120 P. Ho and G. Kao
grant paradox,” where greater acculturation is schools help “equalize” class differences in edu-
associated with poorer health, behavioral, and cational outcomes (Downey and Condron 2016),
educational outcomes, and the mechanisms Black–White achievement gaps actually grow
behind the paradox (Coll and Marks 2012; during the school year (Condron 2009; Downey
Crosnoe and Turley 2011). Evidence of the para- et al. 2004). Using data from the nationally repre-
dox often depends on the population studied and sentative Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,
how researchers define and measure accultura- Kindergarten Class of 1998–99 (ECLS-K),
tion. Some scholars argue that immigrant parents Downey et al. (2004) measured kindergarten,
and their children experience assimilation differ- summer, and first-grade learning rates. After
ently and that when children acculturate to accounting for socioeconomic status, the authors
American norms and lack ties to their ethnic found that Black and Hispanic students learned at
communities, “dissonant” acculturation may similar rates to White students, and Asian stu-
result, leading to conflicts with parents and lower dents at a faster rate, during the summer between
achievement. Dissonant acculturation, such kindergarten and first grade. However, during the
scholars argue, is more likely among immigrant kindergarten and first-grade school years, Black
groups that arrive with fewer socioeconomic students learned at slower rates than White stu-
resources and who perceive little chance of dents, and Asian students lost their advantage,
upward mobility (Portes and Rumbaut 2001). suggesting that early schooling experiences are a
source of racial/ethnic inequality. In another sea-
5.7 A cademic Outcomes sonal study using ECLS-K data, Condron (2009)
in Context found that school characteristics, such as having
a predominantly minority student population and
Prior reviews of research have concluded that using ability grouping, explained more of the
family socioeconomic status (SES) accounts for Black–White achievement gap in first grade than
a significant portion of differences in educational non-school factors, although the exact mecha-
outcomes for racial/ethnic minority students nisms through which these school factors impact
(Kao and Thompson 2003; Lee 2002; Magnuson minority students is less clear.
and Duncan 2006; Sakamoto et al. 2009; Sewell
et al. 1969). However, an ongoing research con- In a review of research on school segregation
cern is to understand what factors beyond SES and its effects on students, Reardon and Owens
contribute to remaining academic gaps (Hallinan (2014) argue that while much research has
1988). Below, we review several bodies of litera- focused on the extent of school racial segrega-
ture on non-familial resources that may influence tion, which has remained largely unchanged for
educational outcomes, and focus on how these the past 25 years, research has not yet provided
factors might matter in particular for minority solid theoretical models for how segregation
and immigrant students. affects educational outcomes. While studies on
the effects of early desegregation policies showed
5.7.1 S chools and Teachers improvements for Black students, and no harmful
effects for White students, more contemporary
The role schools play in minority student out- studies have yielded mixed findings on the link
comes is an area of ongoing research. Researchers between segregation and achievement. For exam-
have used seasonal comparison studies—in ple, Black high school students in predominantly
which student achievement is measured when White schools are less likely to take higher-level
schools are in session and out of session—to try math courses than Black students in predomi-
to isolate the effects of schooling on student out- nantly Black schools (Kelly 2009), but racially
comes. Such studies have shown that while balanced schools appear to provide more equita-
ble access to higher-level English courses than
schools that are predominantly White or Black
(Southworth and Mickelson 2007). Reardon and
5 Educational Achievement and Attainment Differences Among Minorities and Immigrants 121
Owens (2014) suggest that the mechanisms Research also points to the important role
through which racial segregation affects student teachers’ expectations can play in shaping stu-
achievement may have changed over time—for dent outcomes. In their influential model of the
example, differences in school resources might educational and occupational attainment process,
have been a primary reason for Black–White Sewell et al. (1969) included teachers alongside
educational inequality in the past but such a parents and peers as “significant others” whose
mechanism might not be as applicable today if expectations are likely to influence students’ own
school resources are distributed more evenly. aspirations and attainment. Their model sug-
They argue that to better understand how segre- gested that students’ prior academic achievement
gation affects student outcomes, researchers would be a strong influence on teacher expecta-
should examine the links between segregation tions, but other researchers have since pointed
and the availability, distribution, and impact of out the importance of race. Alexander et al.
various school resources. (1987) found that White and Black teachers from
higher-SES backgrounds tended to rate Black
School policies such as ability grouping and first-graders more negatively than White chil-
tracking may contribute to racial and ethnic dif- dren, while student race did not seem to matter
ferences in educational outcomes. Studies have for ratings among teachers from lower-SES back-
shown that Black and Hispanic students are less grounds. These ratings mattered for students’
likely to be placed in higher-level academic grades, with Black children performing worse
tracks compared to Asian and White students than White children in the classrooms of high-
(Dauber et al. 1996; Oakes et al. 1990; Oakes and SES teachers but not in the classrooms of low-
Guiton 1995; Ochoa 2013) and that ELL students SES teachers. Some research suggests that once
may be isolated from mainstream courses while family background and academic performance is
they gain English fluency, preventing them from controlled for, there are no racial differences in
participating in higher-level coursework in other how high school students perceive teacher expec-
subjects (Callahan 2005). While there are mixed tations (Cheng and Starks 2002), although
findings on whether minority students remain at a Alexander et al. (1987) suggest that differences
disadvantage in course placement once prior in teacher expectations may be most apparent at
achievement is accounted for (Van de Werfhorst earlier stages of schooling, when expectations
and Mijs 2010), it is important to note that racial and academic trajectories are first formed.
and ethnic differences in academic outcomes are
present from an early age and can grow over time One of the mechanisms through which teacher
due to a variety of both school and non-school expectations may influence student performance
factors. These early differences likely shape stu- on tests is “stereotype threat”—the theory that
dents’ track placements, which can be based on a negative stereotypes, such as those about the aca-
variety of subjective criteria, including teacher demic abilities of minority groups, can cause stu-
beliefs about student abilities—beliefs that may dents to feel threatened, out of fear of being
be influenced by students’ race/ethnicity judged by that stereotype or conforming to it, and
(Gamoran 1992; Oakes and Guiton 1995). hamper performance (Steele 1997). Another per-
Studies have shown that generally there are few spective is that “positive” stereotypes can cause
opportunities for students to move into higher- students to “choke under pressure.” In an experi-
level tracks once placed into low-level tracks mental study, researchers primed some Asian
(Dauber et al. 1996; Hallinan 1996). Access to American female students, a group that would
advanced coursework is associated with higher fall under the “model minority” stereotype, about
achievement (Gamoran 1987) and being in a their ethnic identity prior to a math test and found
higher-level track can benefit students through this group performed lower than the control
greater access to school resources, such as regu- group (Cheryan and Bodenhausen 2000). Most
lar meetings with counselors (Oakes and Guiton studies of the stereotype threat have been done in
1995; Ochoa 2013). lab settings (Spencer et al. 2016), so it is not
122 P. Ho and G. Kao
always clear how it would operate in classroom academic achievement because high achievement
settings. is considered “acting White” (Downey 2008;
Ogbu 2004; Ogbu and Simons 1998; Warikoo
5.7.2 P eer Relationships and Carter 2009).
Research has shown that adolescents’ friendships More recent work has argued that what is con-
are important for their emotional well-being sidered an “oppositional” attitude in minority
(Giordano 2003) and educational outcomes students is actually a more general youth culture
(Cherng et al. 2013; Hallinan and Williams concerned with not appearing to be too overly
1990). Using data from the National Longitudinal studious, and that minority students do strongly
Study of Adolescent Health, which followed a believe in the value of education (Carter 2005;
nationally representative sample of middle and Goldsmith 2004; Harris 2011; Tyson et al. 2005;
high school students, Cherng et al. (2013) found Warikoo 2011). Harris (2011) used survey data
that students benefitted academically in terms of collected from Black and White families in
college completion from having best friends with Maryland and found that Black students are not
college-educated mothers, above and beyond embedded in peer groups that engage in negative
their own family resources. The authors sug- behaviors or that hold negative academic atti-
gested that friendships are an “underrecognized” tudes. After accounting for SES, Black students’
resource for students. In an earlier study using friends actually hold more positive attitudes
different nationally representative data, Hallinan toward school than White students’ peer groups,
and Williams (1990) found evidence that interra- a finding consistent with earlier research
cial friendships between Black and White stu- (Ainsworth-Darnell and Downey 1998; Hallinan
dents were related to positive outcomes, such as and Williams 1990). Carter (2005) found that
higher educational aspirations. However, the minority students who culturally “straddle”
influence of peers on students’ educational out- school and peer culture are successful academi-
comes remains understudied, particularly the cally and socially, offering a different approach
roles of “structuring” variables such as race/eth- to understanding minority youth culture.
nicity (Giordano 2003) and nativity (Cherng
2015). 5.7.3 N eighborhoods
and Communities
One of the most prominent theories about the
importance of student attitudes and peer groups More recently, there has been an increase in
is Ogbu’s cultural-ecological theory (Ogbu 2004; research on the role of neighborhoods in shaping
Ogbu and Simons 1998). Though Ogbu took into educational outcomes. Broadly, neighborhoods
account the broader context or “ecology” of edu- are theorized to influence children’s outcomes
cation for minority students—including educa- through both structural (e.g., unemployment,
tional policies and practices, societal rewards for racial segregation, poverty rates) and social pro-
educational achievement, and the treatment of cesses (e.g., social disorganization, social net-
minorities in school—it is the “cultural” compo- works). Poorer neighborhoods might lack
nent of his theory that has received the most community institutions that provide extracurricu-
attention. Ogbu argued that because they have lar and enrichment activities for children (Bennett
experienced discrimination, Black students (as et al. 2012) and can be more “culturally heteroge-
well as other “involuntary minorities” such as neous” in regards to youth’s educational goals,
Puerto Ricans and Mexicans in the Southwest) do which plays a role in college enrollment patterns
not believe education will help them achieve (Harding 2011). A number of studies have found
upward mobility. As a result, these students the prolonged exposure to poorer neighborhoods,
embrace an “oppositional culture” that hinders both across generations and within a child’s own
5 Educational Achievement and Attainment Differences Among Minorities and Immigrants 123
lifetime, is associated with lower academic per- of co-ethnic communities. Depending on their
formance and greater risk of dropping out of high context, immigrant youth might assimilate into
school (Sharkey and Elwert 2011; Wodtke et al. under-achieving minority communities, high-
2011). However, on the whole, neighborhood achieving mainstream communities, or they may
effects literature has yielded mixed findings selectively assimilate by maintaining ties to their
regarding children’s academic outcomes, in part ethnic community while striving for high educa-
because it is challenging to separate neighbor- tional achievement (Portes and Rumbaut 2001,
hood effects from important factors, such as fam- 2006; Portes and Zhou 1993). Research has
ily background and school characteristics, and found that the average level of education of
because of inconsistencies in how researchers immigrant groups prior to migrating influenced
define and measure neighborhood characteristics immigrant children’s educational expectations
(Arum 2000; DeLuca and Dayton 2009; Johnson independent of their parents’ own level of educa-
2010; Robert J. Sampson et al. 2002; Small and tion, suggesting the importance of ethnic com-
Newman 2001). munities (Feliciano 2006). Ethnic communities
One of the ways researchers have sought to can be useful resources for members, by provid-
measure neighborhood effects is through housing ing access to information and resources for navi-
mobility programs, which offer low-income, usu- gating school systems (Kasinitz et al. 2008).
ally minority families the opportunity to move Ethnic communities can also define and enforce
into neighborhoods with less poverty. Studies of social norms in ways that both help and hinder
the Gautreaux program, an early housing mobil- academic achievement (Lee and Zhou 2015;
ity program in Chicago, found benefits for chil- Portes 1998; Zhou and Bankston 1994). Portes
dren in families who moved to suburban areas (1998) suggests that group solidarity might lead
through the program, including lower school to “negative social capital” in the form of “down-
dropout and higher college enrollment rates, ward leveling norms”—similar to “oppositional
compared to students whose families moved but culture” arguments. Jennifer Lee and Min Zhou
stayed in urban neighborhoods. However, studies (2015) suggest that the ethnic communities of
of later programs such as the Yonkers Family and more highly selective immigrant groups, such as
Community Project in New York and the multi- those of East Asians, are characterized by narrow
city Moving to Opportunity (MTO) program definitions of success that emphasize high
have shown mixed results or even negative out- achievement, while less selective immigrant
comes stemming from children changing neigh- groups, such as Mexicans, define success more
borhoods (DeLuca and Dayton 2009; Johnson broadly. However, it can be difficult to measure
2010). Researchers continue to debate outcomes individuals’ embeddedness in ethnic communi-
from MTO, such as the relative importance of ties, and measures are not always consistent
racial and social class segregation and the best across studies.
way to measure individual-level outcomes An emerging area of research for immigrant
(Clampet-Lundquist and Massey 2008; Ludwig scholars has been the growth of immigrant popu-
et al. 2008; Sampson 2008), with some research- lations in areas that previously experienced little
ers arguing that the age at which children change immigration, particularly in parts of the South
neighborhoods and the length of exposure to dif- and Midwest (Massey 2008; Singer 2013; Tienda
ferent types of neighborhoods matter for educa- and Fuentes 2014; Waters and Jiménez 2005).
tional outcomes (Chetty et al. 2016; Many of these new immigrant destinations are in
Clampet-Lundquist and Massey 2008). rural and suburban areas, contexts that differ
In studies of immigrant families and school- from the urban environments on which much of
ing, researchers have emphasized the role of eth- our theoretical understanding of immigrant
nic communities for some immigrant groups. assimilation is based. While there has been some
Segmented assimilation theory posits that assimi- research into the integration of immigrant fami-
lation paths are influenced in part by the strength lies in these new destinations (Marschall et al.
