Policy implications: multi-factor, asset-based support for low-SES students¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 5 claims (4 for, 1 mixed) · 1 study (1 quant-synthesis), q2 · 1 of 1 report an effect size · 5 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The review recommends that policies for improving low-SES students' learning outcomes should "comprehensively address multiple factors influencing student learning and avoid a one-size-fits-all approach", enhance disadvantaged students' access to educational opportunities and resources, affirm the strengths that disadvantaged students bring to their learning, and address structural and systemic inequalities related to poverty, classism, and segregation. This follows from the review's findings that SES effects are moderated by multiple processes and confounded with other demographics.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Policies must address multiple factors simultaneously rather than SES alone

Constraints¶

• The review notes SES effects may be confounded with other demographics, so single-lever policies are insufficient

Target Learners¶

• low-SES students from pre-K to university

Target Learning Goals¶

• improving academic achievement and learning opportunities for disadvantaged students

Claims¶

• SES moderates relationships between other variables and student learning [+M]
• SES–learning effect sizes did not differ by SES indicator or outcome type in an umbrella review's meta-regressions; differences by grade level and study year rested on one or two effect sizes [+M]
• Individual meta-analyses report SES–achievement correlations ranging from r = .12 to r = .41 [+M]
• SES is associated with student learning at a mean effect size of r = .22, deemed large with reference to educational benchmarks [+M]
• SES measurement faces validity and practical challenges including student knowledge of parental data and missing data in single-parent families [~M]

Related Strategies¶

• Multi-pronged policy strategy for COVID-19 learning recovery for BIPOC students
• Professional development in asset-based pedagogies and adult SEL to build culturally affirming environments
• Implement community schools comprehensively across all four pillars with adequate planning time, community involvement, and implementation-sensitive evaluation

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Tan, C. Y. (2024). Socioeconomic Status and Student Learning: Insights from an Umbrella Review. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-024-09929-3