Nicholas Sorensen

The Struggle to Pass Algebra: Online vs. Face-to-Face Credit Recovery for At-Risk Urban Students

ABSTRACT Students who fail algebra are significantly less likely to graduate on time, and algebra failure rates are consistently high in urban districts. Identifying effective credit recovery strategies is critical for getting students back on track. Online courses are now widely used for credit recovery, yet there is no rigorous evidence about the relative efficacy of online versus face-to-face credit recovery courses. To address this gap, this study randomly assigned 1,224 ninth graders who failed algebra in 17 Chicago public high schools to take an online or face-to-face algebra credit recovery course. Compared to students in face-to-face credit recovery, students in online credit recovery reported that the course was more difficult, were less likely to recover credit, and scored lower on an algebra posttest. There were no statistically significant differences by condition on any outcomes measured during the second year of high school (standardized mathematics test and algebra subtest scores, likelihood of passing subsequent math classes, cumulative math credits, or on-track rates). The benefits and challenges of online learning for credit recovery are discussed in light of the findings to date.

Intergroup Dialogue: Race Still Matters

Contrary to popular depiction of young people in the United States as post-racial in their views about race, survey evidence confirms numerous differences in the views of White and non-White young people. These differences are seen both in studies of young people in the nation at large as well as among those attending colleges and universities. This chapter, which reports on a large experiment (N = 730 students) based on random assignment of student applicants to 26 race dialogue courses and to 26 wait-list control groups, also shows that students of color, compared to White students, held different explanations for racial/ethnic inequality when they applied to enroll in race/ethnicity dialogue courses. Participation in the race/ethnicity dialogue courses: (1) increased structural attributions for racial/ethnic inequality, although this effect was statistically reliable only for White students, and (2) narrowed but did not erase the initial differences between the two groups of students on the measures of structural attributions for racial/ethnic inequality. Thus, although race still matters at the end of the dialogue courses, the narrowing of perspectives on causes for racial inequality augurs well for possible coalitions of White youth and youth of color in attempting to reduce racial inequality.

Online Credit Recovery and the Path to On-Time High School Graduation:

Many high schools use online courses to allow students to retake failed classes in an effort to help get students back on track and graduate. However, there is limited evidence available on the effectiveness of online credit recovery in improving students’ long-term outcomes compared with traditional face-to-face credit recovery courses. In this paper, we examine longer term outcomes for ninth graders who failed Algebra I and were randomly assigned to an online or face-to-face algebra credit recovery course. In particular, we look at math credits earned through four years of high school and rates of on-time graduation. We find no statistically significant differences in longer term outcomes between students in the online and face-to-face courses. Implications of these null findings are discussed.