124 P. Ho and G. Kao
2012; Massey 2008; Winders 2013), more tant area of research. Among young adults with a
research is needed to understand how communi- bachelor’s degree or higher, racial/ethnic minori-
ties and schools respond to new and growing ties and immigrants have lower rates of employ-
immigrant populations and how immigrant chil- ment than Whites and the native-born (Snyder
dren fare in these environments. Of course, what et al. 2016). A recent audit study of job applica-
may matter most moving forward is the impact of tions found that Black graduates of elite institu-
anti-immigrant sentiments and policies in the tions receive fewer responses than Whites and the
U.S. on these vulnerable populations. responses they do receive are for lower pay and
less prestigious positions (Gaddis 2015). Some
5.8 C onclusion research finds that at all levels of higher educa-
tion White males receive higher returns than
Growing far-right movements and anti-i mmigrant Asian, Hispanic, and Black males (Hout 2012).
sentiments have imperiled many minority and Sakamoto et al. (2010) found that first and sec-
immigrant families worldwide. A recent report ond generation immigrant Black males earn less
from the United Nations notes that, globally, than similarly educated White males, but more
more than half of the nearly six million school- than non-immigrant-origin Black men. Zeng and
aged refugee children are not in school (United Xie (2004) compared the earnings of U.S.- and
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2016). foreign-educated Asian males to those of Whites,
In the U.S., the changing demographics of the and found no earnings disadvantage among the
student population and the continued salience of former but a significant disadvantage among the
race, ethnicity, and immigrant status for social latter. While a college education seems to protect
stratification underscore the need for continued Whites and Asians from economic downturns, it
research on persistent racial, ethnic, and immi- does not seem to do so for Blacks and Hispanics
grant differences in educational achievement and (Emmons and Noeth 2015). Future research
attainment. At all levels of education, Black, should seek to connect earlier schooling experi-
Latino, and American Indian students experience ences to later outcomes, with particular attention
poorer outcomes than their White and Asian to how outcomes vary among individuals with
peers. However, broad racial categories mask similar educational levels.
considerable variations by ethnicity and nativity,
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Gender and Racial/Ethnic 6
Differences in Educational
Outcomes: Examining Patterns,
Explanations, and New Directions
for Research
Catherine Riegle-Crumb, Sarah Blanchard Kyte,
and Karisma Morton
Abstract 6.1 I ntroduction
Gender and race/ethnicity function as major As gender and race/ethnicity function as major
axes of social stratification in the United axes of social stratification in the United States,
States, and males and those from White males and those from White backgrounds have
backgrounds have historically occupied a historically occupied a position of advantage
position of advantage within the educational within the educational system, with females and
system. Although there has been progress those from certain racial/ethnic minority groups
towards decreasing inequality in recent (Black and Hispanic youth in particular) occupy-
decades, gender disparities and, to a much ing positions of less advantage. Consequently,
greater extent, racial/ethnic disparities educational outcomes are not distributed equally
remain in educational outcomes. This chap- across groups, which sets the stage for the cre-
ter reviews the empirical patterns and dis- ation and maintenance of inequality in the labor
cusses the major theoretical explanations force, in the home, and in society at large.
behind these patterns, focusing on K–16
education within the U.S. Additionally, In the first two parts of this chapter, we review
some of the limitations of prior research are the recent patterns of gender (Part 1) and racial/
discussed. In closing, the authors also out- ethnic (Part 2) disparities in educational out-
line three key areas where more empirical comes, and discuss the major theoretical explana-
sociological research is needed, and high- tions behind these patterns. We limit our focus to
light recent research that provides compel- K–16 education within the United States, as an
ling examples of where the field of sociology examination of comparative patterns across dif-
of education should be headed in order to ferent countries is beyond the scope of this chap-
better understand and disrupt educational ter. Within the K–12 realm, we focus on three
inequality. different educational outcomes that are observ-
able to others and serve as tangible representa-
C. Riegle-Crumb (*) · S. B. Kyte · K. Morton tions of cognitive achievement: grades, test
The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA scores, and course-taking. These outcomes also
e-mail: [email protected] capture, to some extent, students’ mastery of the
demands that schools place on students, both aca-
demic and social/behavioral. Additionally, these
three outcomes strongly predict students’ subse-
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 131
B. Schneider (ed.), Handbook of the Sociology of Education in the 21st Century, Handbooks
of Sociology and Social Research, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76694-2_6
132 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
quent success in postsecondary education. For “boy crisis” in schools, still others argue that girls
this next educational stage we focus on matricu- remain strongly disadvantaged in an educational
lation, attainment, and field of study. Again, these system rooted in patriarchy (Corbett et al. 2008;
are observable outcomes that are believed to rep- Sommers 2000).
resent both the acquisition of knowledge as well
as perseverance, and have important implications From a theoretical standpoint, research within
for whether and how individuals fare in the labor the sociology of education has done relatively
market and beyond. Our focus on these tangible little to help make sense of these complex pat-
outcomes leads us to discuss mostly quantitative terns of gender inequality. Rather, studies tend to
literature in the sociology of education, although focus on examining a particular instance of
we discuss key contributions of qualitative inequality (e.g., boys’ higher scores on a math
research at several points. test) and providing a relevant yet narrow explana-
tion for its existence. While this specificity has
We note that the organization of the chapter certainly contributed to our collective knowledge
into separate sections focusing on gender and of gender inequality, nevertheless there is a rela-
race/ethnicity follows the partitioned nature of tive shortage of larger theoretical explanations
research on inequality, as studies tend to focus on that effectively encompass the broad constella-
one axis of stratification but rarely consider both tion of gender differences—and gender similari-
simultaneously. Subsequently, in the third part of ties—in educational outcomes. To better orient
this chapter, we discuss this and related limita- the reader, we turn first to a brief overview of
tions of prior research and outline key areas empirical research on gender differences in
where we think more empirical sociological grades, test scores, and course-taking in K–12
research is needed. In doing so, we also highlight education, and then disparities at the college
recent studies that we think provide compelling level, before returning to a discussion of the theo-
examples of where the field of sociology of edu- ries that have been offered to explain these pat-
cation should be headed. Overall, we argue that terns, the limitations of such theories, and the
research needs to move towards an intersectional need for more work in this area.
approach that brings a critical eye to average dif-
ferences on particular outcomes and more fully 6.2.1 Gender Differences
considers the social construction of both identity in Educational Outcomes
and inequality. in K–12 Education
6.2 E xamining Patterns 6.2.1.1 G rades
and Explanations for Gender The grades teachers give to students are both a
Differences in Educational measure of students’ academic success and part
Outcomes of the educational process. Grades signal stu-
dents’ mastery of course content and in doing so
Although historically males in the U.S. have out- provide positive or negative feedback that may
paced their female peers across a range of out- guide students’ future behaviors (Kelly 2008).
comes, an overall pattern of male advantage no For decades, gender differences in students’
longer applies. Instead, females now hold an grades have favored girls (Buchmann et al. 2008;
advantage on many indicators, though males Entwisle et al. 1994; Mickelson 1989). In a meta-
maintain an advantage in others. The fact that analysis of the female advantage in school grades
gender patterns vary across different outcomes from kindergarten through high school, Voyer
has led to some confusion and seemingly contra- and Voyer (2014) find that girls’ grades are con-
dictory accounts in the popular press and public sistently higher than boys’ across all academic
discourse. Specifically, while some proclaim a subjects, with the largest gaps in language courses
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 133
and the smallest gaps in math courses. 22% of AP computer science students (College
Furthermore, they find no evidence for an increas- Board 2015 (author’s calculations)). Thus, gender
ing female advantage over time, discrediting differences in course-taking only persist in the
arguments that boys today are in a new school most advanced course offerings of the K–12 cur-
achievement crisis (Sommers 2000). Although riculum and are characterized by male and female
teachers do reward students’ non-cognitive char- advantages in different subjects.
acteristics, such as effort and engagement, with
higher grades (Farkas et al. 1990), recent empiri- 6.2.1.3 T est Scores
cal evidence finds that only substantive engage- Achievement tests—including those used by
ment leads to higher grades, as opposed to less states to measure academic progress, assessments
academically-relevant forms of positive class- used in educational studies to measure cognitive
room behavior (Kelly 2008). skills, and college entrance exams such as the
SAT and ACT—offer varied and sometimes con-
6.2.1.2 Course-Taking flicting views of gender disparities in educational
The courses students take as they move through success. These gaps have changed over time, and
the K–12 pipeline towards postsecondary enroll- vary between academic subjects and across early
ment indicate their exposure to challenging cur- and later grades. The most recent studies of gen-
riculum across subjects. Following the transition der differences in achievement in the early grades
from formal tracking to de facto tracking of aca- show strong similarities in girls’ and boys’
demic subjects (Lucas 1999), scholars have paid achievement, with some suggesting greater gains
attention to gender gaps in subject-specific course- for boys in math achievement (Penner and Paret
taking. This focus is partly due to concerns that 2008), and others emphasizing a lack of differ-
gender gaps in course-taking could contribute to ences in achievement across reading and math
gender disparities in college-going and to horizon- (DiPrete and Jennings 2012). Hyde et al. (2008)
tal gender segregation in postsecondary education found no evidence of a gender difference in math
and the labor force (Buchmann and DiPrete 2006; skills as measured by the National Assessment of
Xie and Shauman 2003). Although math course- Educational Progress (NAEP) and only slightly
taking continues to powerfully shape students’ greater variability in test scores among males
preparation for and access to college (Adelman among students in grades 2 through 11. Using
1999; Bozick et al. 2007; Gamoran and Hannigan nationally representative data from the Early
2000; Riegle-Crumb 2006), gender gaps in math Childhood Longitudinal Study, Robinson and
course-taking have long been closed (Catsambis Lubienski (2011) identify a slight male advan-
2005; Lee et al. 2007), even at the most advanced tage in math test scores that emerges during ele-
levels (Hyde et al. 2008). Gender gaps in science mentary school (0.24 standard deviations (SD))
course-taking depend on the academic subject, but disappears by the end of middle school. The
with girls taking more biology and chemistry authors also identify a widening female advan-
classes (Xie and Shauman 2003) but fewer courses tage in reading, particularly among the lowest
in physics (Riegle-Crumb and Moore 2014). In achieving students; for example, the gap in eighth
terms of advanced placement (AP) course-taking, grade among the highest achievers (90th percen-
girls comprised 62% of AP English students,1 60% tile) is 0.10 SD but about 0.25 for the lowest
of AP biology students, and 48% of AP chemistry achievers (10th percentile) (ibid.). Digging
students, but only 35% of AP physics students and deeper into a potential male advantage in math,
Gibbs (2010) finds evidence in ECLS for gender
1 The College Board reports annually on the AP program gaps favoring boys in math as test items increase
in its Report to the Nation. Note that this report includes in complexity. For example, by third grade girls
the number of students taking exams in subject fields outperform boys by about 0.05 SD in items per-
rather than the number of students enrolled in courses des- taining to relative size and ordinality and
ignated as AP.
