La Denegación DE APOYO a Los Estudiantes Con Discapacidades POR PARTE Del Estado]
- Do Charter Schools Receive Their Fair Share of Funding? School Finance Equity for Charter and Traditional Public Schools
- Does the Measurement Matter? Assessing Alternate Approaches to Measuring State School Finance Equity for California's Local Control Funding Formula
- Expanding the Use of Educational Data for Social Justice: Lessons from the Texas Cap on Special Education and Implications for Practitioner-Scholar Preparation
- Broadening Conceptions of a "College-Going Culture": The Role of High School Climate Factors in College Enrollment and Persistence
- Are School Districts Allocating Resources Equitably? The Every Student Succeeds Act, Teacher Experience Gaps, and Equitable Resource Allocation
- Revolving Doors: Cross-Country Comparisons of the Relationship Between Math and Science Teacher Staffing and Student Achievement
- Cost-Effectiveness of Early Childhood Interventions to Enhance Preschool: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment in Head Start Centers Enrolling Historically Underserved Populations
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