The 10 most-cited articles in American Educational Research Journal, 2024

We examine the state of the U.S. K–12 teaching profession over the last half century by compiling nationally representative time-series data on four interrelated constructs: occupational prestige, interest among students, the number of individuals preparing for entry, and on-the-job satisfaction. We find a consistent and dynamic pattern across every measure: a rapid decline in the 1970s, a swift rise in the 1980s extending into the mid-1990s, relative stability, and then a sustained decline beginning around 2010. The current state of the teaching profession is at or near its lowest levels in 50 years. We identify and explore a range of hypotheses that might explain these historical patterns including economic and sociopolitical factors, education policies, and school environments.

Scalable and accessible professional development programs have the potential to address the opportunity gap many teachers experience. Yet many asynchronous online programs lack interaction with and timely feedback to teachers. We addressed this problem by developing a virtual, interactive program that uses intelligent tutoring systems to provide just‐in‐time feedback to teachers. We conducted a randomized controlled trial with teachers across the United States in which teachers were assigned to either this program or no additional training. We found that teachers who completed our program ( N = 29) used mathematically richer tasks and created a more coherent, connected learning environment for students to build conceptual understandings than did teachers who were in the business‐as‐usual condition ( N = 23).

Drawing on annual, nationally representative survey data from 2007–2022, I demonstrate that partisan gaps—the average differences in public opinion between Democrats and Republicans—have widened on many education issues. This pattern consistently exceeds what would be expected due to the changing demographic compositions of the parties alone. Widening partisan gaps are primarily attributable to sorting (alignment of one's party affiliation and one's issue positions) rather than polarization (increasing support for more extreme positions relative to more moderate positions). However, polarization is also increasing on some of the most divisive issues. Among those who are sorting, individuals are overwhelmingly switching their issue positions to align with their party affiliations rather than switching their party affiliations to align with their issue positions.

Using data collected from more than 5.8 million high school and college graduates ages 18 to 65 years who participated in the American Community Survey between 2009 and 2021, the authors estimate the internal rates of return (IRRs) for individuals with college degrees in 10 broad majors compared with high school graduates. The analysis shows significant differences in the age-earnings trajectories and IRRs across college majors. Furthermore, quantile regression analyses show that IRR is generally higher at the high end of the earnings distribution compared with the low end. Finally, the authors observed a slight decrease in IRR during the study period, which is consistent with the flattening and even decline in college wage premiums following the 2008 Great Recession.

We examine the fundamental and complex role that time plays in the learning process. We begin by developing a conceptual framework to elucidate the multiple obstacles schools face in converting total time in school into active learning time. We then synthesize the causal research and document a clear positive effect of additional time on student achievement typically of small to medium magnitude depending on dosage, use, and context. Further descriptive analyses reveal how large differences in the length of the school day and year across public schools are an underappreciated dimension of educational inequality in the United States. Finally, our case study of time loss in one urban district demonstrates the potential to substantially increase instructional time within existing constraints.

A host of recent literature suggests benefits to Black children of being matched to same-race teachers. We extend this literature to explore whether being matched to a Black teacher is related to Black students’ likelihood of being identified for two types of discretionary educational services in the following academic year: gifted education and special education. While we do not find that access to Black teachers affects students’ likelihood of gifted identification, Black students matched to Black teachers are less likely to be identified for special education. The results are strongest for Black boys, particularly those who are also economically disadvantaged and are strongest for disabilities with more discretion in identification.

In this paper we use novel data to test the direct and indirect paths between teacher self-efficacy and student outcomes. This includes how teacher self-efficacy is linked to student, teacher, and expert rater views of lesson quality. Our results illustrate how the link between teacher self-efficacy and instructional quality is sensitive to how lesson quality is measured, with large effects when based on teacher reported outcomes but no association when based on the ratings of expert observers. Virtually no relationship is found between teacher self-efficacy and student outcomes. We thus conclude that while there is probably some positive association between teacher self-efficacy and the quality of their instruction, the strength of this relationship is relatively weak.

The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) allows high-poverty schools to offer free meals to all students regardless of household income. Conceptualizing universal meal provision as a strategy to alleviate stigma associated with school meals, we hypothesize that CEP implementation reduces the incidence of suspensions, particularly for students from low-income backgrounds and minoritized students. We link educational records for students enrolled in Oregon public schools between 2010 and 2017 with administrative data describing their families’ household income and social safety net program participation. Difference-in-differences analyses indicate that CEP has protective effects on the probability of suspension for students in participating schools, particularly for students from low-income families, students who received free or reduced-price meals prior to CEP implementation, and Hispanic students.

Dual enrollment (DE)—where students earn college credits during high school—is expanding rapidly. To facilitate DE, institutional actors across K-12 schools and colleges must build or repurpose structures across separate organizations to determine course offerings, assignments, modality, and composition. Yet the organization and implications of those structures remain a black box. Using statewide administrative data from Texas, we describe DE coursetaking and course characteristics for traditional Texas public high school students and examine how DE course characteristics predict students’ course performance and subsequent college enrollment. Our descriptive analyses illuminate striking differences between academic and career and technical education DE, both in students’ backgrounds and course structures. Our regression analyses illustrate how several malleable DE course characteristics predict student outcomes.

For years, discussions on inequality in college admissions have addressed standardized tests, but less is known about inequality in nonstandardized components of applications. We analyzed extracurricular activity descriptions in 6,054,104 applications submitted through the Common Application using natural language processing methods. Overall, White, Asian American, wealthier, and private-school students reported more activities, top-level leadership roles, and distinctive accomplishments (e.g., honors and awards). However, there was little to no difference in the percentage of activities with top-level leadership roles for different racial/ethnic groups. Disparities decrease when controlling for key variables, but salient differences related to race and class remain. Findings do not necessarily support a return to required standardized tests or ending consideration of activities in admissions. Implications are discussed.