134 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
sequences but boys outperform girls by about 6.2.2.1 C ollege Matriculation
and Persistence
0.15 SD in place values and rate and measure-
ment. By contrast, analysis of NAEP science test As a college degree becomes ever more crucial to
scores reveals a declining male advantage getting ahead in an increasingly competitive
between third (0.23 SD) and eighth grade (0.19 economy, rates of matriculation in colleges and
SD) (Quinn and Cooc 2015). Finally, boys taking universities have been rising. In the 2000s, men’s
the ACT or SAT tend to slightly outscore girls rates of postsecondary enrollment increased by
taking these exams, a disparity often attributed to 36% compared with a 63% increase among
gender differences in selectivity, as more girls women, a trend attributed to increased rates of
take these college entrance exams (Corbett et al. postsecondary participation among low-income
2008; McNeish et al. 2015). These differences women and women of color (Buchmann 2009;
are also driven by boys’ relatively higher scores Buchmann and DiPrete 2006; Savas 2016; Snyder
on quantitative reasoning sections. For example, and Dillow 2011). Among 2013 high school grad-
girls’ average math scores on the 2014 SAT were uates, 68% of women enrolled in any college
0.26 SD lower than boys’ average scores (College compared to only 63% of men (NCES 2014). This
Board 2014, Table 1 (author’s calculation)). female advantage is evident in 4-year college
Taken together, gender gaps in K–12 educa- attendance as well as 2-year college attendance.
tion that disadvantage girls are limited to course- Additionally, unequal rates of persistence also
taking in physics (as well as engineering and contribute to widening gender disparities in
computer science, courses only rarely offered in attainment. In a recent study, Ewert (2010) found
high schools nationwide), and small differences that a third of women, but only a quarter of men,
on some (but not all) standardized tests in math aged 25–30 have completed a bachelor’s degree
and science. Yet at the same time, girls exhibit (Ewert 2010). The gender gap in college persis-
advantages in grades in all subjects across all tence can be attributed to both weaker academic
years, and outperform boys in several subjects in preparation for college and to poorer performance
both standardized exams and rates of advanced in college following enrollment among males
course-taking. Thus the weight of disparities in (Buchmann and DiPrete 2006; Ewert 2010).
educational outcomes observed during the K–12 Despite a decades-long advantage in overall
years arguably favors girls more than boys. enrollment, women remain underrepresented at
the most elite postsecondary institutions. Among
6.2.2 G ender Differences in College this same ELS cohort, women comprised about
Outcomes 55% of enrollment in non-selective to highly-
competitive 4-year colleges; yet, they comprised
only 47% of those enrolled at the most selective
The general pattern of high female academic institutions (Bielby et al. 2014). The authors note
achievement in K–12 foreshadows contemporary that women and men have comparable rates of
gender gaps in higher education. Since the mid- application to such institutions, indicating that
1980s, women have outpaced men in terms of differences in matriculation rates are not the
college attendance and graduation rates, with result of women being less likely to apply.
experts anticipating that the gender gap in college
completion will continue to grow over the next 6.2.2.2 F ield of Study
decade (Buchmann and DiPrete 2006). However, Despite this reversal in gender disparities in edu-
notable areas of gender disparities persist, namely cational attainment over the past several decades,
in matriculation to elite colleges and universities horizontal gender segregation—or gender gaps in
and in the horizontal gender segregation of stu- the majors chosen by students—persists (Morgan
dents into majors. We now unpack gender dis- et al. 2013; Riegle-Crumb et al. 2012). Earlier
parities in each of these areas in turn. decreases in horizontal desegregation have been
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 135
driven by women’s increased entry into business- and into engineering and tech-driven fields,
related fields and declining overrepresentation in which are linked to highly in-demand sectors of
fields like education and English (England and Li the labor market (Xue and Larson 2015).
2006). By contrast, men’s choices of major have
remained more constant and more concentrated In terms of trying to explain gender inequality,
in fields related to science, technology, engineer- studies within the sociology of education have
ing, and math (STEM) (England and Li 2006). tended to focus specifically on explaining or
Reports of aggregate disparities across STEM understanding a particular disparity. For exam-
fields mask variation in the representation of ple, studies that have focused on girls’ higher
women between STEM fields. Although women academic performance as measured by grades
comprise roughly 40% of STEM majors, women earned in school have pointed to gender social-
outnumber men in the biological sciences but ization, arguing that girls are raised to conform to
remain underrepresented in some STEM fields the expectations dictated by adults and authori-
such as engineering and computer science (Mann ties, including following the academic “rules” of
and DiPrete 2013; Riegle-Crumb et al. 2012). schools and conforming to teacher requests and
Very little of the aggregate difference in STEM expectations (Kaufman and Richardson 1982;
participation has been explained by students’ Mickelson 1989). Some more recent research in
prior achievement in science and math (which this area refers to this as a female advantage in
makes sense given the small scale of gender dif- non-cognitive or social-behavioral skills, such as
ferences discussed in the previous section), nor doing homework, studying for tests, and getting
by students’ goals in work–family balance; along with other students and their teachers, all
rather, students’ expected college majors and of which lead to higher performance in school
future careers as measured during their high (DiPrete and Jennings 2012; Owens 2016).2
school years are the single most powerful predic-
tor of the gap in undergraduate STEM majors Explanations for boys’ higher scores on math
(Mann and DiPrete 2013; Morgan et al. 2013; and science tests, on the other hand, have included
Riegle-Crumb et al. 2012). several different theories. First, biological/
genetic arguments have been offered by some to
6.2.3 Theoretical Perspectives explain why boys score higher on tests of
on Gender Differences advanced math content in particular (Baron-
in Educational Outcomes Cohen 2003; Maccoby and Jacklin 1974; Spelke
2005). Such arguments fall short of explaining
Taken together, patterns of gender disparities in girls’ relative advantage on tests of reading, and
education appear complex. From kindergarten have been largely discredited on a variety of
through twelfth grade, girls outperform boys in grounds (Ceci et al. 2009; Halpern 2013; Hyde
grades in all subjects. Differences in test scores and Mertz 2009). Instead, broad theories of gen-
are generally small and are subject-specific, with der socialization have argued that the girls are
girls scoring higher on reading/writing tests and raised to think of math and science as masculine
boys scoring higher on math or science tests. domains, which leads to doubt and a lack of self-
Similarly, gender differences in course-taking are confidence in these areas (Correll 2001; Eccles
small and yet also subject-specific, with boys tak- 2011; Riegle-Crumb et al. 2006). These
ing physics and girls taking advanced placement approaches acknowledge the importance of gen-
courses in the humanities at higher rates. In der stereotypes and norms, yet do not explicitly
p ostsecondary education, women have surpassed address how girls nevertheless earn higher grades
men in matriculation and completion of 4-year
degrees, but men maintain higher rates of entry 2 We note here that while research typically views females’
into the most selective colleges and universities higher social-behavioral skills as a mediating variable to
explain higher performance, it is arguable that such skills
are an important educational outcome in their own right.
We return to this point in Part 3 of this chapter.
136 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
than boys on these subjects. More recently, theo- engagement and effort, lead to greater educa-
ries of stereotype threat offered primarily by tional attainment (Conger and Long 2010; Jacob
social psychologists argue that stereotyped 2002; Owens 2016).
expectations become salient specifically in test-
ing situations, where individuals feel that their These explanations are distinct from those
performance has high stakes for representing offered to explain differences in choice of major,
their group (McGlone and Aronson 2006; which instead echo aspects of gender socializa-
Schmader 2002). tion arguments offered for gender differences in
high school course-taking (Gerber and Cheung
Arguments for disparities in course-taking 2008; Wang and Degol 2013). In addition to
have echoed some of the same explanations for arguments that young people are raised to like
test scores. When gaps were bigger (e.g., when different subjects and think of them as more or
girls did not take as much math and science as less appropriate for their gender, arguments about
boys), explanations regarding presumed “natural girls’ relative absence from STEM majors also
abilities” were often offered, yet again, notably, posit that girls are turned off by the high demands
focused on girls’ disadvantage without simulta- of such majors and perceive them to be incompat-
neously considering their advantage in reading. ible with future desires for family and children
As these gaps have shrunk in recent decades to be (Eccles 2011; Williams and Ceci 2012). Despite
very small and only present in a few classes, the logical appeal of such arguments, they fall
socialization arguments have become more prev- short of explaining why females are well-
alent, namely that girls and boys are raised to represented in some STEM fields (math, biology)
think of some subjects as masculine and others as and not others (engineering, computer science),
feminine (Cheryan 2012; Cheryan et al. 2011; as well as why women have entered business,
Steele 2003; Wang and Degol 2013). Note that pre-med, and pre-law majors at similar or higher
such explanations are inadequate to explain why rates than men (England 2010; Mann and Diprete
some classes have reached equity (calculus) 2013; Xie and Shauman 2003).
while others have not (physics).
Thus, within the field of sociology of educa-
With regard to gender inequalities in college, tion we have a myriad of explanations tailored to
different explanations are offered for different explain specific instances of gender inequality.
dimensions. Arguments for females’ greater While helpful, these explanations may be more
rates of matriculation have included utilitarian useful if situated within a broader theoretical
and rational actor models, such that as returns to framework of gender that can help us to under-
college-going increased, girls’ decisions to stand the creation, maintenance, and (sometimes)
attend college responded accordingly (Charles changes in this overall constellation of differ-
and Luoh 2003; DiPrete and Buchmann 2006). ences. In this regard, sociologists of education
This is typically coupled with an acknowledge- have argued for the relevance of two major theo-
ment that gender norms had to shift to encour- ries that help to explain why there is gender
age girls to pursue higher education (Golden equity (or even a female advantage) in some
2006; Reynolds and Burge 2008), as well as areas, while there are male advantages in others.
changes in family composition and the growth
of single-mother families that encouraged edu- First, as argued by Charles and Bradley
cational investments in girls relative to boys (2002), in advanced industrial societies there is
(Buchmann and Diprete 2006; Doherty et al. an increased cultural emphasis on egalitarianism
2015). Explanations for girls’ greater persis- ideals as well as self-expression; yet this coexists
tence after matriculation tend to recall the same with gender essentialism, the notion that men and
explanations offered for girls’ greater grades, women are fundamentally different. Thus, on the
namely that they are socialized to do what is one hand, girls do as well (or better) than boys in
expected by those in authority positions, and school (and the general sentiment is that they
that their better social-behavioral skills, such as should be offered the same resources and oppor-
tunities to pursue their education). And yet at the
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 137
same time, choices related to subject area spe- return to the theme of the need for future research
cialization are an ideal arena in which to maintain to push forward in accounting (both theoretically
gender differences. Thus, egalitarian and essen- and empirically) for the complexity of patterns in
tialist ideologies co-exist. Under this framework, gender disparities that exist in our current time.
there does not necessarily have to be a logical
explanation for why some fields are defined as 6.3 Examining Patterns
masculine or feminine, and indeed the assign- and Explanations for Racial/
ment could be quite arbitrary. Ethnic Differences
in Educational Outcomes
Coupled with this perspective, England and Li
(2006) argue that the theory of gender devalua- Race/ethnicity is another main axis of social
tion must also be considered. Specifically, within stratification in our contemporary society. Yet
our culture, men and women are not just assumed unlike gender, where females often reach compa-
to be fundamentally different, but men and mas- rable or higher levels of educational outcomes
culinity in society are also viewed as superior. than males, patterns by race/ethnicity are
Therefore, things associated with females and extremely consistent across a range of outcomes.
femininity are ceteris paribus, considered Specifically, within the U.S., Whites exceed the
socially inferior. This explains why the change in educational outcomes of Black and Hispanic
the segregation of college majors that has youth. At a time when the demographics of the
occurred over the last several decades is limited country are drastically changing and becoming
to the movement of women into male-dominated much more diversified, an examination into con-
majors and not the other way around. It also per- tinued disparities is critical. According to the
haps explains why the areas where females out- U.S. Department of Education, the combined
perform males (subjects like reading and percentage of Black and Hispanic students has
outcomes such as grades) are generally consid- grown from 29% of the student population
ered to be less interesting and important than the nationally in 1997 to 39% in 2014, and that per-
areas where males outperform females. Further, centage is projected to grow to 44% by 2022
we note here that as a field, the sociology of edu- (Hussar and Bailey 2014).
cation pays less attention to these instances of
female advantage, and instead focuses much Consistent with the focus of the majority of
more on the male advantage in some STEM research on racial/ethnic gaps within the sociol-
fields. While this is certainly due in part to the ogy of education, we primarily discuss gaps
higher social and economic status of those fields, between Whites and their Black and Hispanic
it nevertheless seems likely that researchers con- peers, the two largest racial/ethnic minorities in
tribute to downplaying female achievement by U.S. schools with persistent disparities in educa-
focusing comparatively less attention on those tional outcomes. However, in doing so, it is not
areas where they excel. our intent to in any way minimize the importance
of examining disparities between Whites and
In closing, we suggest that theories of gender other minority groups (e.g., Asians), but rather to
essentialism and gender devaluation offer com- limit our focus to a finite and relatively manage-
pelling explanations for the sometimes contradic- able scope for this chapter.3 Again, as with our
tory patterns of gender inequality in educational discussion of gender differences in educational
outcomes, and should continue to be developed
and extended. Yet we also suggest that research in 3 As space constraints limit us from including a thorough
this area should do more to consider the insights review of disparities between Asian students and their
of Black feminist scholarship, particularly that White peers, as well as their Black and Hispanic peers, we
which employs an intersectional perspective and recommend that readers see recent work by Pang et al.
