Change or stability in educational inequalities? Educational mobility and school effects in the context of a major urban policy

The National Program Rotterdam South is a large-scale ambitious Dutch urban policy that aims to increase educational attainment amongst disadvantaged children in one of the poorest areas in the Netherlands. This study investigates to what extent inequality in educational attainment based on parental education has changed during the first period of this program. We further examine to what extent area and school characteristics affect educational attainment. Register data on the individual, school and area level were employed to study these issues. We find that the effect of parental education on secondary school attainment has been stable since the start of the program, indicating inequality has not decreased in the context of the program. Furthermore, several school characteristics, including socioeconomic status and retention rate, were relevant in explaining differences in educational attainment. We discuss how our findings relate to the allocation of policy means.

Which medical schools produce the most neurosurgery residents? An analysis of the 2014–2020 cohort

OBJECTIVE In this study, the authors sought to determine which US medical schools have produced the most neurosurgery residents and to evaluate potential associations between recruitment and medical school characteristics. METHODS Demographic and bibliometric characteristics were collected for 1572 residents in US-based and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)–accredited neurosurgery programs over the 2014 to 2020 match period using publicly available websites. US medical school characteristics were collected, including class size, presence of a home neurosurgery program, number of clinical neurosurgery faculty, research funding, presence of a neurosurgery interest group, and a top 10 ranking via U.S. News & World Report or Doximity. Correlations and associations were then evaluated using Pearson’s correlation coefficient (PCC), independent-samples t-test, and univariable or stepwise multivariable linear regression, as appropriate. RESULTS Vanderbilt University produced the most neurosurgery residents as a percentage of medical graduates at 3.799%. Case Western Reserve University produced the greatest absolute number of neurosurgery residents (n = 40). The following factors were shown to be associated with a higher mean percentage of graduates entering neurosurgery: number of clinical neurosurgery faculty (PCC 0.509, p < 0.001), presence of a neurosurgery interest group (1.022% ± 0.737% vs 0.351% ± 0.327%, p < 0.001) or home neurosurgery program (1.169% ± 0.766% vs 0.428% ± 0.327%, p < 0.001), allopathic compared with osteopathic school (0.976% ± 0.719% vs 0.232% ± 0.272%, p < 0.001), U.S. News top 10 ranking for neurology and neurosurgery (1.923% ± 0.924% vs 0.757% ± 0.607%, p < 0.001), Doximity top 10 residency program ranking (1.715% ± 0.803% vs 0.814% ± 0.688%, p < 0.001), and amount of NIH funding (PCC 0.528, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS The results of this study have delineated which medical schools produced the most neurosurgery residents currently in training, and the most important independent factors predicting the percentage of graduates entering neurosurgery and the preresidency h-index.

Educational achievement disparities between second-generation and non-immigrant students: Do school characteristics account for tracking effects?

The present article investigates the relationship between the degree of tracking and inequalities in reading literacy of second-generation and non-immigrant students in 28 Western countries. The article takes into account that next to between-school tracking, there are also more subtle forms of tracking, such as tracking within schools or classes. By elaborating how the distinct mechanisms of different tracking characteristics generate achievement inequalities, I assume that any negative effects of tracking on second-generation immigrant students’ achievements are primarily driven by differences in the quality of school environments. Data from the Programme for International Student Assessment 2018 are used and multilevel regression analysis with country-fixed effects are applied. The findings reveal that a higher tracking degree is related to substantial disadvantages in reading literacy for immigrant children. Furthermore, a higher immigrant concentration in schools is associated with immigrant inequalities in reading performance as the degree of tracking increases, whereas unequal distributions of teacher and instructional quality were found to generate inequalities in countries with less tracking. Even though the results are only partly in line with the theory of tracking influences on immigrant achievement disadvantages, they suggest that the interplay between institutional tracking and school characteristics are crucial for learning inequalities.

Teachers’ Perceptions About School Characteristics Supporting Professional Development: A Scale Development Study

The aim of the study is to develop a scale that measures teachers’ perceptions about school characteristics that support professional development (PD). The 40-item pool was created for the scale to be developed by examining similar measurement tools and literature. According to expert opinions, a 32-item trial form was created to conduct. The data were collected from 322 branch teachers. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was carried out using the collected data. A three-factor structure with 19 items, explaining 61.43% of the variance, was obtained in the EFA. The fit index values (χ2 /Df = 1.47, CFI = .96, TLI = .95, RMSEA = .056, RMR = .038, SRMR = .063) calculated in CFA to support the findings of the structure showed good fit. Cronbach Alpha coefficients were calculated as .91 for administrative support, .89 for collaborative structure, .74 for structural support, and .92 for the total scale. The results indicate that the scale is a valid and reliable measurement tool that can measure teachers’ perceptions of supportive school characteristics that are effective in their participation in professional development.