calls needed attention to the continued power of a (2011), Pong et al. (2005), and Lee and Kumashiro (2005)
White patriarchal system (Hill Collins 2000; among others.
hooks 1984). At the end of this chapter, we will
138 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
outcomes, we concentrate on results of quantita- intentional or more accidental agents in this pro-
tive research. However, due to the generally con- cess. Additionally, there are also diverging opin-
sistent patterns of White advantage across a range ions about the extent to which inequality is
of educational outcomes, we choose to begin produced via the separation of youth into differ-
with a discussion of the major theoretical expla- ent schools (e.g., school segregation) versus the
nations behind them, before then turning to a inequality that is produced via the differential
review of specific instances of inequality. sorting of students into different classrooms
within schools (Kelly 2009; Mickelson and Heath
6.3.1 T heoretical Explanations 1999; Oakes 2005). Research arguing for the for-
for Racial/Ethnic Disparities mer points to increasing patterns of school segre-
in Educational Outcomes gation in recent years, and the fact that teachers
from high minority schools relative to those in
The theoretical rationales offered for differences low minority schools have fewer years of experi-
in educational outcomes between majority and ence, lower likelihood of certification in the sub-
minority youth can be categorized into two ject they are teaching, and higher likelihood of
strands: those that argue that the educational sys- teaching out of their field of specialization
tem is an agent in the social reproduction of (Clotfelter et al. 2005; Darling-Hammond 2001).
inequality, and those that argue that schools in Those that argue for the greater role that sorting
fact serve to minimize or decrease inequality. within schools plays in reproducing inequality
Both camps acknowledge the critical role of point to the importance of the differential alloca-
social class, as Black and Hispanic youth are dis- tion of resources and opportunities, such that
proportionately likely to come from families with Blacks and Hispanics attending integrated
relatively fewer economic resources, and also schools are often in less rigorous courses taught
recognize the importance of factors that occur by teachers with low expectations (Lucas and
outside of school but nevertheless have strong Berends 2002; Oakes 2005). In our review of the
implications for the outcomes that occur within empirical literature below, we call attention to
school. Yet they differ in their accounting of the when different aspects of this argument are
role that schools play in contributing to inequita- implicated.
ble outcomes in grades, course-taking, test
scores, and college matriculation and In contrast to major theories of social repro-
attainment. duction, another major theoretical strand argues
that racial/ethnic disparities in educational out-
Theories of social reproduction are the ones comes are primarily the result of factors that
most commonly invoked within the sociology of happen outside of school, and that schools are
education. Put briefly, such theories argue that either neutral in this process or perhaps even
schools serve a vital function of reproducing and decrease inequality (Downey et al. 2004).
maintaining inequality by sorting and socializing According to this line of reasoning, the larger
students within school walls in ways that lead to processes of stratification in society are linked
disparate outcomes by student background to economic and social factors that impact the
(Apple 1978; Bourdieu and Passeron 1977; families and communities of different groups,
Bowles and Gintis 2002; Lucas 2001). The end and schools are either powerless to stop this, or
result is that those that come from disadvantaged sometimes manage to even help alleviate some
minority backgrounds accrue far fewer favorable problems by providing minority youth with the
educational outcomes, and thus are far less likely chance to break the cycle. As we will discuss
to achieve economic and social success later in below, the empirical literature in support of this
life. Within this literature on social reproduction, theory is comparatively limited. Yet it is never-
researchers may disagree about the extent to theless important to consider those instances
which educational agents such as teachers are where such a theory might explain inequality in
outcomes.
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 139
6.3.2 R acial/Ethnic Disparities resulted in an advantage for Blacks relative to
in K–12 Education Outcomes
their White peers at the beginning of the year.
6.3.2.1 T est Scores SES also reduced the Hispanic–White reading
gap, but did not eliminate it or reverse the direc-
The largest body of extant research on educational tion of advantage. His findings also show that net
inequality by race/ethnicity focuses on differ- of SES, the Black–White math and reading gaps
ences in test scores; this research indicates that actually increased over the kindergarten year
Blacks and Hispanics continue to lag behind their suggesting that school factors, not SES, may
White peers on standardized exams across differ- exacerbate test score disparities between these
ent subjects and different grade levels. While groups. Such findings are also echoed by Condron
there has been some change over time, such that (2009), as well as by Downey et al. (2004) who
gaps have modestly decreased, disparities remain found that while test score gaps between some
and are generally found to grow larger throughout groups were smaller during the school year than
the K–12 years and to be slightly larger in math during the summer, gaps between Black and
than in reading (Hemphill and Vanneman 2011; White students did in fact grow stronger during
Vanneman et al. 2009). For instance, Cheadle the academic calendar year. While factors outside
(2008), using data from ECLS-K found that of school certainly continue to play a contribut-
among kindergarteners in math, Blacks and ing role to test score gaps, contemporary research
Hispanics scored 0.34 SD and 0.45 SD lower than offers strong evidence that schools strengthen
Whites, respectively. From 1st through 3rd grade rather than lessen racial/ethnic inequality.
the Black–White gap grows slowly while the
Hispanic–White gap remained relatively constant. 6.3.2.2 G rades
Further, data on a national sample of high school Compared to the vast body of research examining
seniors from the Education Longitudinal Study racial/ethnic differences in test scores, research
(ELS), find test score gaps close to one standard on disparities in the grades earned in school in
deviation in scope (Riegle-Crumb and Grodsky K–12 is much more sparse but nevertheless
2010). Results from NAEP assessments reveal reveals strong evidence of disparities. Among
similar patterns (NCES 2015). Scores on college high school graduates in 2009, the grade point
admission tests such as the SAT also indicate gaps averages of all students were higher in 2009 than
of a large magnitude. For example 2012–2013 they were in 1990; yet across years consistent
math test scores show Whites surpassing minority gaps existed between groups. The GPA of Whites
groups by at least 0.8 SD (NCES 2015). exceeded those of Hispanics and Blacks, with
Research on the test score gap has provided Blacks having the lowest GPA (Nord et al. 2011).
strong evidence that social class disparities As with test scores, there is evidence that such
greatly contribute to inequality, but the estimates gaps are at least partly explained by differences
of the extent of the gap that can be explained vary in students’ social class background. For instance,
considerably across studies. For example, Quinn Roscigno and Ainsworth-Darnell (1999), using
(2015) summarizes the literature on the Black– data of 10th graders from the National Educational
White gap in particular and finds that “depending Longitudinal Study (NELS), found that over half
on the sample, year of data collection, and assess- of the Black–White gaps in student GPAs were
ment …various SES measures have explained explained by family social class. Similarly, Kao
from 12 to 100 percent of these gaps.” In his own et al. (1996) used data from NELS and found that
analyses of recent kindergarten data from the while the gap between Hispanics and Whites was
ECLS-K, Quinn (2015) found that while Blacks completely explained by family factors, the
entered kindergarten with lower reading test Black–White gap in GPA remained statistically
scores than their White peers, controlling for SES significant.
140 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
6.3.2.3 Course-Taking of students taking 8th grade algebra, a course
Research on racial/ethnic disparities in course- identified as the gatekeeper to favorable out-
taking has its roots in concern for the differenti- comes in high school and beyond (Gamoran and
ated curricular practices of school officials at the Hannigan 2000; Newton et al. 2008; Spielhagen
turn of the twentieth century, who designated 2006), has increased over the years (Loveless
those students with darker skin and foreign- 2008; Rampey et al. 2008), students from disad-
sounding names as most-suited for coursework vantaged minority groups are still not enrolling in
with low cognitive demands but a high emphasis this course at the same rates as their White peers.
on behavior and hygiene (Kliebard 2004; Oakes For instance, Walston and McCarroll (2010)
2005), as well as the disparate opportunities using 8th grade data from the Early Childhood
available to Blacks in predominantly Black Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten class of
schools vis-à-vis Whites in all-White schools in 1998–1999 (ECLS-K) determined that the per-
the early to mid-twentieth century. While school centages of Whites enrolled in algebra was 37%,
desegregation efforts, following the seminal compared to 34% and 17% for Hispanics and
Brown v. Board of Education ruling, resulted in Blacks, respectively.
more integrated schools, within-school sorting Some research on gaps in course-taking sug-
practices are robust and ever-present, in spite of gests the presence of less rigorous academic
the attempts of the anti-tracking movement courses being offered in high minority schools
(Lucas 2001; Mickelson 2001). compared to integrated or predominantly White
Much of the research on course-taking dis- schools (Mickelson 2001; Riegle-Crumb and
parities has focused on what happens in second- Grodsky 2010). For example, approximately
ary schools and primarily in the area of 60% of White students enrolled in AP courses
mathematics. The sequential and hierarchical score a 3 or higher on the AP exam, compared to
nature of mathematics, starting in middle school, approximately 26% for Blacks and 43% for
affords a ripe area for examining issues of access Hispanics (Aud et al. 2010). While not conclu-
to advanced course-taking. Although mathemat- sive, such patterns hint at the possibility that the
ics course-taking is a key area of study, research- AP courses taken by minority students are not of
ers have highlighted the symbiotic relationship the same caliber in terms of preparing students to
between course types on the secondary level, be successful on the exam. Nevertheless, the bulk
such that students taking advanced courses in of the research on course-taking disparities
mathematics are likely to be engaged in advanced strongly implicates within-school sorting pro-
course-taking in other subjects as well (Lucas cesses, such that Black and Hispanic youth are
and Berends 2002), providing even more of an less likely to be enrolled in advanced courses
advantage for students who are enrolled in these compared to their White peers, even net of social
courses. Data on course-taking trends have class (Kelly 2009; Mickelson 2001).
revealed that the number of Blacks and Hispanics
taking more advanced math courses has increased, 6.3.2.4 H igh School Completion
however, the minority–White gap in advanced Student high school completion and dropout
course-taking has actually been increasing over rates are another indicator where racial/ethnic
time. For instance, a recent NCES report reveals disparities exist. In 2010, the percentage of White
that while Black and Hispanic high school gradu- high school students attending public school who
ates have seen a 4% and 8% increase, respec- graduate within 4 years was 83%. For Hispanics
tively, in the number of rigorous courses taken and Blacks, those percentages were 71.4% and
between 1990 and 2009, the Black–White and 69.1%, respectively (Stillwell and Sable 2013). A
Hispanic–White gap in rigorous course-taking recent study by Bradley and Renzulli (2011)
increased from 3 percentage points each, to 8 and using data from the Educational Longitudinal
6 percentage points, respectively, over the same Study (ELS) investigated the extent to which
period (Nord et al. 2011). Also, while the number such disparities were associated with social class
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 141
differences, as well as other economic reasons those with immigrant mothers, were in fact more
such as family responsibilities. Their results likely than Whites to attend a 2- or 4-year college
revealed that there were no differences between once family background is taken into account.
the likelihood of dropping out for Blacks com- Additionally, they also found that net of family
pared to Whites once SES was controlled. In background, the Black–White gap in 2-year col-
addition, they found that while SES explained lege attendance narrows but still favors Whites,
much of the Hispanic–White gap in high school while the gap for 4-year college attendance
completion, the remaining gap was explained by reverses. Consistent with this pattern, other stud-
students’ economic responsibilities to their fami- ies have also found evidence of a “net Black
lies. Importantly, the authors found no evidence advantage’’ (Merolla 2013) for both immigrant
that disparities in completion rates were the result and U.S. Blacks (Bennett and Lutz 2009).
of a lack of engagement or negative school atti-
tudes on the part of minority youth. Disparities in college graduation have been
explained by differences in social background as
6.3.3 R acial/Ethnic Disparities well as test scores. For instance, Alon (2007)
in College Outcomes examined the effects of “overlapping (dis)advan-
tages,” namely socioeconomic status, high school
6.3.3.1 College Matriculation academic preparation (i.e., SAT scores), and
and Persistence parental education, on the likelihood of obtaining
a bachelor’s degree from a selective university
Whites have, for the most part, consistently and found that Blacks and Hispanics are more
exceeded non-Asian minorities in rates of matric- likely to have overlapping disadvantages than
ulation into college. However, this advantage is their White peers. While the Hispanic–White gap
more apparent for 4-year colleges as opposed to in graduation was mostly explained by Hispanics’
2-year colleges. For example, among initial overlapping disadvantages, for Blacks only 30%
college-goers from the high school sophomore of the Black–White gap was explained by such
class of 2002 of ELS, 46.4% of Whites attended disadvantages (particularly those including aca-
a 4-year college compared to 32.7% of Blacks demic preparation).
and 22.2% of Hispanics. However, for 2-year col-
leges, 26.9% of Whites matriculated versus Within the 4-year college sector, variation in
25.4% of Blacks and 31.8% of Hispanics. So par- the selectivity of institutions that students attend
ticularly for Hispanics, while more than 50% of represents an additional marker of inequality.
students are attending college, the majority are Using data from the ELS, Bozick and others
attending 2-year institutions (Bozick et al. 2007). (2007) documented substantial racial/ethnic dis-
Rates of attainment tend to follow group patterns parities in elite college attendance, such that
in matriculation. Recent national data reveal that while about 17% of White students attended such
the percentages of Black (51%) and Hispanic a school, only about 5% of Hispanic and Black
(52%) full-time students at 4-year institutions students did. Beyond these basic numbers,
who attained bachelor’s degrees were lower than research shows evidence of under-matching, such
the percentage of White students (73%) (NCES that highly academically qualified Hispanic and
2012). Black youth are more likely than their White
peers to attend a school that is less selective or
Not surprisingly, researchers have found that academically rigorous (Bowen et al. 2009;
disparities in college attendance are greatly Roderick et al. 2011). This trend is particularly
explained by differences in social class back- problematic since the practice of undermatching
ground. For example, using data from the NELS, has been linked to decreased likelihood of gradu-
Charles et al. (2007) investigated racial/ethnic ating from college (Bowen et al. 2009). Similarly,
disparities in both 2- and 4-year college atten- Alon and Tienda (2005) investigated the legiti-
dance. They found that Hispanics, particularly macy of the mismatching hypothesis, that is, that
Hispanics and Blacks at more selective
142 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
institutions were less likely than their demo- either axis of stratification alone (Browne and
graphically and academically similar counter- Misra 2003; Hill Collins 2000; hooks 1984). Yet
parts at less selective institutions to graduate the quantitative literature within the sociology of
from college. Their analyses refuted this hypoth- education has to date done little to explore how
esis and concluded that Blacks and Hispanics are gaps on the educational outcomes discussed in
more likely to graduate from college as the selec- this chapter vary across subgroups.
tivity of the college increases, suggesting the
benefit of affirmative action policies that are Within the limited extant literature there is
designed to increase the numbers of minority stu- evidence that while general patterns of inequality
dents gaining college degrees. by gender are consistent across racial/ethnic gaps
(and vice versa), nevertheless the magnitude of
6.3.3.2 Field of Study such gaps varies in ways that may be important to
Finally, we note that in contrast to the sharp racial/ consider. For instance, while across racial/ethnic
ethnic disparities discussed above on other educa- groups, females surpassed their male counter-
tional outcomes, there are few major differences in parts on high school regular diploma attainment
terms of the field of study that students choose to rates, immediate postsecondary enrollment, and
pursue. Across racial/ethnic groups, the highest bachelor’s degree completion within 6 years,
concentration of bachelor’s degrees earned in nevertheless this pattern of female advantage is
2009 were in science and engineering, followed by more pronounced among Blacks and Hispanics
either arts and humanities or business, then educa- than it is among Whites (Aud et al. 2013;
tion, and finally, science and engineering-related Buchmann et al. 2008). Additionally, while the
fields (Siebens and Ryan 2012). Additionally, higher representation of males in STEM degrees
researchers have found evidence that, contingent persists across racial/ethnic groups, the gaps are
on college matriculation, Black and Hispanic largest among Hispanic youth and smallest
youth are as likely as White students to pursue among Black youth (Ross et al. 2012).
degrees in STEM fields (Chen 2009; Riegle-
Crumb and King 2010). While the persistence Additionally, in an examination of gender
rates of these minority youth are lower than their gaps in test scores, Hyde et al. (2008) reported
White peers, this is not particular to STEM fields, that math test score gaps were non-existent or
but rather a trend found across fields of study, such even favored girls for some minority groups.
that minority youth are less likely to attain a col- More research attention should be directed to
lege degree than their White peers (Chen 2009). such patterns, in part to understand when and
where the evidence of smaller gender gaps for
6.3.4 E xamining Disparities some minority groups is the result of minority
in Outcomes females doing comparatively better, or minority
at the Intersection of Gender males doing comparatively worse. In part three of
and Race/Ethnicity this chapter we further discuss the need for an
intersectional approach that goes beyond a focus
While investigating race/ethnic disparities in on examining average differences in outcomes
educational outcomes is imperative, it is equally and instead more fully considers the differenti-
important to consider gender differences within ated school experiences of young people from
and across race/ethnic groups. Feminist scholars different gender and racial/ethnic subgroups.
have long called attention to the need to critically
explore the intersection of race/ethnicity and 6.4 O utlining Future Directions
gender, with the recognition that different racial/ for Research
ethnic-gender groups have unique educational
experiences that cannot be captured by looking at We now turn to a discussion of some potential
future directions for research that may help us to
better understand and ultimately disrupt patterns
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 143
of inequality in educational outcomes. at answering an array of finite questions posed in
Specifically, we argue that as a field, sociology of a particular format (Linn 2013). However, studies
education should: (1) bring more of a critical eye such as these are relatively few in number and, as
towards research on standardized testing, (2) such, do not provide a very strong base of evi-
place more attention on how school contexts dence for arguments against the validity of
shape different forms of inequality, and (3) think achievement tests, and their subsequent use in
more critically about definitions of gender and research studies on achievement disparities.
race/ethnicity and the ways in which a more fluid
or contextual emphasis is needed to better reflect Perhaps what is more compelling are argu-
the reality of young people’s lives. ments that standardized tests privilege certain
kinds of knowledge, and that as a field we should
6.4.1 M oving Beyond Test Scores think more critically about the implications of
this. For example, Sternberg (2007) points out
Although our review focused attention on pat- variation in the cultural definitions of intelligence
terns of inequality across a range of educational here in the U.S. between different racial/ethnic
outcomes in an effort to be relatively comprehen- groups, and the invalidation of the types of stu-
sive and in-depth, we note that the bulk of the dent knowledge that diverge from the mainstream
research literature on educational gaps, particu- culture’s definition of intelligence. He further
larly regarding racial/ethnic gaps, has focused on argues that this type of knowledge is vastly dif-
test scores. Studies have utilized test scores from ferent from that assessed in achievement tests.
a plethora of sources, including high school exit Critical race theorists also emphasize the mis-
exams (Grodsky et al. 2009) and college entrance match between what students (particularly those
exams (Buchmann et al. 2010), as well as those from marginalized groups) know and what is
available through NCES (Gamoran and Hannigan tested on exams, such that the former is not given
2000; Kelly 2009), a very common source of data consideration when schooling (and test develop-
for sociologists of education. As a field, interest ment) is taking place (Ladson-Billings 1998).
in the use of achievement test scores as a valid
measure of academic achievement has even Furthermore, research primarily from the field
recently been extended to the postsecondary level of psychology offers evidence of the fragility and
(Arum and Roksa 2014). Yet there are some variability of student performance in testing envi-
potentially serious problems with such a strong ronments, and thus calls into question how accu-
reliance on test scores to measure inequality. rately both researchers and educators are
measuring student knowledge in many circum-
The most obvious concern is whether tests are stances. Research on stereotype threat finds that
biased towards certain groups, and therefore environmental/contextual factors such as the
whether standardized tests fairly assess all stu- racial/ethnic or gender composition of the class-
dents (see Grodsky et al. 2008 for a review). For room or the cueing of stereotypes can lead stu-
example, Freedle (2003) asserts that the SAT is dents within stereotyped groups to severely
culturally biased, as indicated by Black and underperform, thus creating biased results and
Hispanic students’ consistent underperformance misleading conclusions about groups’ differences
relative to Whites, likely due to the two groups’ in ability (Good et al. 2003; Steele and Aronson
(i.e., minority vs non-minority) differing inter- 1995). Yet, sociologists of education have spent
pretations of test items. Accountability policies little attention considering the implications of
also bring to light the pressures that teachers have such findings for research on gender and racial/
to “teach to the test,” therefore calling into ques- ethnic inequality in educational outcomes (one
tion whether tests actually measure cognitive notable exception includes a study by Hanselman
growth and the mastery of conceptual knowl- et al. (2014), discussed later in this chapter).
edge, or more simply capture students’ adeptness
Stepping back, it is also important to ask
whether researchers’ well-intentioned aims to
highlight inequalities by repeatedly pointing to
144 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
test score gaps have reified the current system causal models, and thus this research tradition is
instead of interrogating or disrupting it. While likely to continue. Yet as we argued above, test
researchers typically focus on gaps in achieve- scores are certainly not the only worthy outcome
ment test scores because of the belief that they of interest that should be investigated, and
are emblematic of differential access to curricu- schools likely shape inequality on a range of dif-
lum, teachers, and pedagogy, perhaps there is too ferent kinds of outcomes. Additionally, moving
much time and energy spent working within this beyond measuring racial/ethnic composition (or
paradigm that privileges the importance of test- other compositional variables) to measure the
ing, at the expense of critically questioning it. influence of school contexts also holds much
Our recommendation is not that we eliminate the promise.
examination of test score gaps; simply doing
away with tests altogether is likely to reproduce There are several recent studies that highlight
stratification, perhaps by reassigning importance the powerful implications of such a research
to other outcomes that more privileged groups focus. Regarding studies on race/ethnicity,
have greater access to (Belasco et al. 2014). Jennings et al. (2015) focused on how gaps in
Notably, others (e.g., Haut and Elliott 2011; Kane college attendance varied across students’ high
and Staiger 2012) have considered the need for a school contexts. The authors also argue persua-
more comprehensive way to assess student learn- sively that we need to consider how the same
ing, but perhaps more needs to be done to chal- schools could lessen racial/ethnic gaps but
lenge the status quo in order to effectively move increase SES gaps, for example, as they find in
forward towards equitable educational experi- their sample from Texas and Tennessee. Jennings
ences for all students. In this vein, we propose and her colleagues (2015) suggest that research-
that more of a dialogue is needed not only on the ers should avoid the inclination to characterize
impact that achievement tests have on social some schools as uniformly “good” and others as
stratification, but also on the types of outcomes “bad,” and instead focus on understanding why
(both cognitive and non-cognitive) that could and how schools produce some equitable out-
meaningfully serve as measures of achievement comes while simultaneously producing inequal-
(e.g., college matriculation, postsecondary job ity in others. A recent study by Hanselman et al.
attainment, self-confidence, perseverance). (2014) also moves beyond a singular focus on
racial/ethnic gaps in test scores, and focuses on
6.4.2 Considering School Context how schools contribute to gaps in grades.
Additionally, the authors conceptualize school
In this chapter, we also argue that future research context in a novel way, distinguishing between
needs to pay more attention to the critical role of schools in terms of their likelihood of creating a
school contexts in shaping inequality. While high-risk environment for social identity or ste-
there is a large literature on school effects on reotype threat to impact minority students.
gaps in educational outcomes, it has primarily
considered demographic characteristics of Additionally, a qualitative study by Ispa-
schools (e.g., racial/ethnic or social class compo- Landa and Conwell (2015) suggests the intrigu-
sition) as independent variables of interest, and ing idea that students’ identification of a school
gaps in test scores (such as Black–White differ- as a racialized institution is a meaningful out-
ences) as dependent variables of interest. As come to consider in its own right. Specifically,
mentioned earlier, this research tradition has pro- the authors find that urban minority students who
duced somewhat mixed results. Advances in sta- attended affluent, White-dominated, suburban
tistical methods as well as the growing availability schools began to classify schools as “White” or
of rich administrative state data sets have come “Black” based on their academic quality. Ispa-
together to allow researchers to estimate better Landa and Conwell (2015) argue that the school
culture reinforced harmful racial stereotypes and
produced antagonism between Black students
attending “White” schools vs “Black” schools.
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 145
Such qualitative studies should motivate future dered or as a member of a particular racial/ethnic
quantitative research that considers how schools group. We argue that two pervasive habits in par-
themselves influence students’ definitions of race ticular are especially restricting. Specifically, the
and racial differences. overwhelming majority of theoretical and empir-
ical models rely on mutually exclusive defini-
In contrast to the large extant literature on tions of race/ethnicity and/or gender that are
school effects on racial/ethnic gaps in educational limited to a small or even binary choice set, and
outcomes (predominantly test scores), the litera- furthermore seldom allow for individuals to self-
ture that considers how variation in school con- identify in more complex and fluid ways, includ-
texts might shape gender inequality is currently ing acknowledging students’ identities at the
quite sparse. Yet a small emerging body of litera- intersection of gender and race/ethnicity. We
ture provides exciting new ground on which the unpack each of these issues in turn and in doing
field should start to build. For example, a recent so, advocate for future work that pushes the field
study by Legewie and Diprete (2015) used data forward.
from the National Educational Longitudinal
Study (NELS) to examine how high school aca- 6.4.3.1 M ulti-racial Youth
demic cultures and gender norms shaped gender A common refrain in the literature examining
disparities in students’ intentions to major in how racial and ethnic minorities are faring within
STEM fields. The authors found that schools that the U.S. educational system is that America is
had more academically rigorous STEM curricula, becoming increasingly diverse. Less often men-
as well as less gender segregated extra-c urricular tioned, however, is the fact that the multiracial
activities, produced more gender equitable pat- population within the U.S. is growing at a rate
terns of intended college major. Other studies three times faster than the general population
consider how the academic norms of peers within (Pew Research Center 2015). Currently, 7% of
a school (both friends and coursemates) contrib- American adults could be considered multiracial
ute to gender gaps in course-taking (Frank et al. and the percentage of U.S. born infants in this
2008; Riegle-Crumb et al. 2006), as well as how group has risen from 1% in 1970 to 10% today
the communities in which schools are embedded (ibid.). Lee and Bean (2004) attribute this growth
may also shape gender inequalities in course-tak- to immigration and increased rates of ethnic/
ing (Riegle-Crumb and Moore 2014). Such stud- racial inter-marriage and anticipate that 1 in 5
ies offer evidence that is consistent with theorists Americans may be multiracial in their self-
who argue that gender is socially constructed at identification by 2050. They argue that these
the local level through interactions and experi- population trends are not necessarily indicative
ences in the school, home, etc., and that to better of a declining significance of race/ethnicity in
understand inequality we need to consider varia- social inequality. Instead, following their analy-
tion in such contexts (Ridgeway and Correll 2004; sis of social indicators of status among multira-
Risman 2004). We suggest the need for more cial and immigrant Americans—including
research in this vein to advance our understanding patterns of intermarriage and identification—
of how gender inequality is reproduced, or alter- they conclude that “America’s changing color
natively in some contexts, interrupted. lines could involve a new racial/ethnic divide that
may consign many blacks to disadvantaged posi-
6.4.3 C onsidering Alternative tions qualitatively similar to those perpetuated by
Definitions of Gender the traditional black/white divide” (2004, p. 238).
and Race/Ethnicity Further, Black immigrants and interracial Black
students are typically advantaged over other
As a field, sociology of education has showed Black students by socioeconomic indicators
only limited innovation in how it both conceptu- including family resources and residential segre-
alizes and operationalizes individuals as gen- gation (Cokley et al. 2016). Thus changing pat-
146 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
terns of immigration and interracial family between one of two mutually exclusive catego-
formation continue to increase the numbers of ries of “male” or “female.” Thus there is arguably
multiracial Americans and may be shaping a whole new body of research that could be gen-
inequalities between and among ethnic/racial erated on what we might learn about inequality in
groups in important ways. educational outcomes if we moved away from a
strict binary definition of gender.
Despite these trends, empirical research
within sociology of education rarely considers 6.4.3.2 Racial/Ethnic and Gender
multiracial statuses in analyses of racial/ethnic Identity
disparities in educational outcomes. Instead,
analyses typically rely on mutually exclusive cat- Furthermore, we argue that more empirical
egories into which students are assigned as either research on educational inequality needs to con-
White, Black, Hispanic or Latino, Asian, and sider the importance of gender and racial/ethnic
Native American, with many studies focused identity, or how individuals perceive their own
only on contrasting a smaller subset of groups membership in certain categories and the impor-
against one another. There are a few notable tance they place on such membership. Gender
exceptions, however. Using nationally represen- theorists point out that while binary beliefs about
tative data from Add Health, Campbell (2009) gender continue to underlie social dynamics,
demonstrates that disparities in academic nevertheless the salience of individuals’ gender
achievement vary between mono- and multiracial membership and the way in which they define
students such that monoracial young adults’ out- their gender varies widely (Ridgeway and Correll
comes—including Hispanics’—are empirically 2004). For example, research by social psychol-
associated with their perceived race/ethnicity but ogists demonstrates that the importance individ-
for multiracial students, parental education and uals place on their gender identity can moderate
income are the most influential in explaining dis- differences in performance in gendered arenas.
parities. Additionally, a recent study by Irizarry Results of a quasi-experimental study by
(2015) argued for the importance of considering Schmader (2002) showed that women who
multi-dimensional measures of race in quantita- placed greater importance on their gender iden-
tive studies on inequality. The author examined tity performed worse to men when exposed to
teacher ratings of 14 subgroups characterized by stereotype threat, but women who placed less
race, ethnicity, and immigrant status, and found importance on their gender identity performed
substantial variation in how teachers rated stu- equally to men. Furthermore, research in this
dents’ behavior that would have been masked by area also highlights the reality that individuals
using conventional categories. have multiple identities that are important to
defining their sense of self, and that this can have
Taken together, these studies underscore the implications (either positive or negative) for
importance of taking multiracial backgrounds education-related outcomes. For example, an
seriously in specifying students’ race/ethnicity to experiment by McGlone and Aronson (2006)
better understand processes related to gaps in showed that women primed to think about their
educational outcomes. Nevertheless, studies like academic identity as high-p erforming students at
this are the exception rather than the norm within an elite college performed better in a spatial rea-
the sociology of education and much more work soning test than women primed to think about
is needed in this area. In her critique of past lit- their gender identity.
erature, Irizarry (2015) notes that quantitative
researchers are often hampered by their use of Other studies highlight the complexity of stu-
large data sets and surveys that do not allow stu- dents’ racial/ethnic identification. A study by
dents to self-identify as belonging to more than Herman (2009) collected data at several high
one racial/ethnic category. We point out that this schools in California and the Midwest using sur-
is even more true of gender, as the convention in veys that collected information about the race/
survey research is to ask students to choose ethnicity of students’ biological parents, and also
6 Gender and Racial/Ethnic Differences in Educational Outcomes: Examining Patterns, Explanations… 147
asked students to pick the racial/ethnic category Furthermore, we argue that the most powerful
with which they most identified. She found that new studies are those that not only take the inter-
among multi-racial youth, the choice of which section of gender and race/ethnicity seriously, yet
category best captured their identity significantly also consider how young people’s multiple iden-
predicted their academic performance in school. tities may be fluid and vary across context
Additionally, Herman (2009) found that about (Warikoo and Carter 2009). A recent qualitative
30% of the multi-racial youth changed their iden- study by Holland (2012) exemplifies this
tification over the 3 years of study, suggesting approach. Specifically, she examines the experi-
some fluidity over time. This is consistent with ences of male and female minority students in a
findings of a national study where students’ self- very particular context, a predominantly White
reports of their (single) racial/ethnic identity var- school that is part of a voluntary desegregation
ied over time for about 12% of those in the program, and finds that this context strongly
sample (Harris and Sim 2002). Awareness of shapes gender differences in students’ experi-
such issues have prompted some to call for more ences. While minority female students are pri-
studies that attempt to understand how race and marily excluded by both the academic and social
ethnicity may be contextually determined, and culture of the school, minority males were given
how this has likely implications for educational more opportunities for interracial contact and
inequality (Warikoo and Carter 2009). integration into the school through participation
6.4.3.3 Intersectionality in Context in sports. This was further facilitated by what
White students perceived as minority males’
Finally, as we discussed earlier, there is a need physical embodiment of a desirable, hip urban
for more research that considers the intersection culture. Another study by Ispa-Landa (2013) also
of gender and race/ethnicity with regard to stu- considers how race and gender intersect in an
dents’ educational experiences, as these are affluent White high school, and finds similar evi-
likely to have implications for educational out- dence of the greater social integration of minority
comes. The limited literature in this area is males compared to their minority female peers.
mostly qualitative and highlights how the mean- Yet a study by Wilkins (2014) examines the tran-
ings of gender and race/ethnicity come together sition to college and finds that the cultural expec-
in particular ways. For example, a recent study tations of Black masculinity that young men
by Ovink (2013) highlights how gendered confronted in college were much more restrictive
dynamics within Hispanic families are linked to than those they experienced as younger men in
both high academic expectations and “traditional high school, further underlining how school con-
roles” which in some ways advantages and in texts shape differentiated social experiences for
some ways strains Hispanic girls in comparison minority males and females.
to their brothers. By contrast, a study by Morris Together, these qualitative studies offer com-
(2007) finds that pressure from teachers for pelling evidence of the need to consider how the
Black girls to conform to expectations of lady- very meanings assigned to the categories of gen-
like behavior may undermine their indepen- der and race/ethnicity, and how young people
dence, confidence, and ultimately their academic choose to self-identify and make sense of such
performance. These studies echo earlier work by meanings, varies by both time and place. We sug-
Carter (2005), who found that differentiated gen- gest that the fluidity of individuals’ multiple gen-
der expectations in low-income urban communi- der and racial/ethnic identities has likely
ties resulted in Black and Hispanic males implications for inequality in educational out-
developing a “hard” posture that was sometimes comes. The empirical literature within the
at odds with social and academic expectations sociology of education should move forward to
within their schools. shed light on such issues.
148 C. Riegle-Crumb et al.
6.5 Concluding Remarks Aud, S., Wilkinson-Flicker, S., Kristapovich, P., Rathbun,
A., Wang, X., & Zhang, J. (2013). The condition of
In closing, we see many promising new areas that education 2013 (NCES 2013-037). Washington, DC:
can advance the field to better understand the cre- U.S. Department of Education, National Center for
ation, maintenance, and disruption of gender and Education Statistics. http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch.
racial/ethnic inequality. As discussed earlier, we Accessed 22 Feb 2016.
note that many existing large-scale longitudinal
surveys are quite limited in their treatment of Baron-Cohen, S. (2003). Essential difference: Male and
critical issues pertaining to gender and racial/eth- female brains and the truth about autism. New York:
nic identity, both in terms of how individuals Basic Books.
choose to identify themselves and in terms of the
centrality or saliency of these identities. Aiming Belasco, A. S., Rosinger, K. O., & Hearn, J. C. (2014).
to capture these dimensions through innovative The test-optional movement at America’s selective
survey items, for example, would be a welcome liberal arts colleges: A boon for equity or something
direction, as would research designs that sample else? Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis,
entire classrooms and/or schools and thus better 37(2), 206–223.
enable researchers to construct measures of stu-
dents’ local contexts. Finally, research designs Bennett, P. R., & Lutz, A. (2009). How African American
that better capture students’ thoughts and experi- is the net Black advantage? Differences in college
ences within the different contexts they occupy attendance among immigrant Blacks, native Blacks,
(e.g., science classroom, English classroom, and Whites. Sociology of Education, 82(1), 70–100.
after-school activity, home environment) would
provide rich data to explore the complex ways in Bielby, R., Posselt, J., Jaquette, O., & Bastedo, M. (2014).
which race/ethnicity and gender work to shape Why are women underrepresented in elite colleges and
young people’s educational outcomes. universities? A non-linear decomposition analysis.
Research in Higher Education, 55(8), 735–760.
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Undocumented Youth and Local 7
Contours of Inequality
Roberto G. Gonzales and Edelina M. Burciaga
Abstract graduation. Relatedly, the second axis of strat-
About 2.1 million undocumented immigrants ification is connected to where undocumented
are members of the 1.5-generation, meaning youth grow up and live. Ultimately, we show
they arrived in the United States as children that as undocumented young people make
and remain without legal permission. The critical transitions from childhood to adoles-
experiences of the undocumented 1.5-genera- cence and young adulthood, their immigration
tion have captured the sociological imagina- status is a central impediment to their hopes
tion, and research about undocumented and dreams. Almost as consequential, the
immigrant youth is a burgeoning and exciting resources and practices of their school dis-
field of study. This research captures both the tricts and the policies of their states condition
challenges that immigrant youth face growing their post high school lives.
up undocumented in the United States, and
also how they are responding to these chal- Approximately 11.1 million undocumented
lenges. This chapter draws from two different immigrants, largely from Mexico and Central
studies examining the experiences of undocu- America, currently live in the United States, the
mented youth in the United States, in order to result of decades of unauthorized migration and
understand this group’s conflicting experi- settlement and increasingly restrictive immigra-
ences of illegality and belonging. The data tion laws and policies (Passel and Cohn 2011;
presented in this chapter suggests that there Massey et al. 2002). About 2.1 million are mem-
are two key axes of educational stratification bers of the undocumented 1.5-generation
within the undocumented youth community. (Batalova and McHugh 2010), meaning they
The first is among those who complete high arrived in the United States as children and
school and attend college vs those who are remain without legal permission. Unlike the first-
considered early exiters, young people who generation who migrated as adults and the sec-
leave K–12 schools at or before high school ond generation, who are similarly children of
immigrants but are born in the United States,
R. G. Gonzales (*) undocumented youth and young adults have
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA developed values, identities, and aspirations that
e-mail: [email protected] are influenced by growing up American. But their
lives are also deeply impacted by the practical
E. M. Burciaga reality of living “illegally” in the United States.
University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA
e-mail: [email protected]
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 153
B. Schneider (ed.), Handbook of the Sociology of Education in the 21st Century, Handbooks
of Sociology and Social Research, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76694-2_7
154 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
The experiences of the undocumented Court held in Plyler v. Doe that undocumented
1.5-generation have captured the sociological immigrant youth had a right to a public education
imagination, and research about undocumented through high school (Olivas 2011). After high
immigrant youth is a burgeoning and exciting school, though, undocumented youth face more
field of study (Gonzales 2015). uncertain futures (Abrego 2006; Gonzales 2011;
Enriquez 2011). In addition, research suggests
Over the last 10 years, researchers have exam- that making it through high school, and to college,
ined a diversity of issues pertaining to undocu- is no easy feat for undocumented immigrant
mented young people, including the high school youth, as they face the same challenges that many
experiences of undocumented immigrant youth low-income students of color must also overcome
(Gonzales 2010a; Gonzales and Ruiz 2014; on the road to and through college (Abrego 2006;
Jefferies 2014); the effects of in-state tuition poli- Gonzales 2010b; Enriquez 2011; Gonzales and
cies on these young people (Conger and Chellman Ruiz 2014). A well-established body of research,
2013; Diaz-Strong et al. 2011; Dougherty et al. however, captures the unique role that an undocu-
2010; Flores 2010; Flores and Horn 2009; mented immigration status plays in shaping the
Kaushal 2008; Olivas 2004, 2009); efforts of lives and the futures of undocumented immigrant
higher education institutions and their staff to youth (Abrego and Gonzales 2010; Enriquez
integrate undocumented students (Gildersleeve 2011; Gonzales and Ruiz 2014). In this chapter,
and Ranero 2010; Gildersleeve et al. 2010; drawing from our own research and the vibrant
Gonzales 2010b), the identity development and field of studies about the experiences of undocu-
relationships among undocumented young peo- mented immigrant youth, we examine how laws
ple (Abrego 2008; Chang 2010; Ellis and Chen and policies have created conflicting experiences
2013; Mangual Figueroa 2012; Munoz and of illegality and belonging for undocumented
Maldonado 2012); the transitions undocumented young people living in the United States.
young people experience after high school
(Abrego 2006; Abrego and Gonzales 2010; 7.1 Growing Up Undocumented
Enriquez 2011; Gonzales 2011; Gonzales and in the United States
Bautista-Chavez 2012; Terriquez 2014); and their
civic and political participation (Enriquez 2014; Sociological inquiries into the immigrant experi-
Galindo 2012; Gonzales 2008; Negrón-Gonzales ence have long sought to understand and explain
2013, 2014; Nicholls 2013; Patler and Gonzales immigrant incorporation, largely around the
2015; Perez et al. 2009; Rincon 2008; Rogers questions of how immigrants and their children
et al. 2008; Seif 2004; Zimmerman 2012). are becoming a part of the United States. While
there is lively debate about how contemporary
This growing body of research expands under- processes of incorporation are taking place (Alba
standings of the immigrant experience by high- and Nee 2003; Bean and Stevens 2003; Kasinitz
lighting the profound impact of undocumented et al. 2008; Portes and Rumbaut 2001; Portes and
immigration status on the incorporation and Zhou 1993), these different theoretical approaches
mobility prospects of the undocumented to immigrant integration share a central concern,
1.5-g eneration (Abrego 2006; Gonzales 2007, that of membership. And while formal citizen-
2009, 2011). Beyond understanding the impact ship and the legal conferring of rights have been
of immigration status for social mobility and historically defined by immigration status, many
access, research about the experiences of undoc- immigration scholars have argued for a broader
umented youth has also addressed fundamental view of citizenship that recognizes community
questions about membership and exclusion. and cultural participation as forms of member-
ship (Bosniak 2008; Nakano Glenn 2011;
Because undocumented 1.5-generation young Blooemraad et al. 2008; Soysal 1994). Sometimes
adults arrive as children, often before the age of
14, primary and secondary schools are a key
socializing force (Gonzales 2010a; Gonzales
et al. 2015a). In 1982, the United States Supreme
7 Undocumented Youth and Local Contours of Inequality 155
referred to as cultural citizenship (Rosaldo 1994; shaping their social and educational opportuni-
Rosaldo and Flores 1997) or substantive citizen- ties. Perhaps more importantly, the Supreme
ship (Brubaker 1992; Marshall 1950), or a sense Court’s decision was also an implicit acknowl-
of belonging (Yuval-Davis 2006), these notions edgement of the settled lives that undocumented
of citizenship are meant to capture feelings of immigrant children and their families were living
membership that cannot be defined by the nation- in the United States. In fact, just 4 years later in
state (Nakano Glenn 2011; Blooemraad et al. 1986, the Immigration Reform and Control Act
2008). Developing in concert with this expanded (IRCA) was passed, granting citizenship to
view of citizenship, has been a close examination nearly 3 million undocumented immigrants liv-
of the ways in which policies and enforcement ing in the United States.
practices frame the everyday lives of undocu-
mented immigrants (Coutin 1999; DeGenova In the years since the Plyler v. Doe decision
2002; Ngai 2004; Willen 2007). The concept of and the passage of IRCA, the undocumented
“migrant illegality” emerges from this research, immigrant population has grown dramatically.
which is rooted in the everyday experiences of During the 1990s the number of people living in
undocumented immigrants, and captures a an unauthorized residency status increased by 3.5
“social relation that is fundamentally inseparable million, and between 2000 and 2013, it increased
from citizenship” (DeGenova 2002, p. 422). Like by 4 million (Rosenblum and Ruiz Soto 2015).
expanded notions of citizenship, the theoretical However, IRCA was the last major comprehen-
construct of “illegality” simultaneously encom- sive immigration reform to offer a pathway to
passes a relationship between the individual and citizenship, and the law ushered in an era of
the nation-state and the social and cultural reali- increased immigration enforcement (Golash-
ties of undocumented immigrants as members of Boza 2015; Kanstroom 2012). Nevertheless,
their communities. In this vein, the experiences undocumented immigrant families have become
of undocumented immigrant youth who were a part of the fabric of American life, settling into
raised in the United States and yet face signifi- everyday patterns of living, working, and attend-
cant constraints as they age because of their for- ing schools in their local communities (Chavez
mal legal status, have provided unique insight 1991, 1994). Still, they struggle to achieve full
into the contradictions of U.S. immigration law social incorporation precisely because their
and policy (Gonzales 2016). undocumented status narrowly circumscribes
their possibilities. This paradox is most acutely
For nearly a decade, scholars have made experienced by undocumented immigrant chil-
incredible strides in gathering systematic, empir- dren, many of whom have spent most of their
ical research about the constraints facing undocu- lives in the United States and have grown up with
mented immigrant youth. This research captures “American” values, identities, and aspirations.
both the challenges that immigrant youth face
growing up undocumented in the United States, Previous research finds that because school is
and also how they are responding to these chal- the major socializing institution for undocu-
lenges. The social, political, and educational inte- mented immigrant children, their experience of
gration of undocumented immigrant youth has “growing up undocumented” is complicated by
been profoundly shaped by the aforementioned the fact that for most of their lives they inhabit a
1982 Plyler v. Doe decision. In Plyler the legally protected space, the educational system.
Supreme Court argued that denying undocu- While public schools, writ large, are legally pro-
mented immigrant children a public education tected spaces, undocumented immigrant children
based on their immigration status would create an participate in an educational system that is strati-
educational underclass, and that this was not in fied (Gonzales 2010a; Gonzales et al. 2015a).
the best interest of undocumented children and Because immigration status and poverty are inti-
society. This decision highlighted the key role mately connected for this group, undocumented
that schools play in socializing children and in immigrant children often grow up in segregated
neighborhoods and attend high-poverty, low-
156 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
achieving schools (Gonzales 2016, Gonzales and school and attend college vs those who are con-
Ruiz 2014; Abrego 2006). These schools are sidered early exiters, young people who leave
often under-resourced, experience high teacher K–12 schools at or before high school graduation
turnover, and have inadequate facilities and learn- (Gonzales 2011, 2016). Relatedly, the second
ing materials. While these structural disadvan- axis of stratification is connected to where undoc-
tages impact the whole student body, the umented youth grow up and live. Previous
implications may be greater for undocumented research about the undocumented 1.5-generation
children precisely because of the additional layer has focused primarily on undocumented youth
of vulnerability due to their undocumented sta- living in California, arguably one of the most
tus. As previous research suggests, being undoc- welcoming regions in terms of postsecondary
umented increases children’s chances of “living access (Gonzales 2015; Gonzales et al. 2015a;
in the shadows”—as undocumented parents may Enriquez and Saguy 2016; Terriquez 2014;
be less likely to access an array of services that Abrego 2006). While there is emergent research
have traditionally benefitted immigrant families about the educational experiences of undocu-
(Yoshikawa and Kalil 2011; Menjívar and Abrego mented immigrant youth in regions other than
2009; Fortuny et al. 2007)—and negatively California, (see for example Cebulko 2014;
impacts school outcomes (Bean et al. 2011). For Gonzales and Ruiz 2014; Martinez 2014; Silver
this group, conflicting experiences of illegality 2012), the comparative data presented in this
and belonging start very early, as they often expe- chapter suggests that state and local contexts
rience integration in their schools but also wit- matter for the educational trajectories as well as
ness their parents’ legal exclusion (Dreby 2015). the experiences of illegality and belonging for
undocumented youth.
This chapter draws from two different studies
examining the experiences of undocumented 7.2 S tudying Undocumented
youth in the United States, in order to understand Youth
this group’s conflicting experiences of illegality
and belonging. Between 2003 and 2015, Roberto Until recently, there was scant available evidence
G. Gonzales carried out longitudinal research in from which to understand the lives of undocu-
the five-county Los Angeles metropolitan area. mented youth. Part of the difficulty inherent in
This chapter draws from his extensive fieldwork such an endeavor is the lack of reliable demo-
and interviews with 150 Mexican young adults graphic and empirical data. It is difficult to obtain
who came to the United States before the age of survey data about undocumented immigrants
12. Edelina Burciaga conducted ethnographic because they comprise a small share of the U.S.
research between 2009 and 2011 that consisted population. In addition, large-scale surveys gen-
of 20 interviews with undocumented youth activ- erally do not include questions about immigra-
ists involved in the Development Relief and tion status, so we do not have sufficient data from
Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act cam- which to develop a clear statistical portrait. And,
paign in Los Angeles and Orange County, surveying them through random dialing methods,
California. This chapter also draws from her respondent driven sampling, or other similar
comparative qualitative research conducted approaches can be costly and cost prohibitive,
between 2014 and 2015, including 70 interviews especially when trying to generate a national
with undocumented young people growing up sample.
and living in metropolitan Los Angeles, CA, a
traditional immigrant gateway, and Atlanta, GA, To move beyond conjecture requires a meth-
a new immigrant destination. odological approach that yields deep familiarity
with the lives of the undocumented young people
The data presented in this chapter suggests and their families. Foner (2003) makes a
that there are two key axes of educational stratifi- persuasive case for ethnography as a central
cation within the undocumented youth commu-
nity. The first is among those who complete high
7 Undocumented Youth and Local Contours of Inequality 157
method to engage and understand hard-to-reach Another strength of qualitative work about
populations. While this approach has its down- undocumented immigrant youth is that it is
side in that it limits the number of people a rooted in the everyday lived experience of this
researcher can study and the ability to make gen- group. Distinct from quantitative research, these
eralizations for broad populations, in-depth study studies reveal how undocumented youth negoti-
of a small number of people over time provides ate and manage their legal status in multiple fac-
insights into their beliefs, values, and social rela- ets of their lives. While most of this research
tions, as well as the complex ways they construct focuses on educational access, amongst the most
their identities in specific contexts (Foner 2003, formative experiences for undocumented young
p. 26). Relying on large-scale surveys may mean adults, this research also has revealed how undoc-
missing some of this important nuance or even umented youth make sense of their racial and eth-
getting it wrong. As Kubal (2013, p. 20) notes, nic identity, their mental health and well-being,
inquiry into the power of the state is most fertile and their own articulation of what it means to be
at “the level of lived experience, where power is an American (Patler and Pirtle 2018; Aranda
exercised, understood, and sometimes resisted.” et al. 2015). A key strength of the qualitative
Understanding how young adults experience and approach in this field has been that it centers the
push back against power requires a methodology voices and experiences of undocumented young
deeply rooted in their lives. adults. In doing so, it has highlighted the chal-
lenges that undocumented youth face, but also
As such, qualitative inquiry has provided their agency and power in the face of significant
valuable insight into how undocumented youth structural barriers. In contrast to public percep-
make meaning of their experiences of illegality. tions of undocumented young people as vulnera-
Ethnography and in-depth interviews, the most ble because of their legal status and age,
widely employed methods of data collection qualitative studies have shown that undocu-
with undocumented youth, are able to uncover mented youth activism is a vibrant aspect of the
how these young adults navigate the transition to undocumented youth experience in the United
and through adulthood, including their educa- States. To date, qualitative research about undoc-
tional trajectories. It is through ethnographic umented youth has made significant strides in
research that we have learned that the transition building theory about how legal status shapes
to illegality is a complex process. Because immigrant integration, especially in the area of
undocumented youth experience both social educational access, but the field remains open to
inclusion and legal exclusion (Gonzales 2011, new lines of inquiry.
2016), sociologists employing qualitative meth-
ods have learned that illegality shapes processes Research on undocumented young people
of incorporation differently for undocumented must continue to be methodologically rigorous
youth than for other immigrant youth. and address the multi-layered complexities that
Ethnography and interview based research has exist within this diverse population. Much of the
documented the differences in participation in current research has focused its attention on high
education and the labor market, hallmarks of academic achievers and a small group of undocu-
immigrant incorporation, as well as the symbolic mented youth who are connected to immigrant
and emotional implications of incomplete inclu- rights organizations or who are politically active.
sion. Capturing the affective component of the Indeed, high-achieving undocumented college
undocumented youth experience has been a key student activists are an attractive convenience
strength of the body of qualitative studies in this sample for university researchers, politicians,
area. While immigration scholars have been long and journalists. And they are also much easier to
concerned with sense of belonging, qualitative locate and with whom to gain cooperation. But
research about undocumented youth has signifi- this group is not representative of the undocu-
cantly extended sociological understandings of mented population as a whole. And if we limit
this complex process. our scope of inquiry to the most talented,
158 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
resourced, and connected among a particular mented immigrant youth transition into
community, what we know is inherently skewed. adulthood, there is a pattern of defining moments
Efforts to study inequality must seek to fully that shape their educational and social mobility,
understand a range of experiences, not merely as well as their sense of belonging (Gonzales
those of the most successful. We know very little 2011). Recent administrative action through the
about undocumented young people who do not introduction of the Deferred Action for Childhood
make the successful transition from high school Arrivals (DACA) program has opened some
to postsecondary education, and even less about short-term opportunities for undocumented
those with little to no K–12 experiences in the young adults as they transition to adulthood
United States. (Gonzales et al. 2014). The long-term benefits,
however, are still being understood.1 Announced
In addition, this research has focused primar- in 2012, DACA offers a stay of deportation and a
ily on undocumented young people living in work permit for eligible undocumented young
urban areas in states with a significant portion of people. While DACA has shifted the experiences
the undocumented immigrant population, includ- of undocumented young people in some ways for
ing California, New York, and Illinois. We are better, the transition to adulthood is still signifi-
just beginning to understand the consequences of cantly shaped by their undocumented status.
different state and local-level policies for undoc- Many undocumented young people grow up
umented youth living in new immigrant destina- aware of their undocumented status, as some of
tions. We still know very little about how their parents openly discuss and share with them
undocumented youth living in rural areas of the their efforts to fix their status. In addition, parents
United States are faring (for an exception see, often offer advice about how to handle questions
Gonzales and Ruiz 2014). Given the racial and about their undocumented status. Dolores, a
ethnic makeup of the undocumented immigrant 22-year-old college student who migrated to the
population more generally, much of the research United States with her mother at just 2 months
has captured the experiences of Latina/o undocu- old, was encouraged to have an alternate story
mented youth. There is still more to learn about about where she was born,
the experiences of undocumented youth from
other racial and ethnic groups (for exceptions In elementary school, my dad used to always tell
see, Cebulko 2014; Buenavista 2012). To be sure, me, “Don’t say that you were born in Mexico. Tell
studying hard-to-reach populations can be diffi- them that you were born in Texas and that you’re
cult, time consuming, and expensive, but scholars from Texas. Whatever you say, don’t tell them that
employing qualitative methods are uniquely you’re Mexican, and that you don’t have papers or
positioned to continue gathering data that high- anything like that.”
light the contours of how undocumented immi-
grant youth experience both exclusion and During our interview, Dolores, who had since
belonging, which we address in the sections that “come out” as an undocumented youth activist,
follow. shared that she and her mother had recently come
across an elementary school art project where
7.3 Formative Experiences Dolores had drawn the state of Texas as the place
of Illegality and Belonging she was born. While she and her mother could
laugh about the art project 15 years later, Dolores’
As undocumented children grow up, they con- experience reflects how early the conflicting
tinue to face barriers and challenges on the road experience of illegality and belonging starts for
to and through adulthood, as their family respon- undocumented immigrant youth.
sibilities increase but their opportunities for
social and economic mobility become more lim- 1 Efforts such as the National UnDACAmented Research
ited. Previous research finds that as undocu- Project, headed by Roberto G. Gonzales at Harvard
University, are collecting multi-sited, longitudinal data on
the impacts of DACA.
7 Undocumented Youth and Local Contours of Inequality 159
Victoria, who also lived in Orange County, ences in school and in their communities.
and migrated from Mexico at the age of 13, was Jennifer, who is 19 years old, migrated to Los
explicitly advised by her parents not to tell any- Angeles when she was 7 years old. She described
one that she “didn’t have papers.” Instead when her transition as less shocking than she expected,
asked if she was born in the United States, she primarily because she migrated to a predomi-
would say, “‘No, I was born in Mexico.’ But I nantly Latino neighborhood, or as she described
would leave it up them. I wouldn’t say, ‘Oh, I it,
don’t have papers.’” Other undocumented youth
learn about their status through their parents’ I would like to say [my neighborhood was] one
unsuccessful attempts to adjust their immigration hundred percent Latino. I mean when we got there
status. Jennifer, whose family overstayed their I was like, “Why is everyone speaking Spanish?” I
visa, shared that she grew up under the impres- was surprised because I was like, “Okay.” It was
sion that she, her sister, and her parents were comforting to go to a city where at least other peo-
going to be a “hundred percent and be legal ple knew the language that I spoke. I didn’t feel too
soon.” She shared, “That was the goal that—we out of place.
always talked about it, with our family, that by
now—like by college, I would have a green card. While Jennifer later described facing challenges
I would be legalized.” While Jennifer did not in school because she didn’t know English, like
grow up with explicit advice from her parents to many undocumented youth, she eventually tran-
hide her immigration status, Jennifer’s sense of sitioned out of English as a Second Language
belonging was informed in part by her parents’ classes into mainstream classes. Like Jennifer,
assurances that someday she would be a legal Edith and her family also migrated to Los Angeles
resident and have a green card. Like Jennifer, and she lived there until she was 12 years old.
Yadira, who immigrated on a 6-month visa with Edith recalled her earliest memories of living in
her mother and brother, watched her mother the greater Los Angeles area as happy. She
spend over ten thousand dollars to “fix their sta- shared,
tus.” After September 11, 2001, when Yadira was
in the third grade, her mother’s attorney informed I have really looked back at my childhood experi-
her that, “there wasn’t anything to do,” leaving ences, and I started reflecting and I started think-
Yadira’s family without any hope of adjusting ing, there were so many signs [that I was
their status. undocumented], but I did not put them together. I
think that is because I was, I had a really happy
These early experiences of knowing and yet childhood in Los Angeles, I sincerely mean that.
hiding their immigration status socialize undocu-
mented young people to understand to some While Edith attributed her happy childhood to the
degree that it is shameful to be undocumented. simple needs of a child, her experience reflects
Andrea, who lived in Orange County and would how during elementary and middle school, for
return to Mexico during the summers before undocumented youth a sense of belonging is cul-
2001, shared, tivated in part by just being able to be children.
Yeah, I definitely knew I was undocumented. Just Between the ages of 16 and 18, undocumented
because you had to hide—you had to lie. I remem- youth begin to wrestle with the full impact of
ber that I had this bracelet that had my initials and their undocumented status in their day-to-day
every time I would cross, I would have to take it lives. During this discovery stage (Gonzales
off. When it came to school or those kinds of 2011), undocumented young people begin to
things, I myself was ashamed to say it because I negotiate access to rites of passage such as get-
thought I was wrong. ting their first job, a driver’s license, and consid-
ering the college application process. As Dolores,
At the same time that undocumented youth inter- who we introduced earlier, shared during our
nalize the stigma of being undocumented, they interview,
also form a sense of belonging through experi-
I always knew [that I was undocumented] but it
didn’t start to affect me until high school, like
senior year. When everybody was applying to
160 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
c ollege. I thought maybe we had the money so that a 4-year university. Kelvin shared that after being
I could go to school. And that’s when reality hit. accepted to his dream college, the University of
Like, I can’t. My parents can’t afford it, I can’t get California, Berkeley, he still did not know
financial aid because I don’t have documentation. I whether and if he would be able to attend because
thought that was like, the end of my world. Because his financial aid offer was confusing. He shared,
I couldn’t go to college.
I was finally able to get on the [online financial aid]
Dolores—like many undocumented young portal. Then I saw the numbers. It was really con-
adults who attended college before California fusing. I just remember seeing like, “I need $5000
passed the state Dream Act which expanded by the time I get there and to attend UC Berkeley.”
access to state and institutional financial aid— I was like, “Whoa, I need to come up with $5000 in
faced significant financial barriers to college 2 or 3 months” so I was working almost 3 jobs
access.2 Despite the passage of the California because I wasn’t sure if it was going to be
Dream Act, which in some ways has eased the covered.
transition to college, undocumented youth still
navigate an array of confusing systems. Yesenia, Kelvin, like many other undocumented young
who was 20 years old at the time of our interview adults, lives in a financially vulnerable family. To
and had enrolled in a 4-year college in Southern cover the $5000 he thought he would have to
California, shared that when it was time to apply pay, he continued working his retail job and
for financial aid, her high school guidance coun- started to work a second job at a warehouse. He
selor was not able to help her. Instead her coun- said, “I was basically on my feet all day, just run-
selor focused on helping citizen students navigate ning around.” After several phone calls to the uni-
the financial aid process. During our interview, versity’s financial aid office, Kelvin learned that
she shared, he would be responsible for $2500 of his educa-
tional costs that year, an amount that was still
Then the day before I told her that I still needed steep but more manageable.
help with my Dream Act [application] and she just
told me there was nothing she could do about it In addition to state laws expanding or con-
because she was helping the FAFSA students…it stricting higher education access, DACA has
made me feel like I didn’t belong, like I was just shaped the transition out of high school as eligi-
another random student nobody cared about. So I ble undocumented young people are able to get
got mad [laughs] and I went to the library and I just driver’s licenses and can legally work, mitigating
did my application on my own. some of the isolation of the discovery stage. Yet,
research continues to show that undocumented
While in some states laws like the California young people still begin to feel the profound per-
Dream Act are easing the transition to college in sonal effects of living without “papers” in the
practical ways by providing financial support, United States as they transition out of the K–12
Yesenia’s experience shows that legal reforms are system (Gonzales and Bautista-Chavez 2012;
incomplete without training and preparation for Gonzales et al. 2016; Teranishi et al. 2015). Thus,
school agents who are most likely to interact with even with a provisional status, the post-DACA
undocumented students. For many undocu- period continues to be a critical moment in the
mented youth, who do attend college, the need lives of undocumented young people. Estimates
for informed and trained staff does not end in on high school to postsecondary transitions prior
high school, as exemplified by Kelvin, who grew to DACA suggest that about only 5–10% of
up in the Pomona Valley and attended community undocumented students attend college, with an
college for 4 years before applying to transfer to even smaller number actually graduating from
college (Passel 2003). While DACA has opened
2 The California DREAM Act refers to two state laws, up some important avenues that support a
California Assembly Bill 130 and Assembly Bill 131, that smoother college transition, it does not address
allow eligible undocumented students to apply for certain exclusions from financial aid. Moreover, in the
state public financial aid benefits. absence of federal immigration reform, immigra-
7 Undocumented Youth and Local Contours of Inequality 161
tion action at the state, county, and municipal lev- body can be especially detrimental to undocu-
els ensures that now, more so than ever before, mented students (Gonzales 2010a). Due to barri-
where one lives is consequential for experiences ers related to legal exclusions and limited family
of integration and incorporation. Therefore, the finances, undocumented students confront sev-
“transition to illegality” is also critically shaped eral barriers. Their parents often lack knowledge
by K–12 experiences and increasingly by which of the U.S. education system, and their own
region of the country they grow up in. unauthorized status keeps them in the shadows.
This can have a direct effect on children, as it
7.4 Divergent Experiences limits their access to critically needed services
of Illegality and Belonging (Hagan et al. 2011; Menjívar and Abrego 2012;
After High School Rodriguez and Hagan 2004) and leaves them
without the guidance and advocacy needed to
7.4.1 College-Goers and Early persist, graduate, and advance to college.
Exiters Undocumented students are also ineligible for
federal financial aid, limiting their pathways to
The transition to illegality does not play out in a college. While DACA has bridged some of the
singular manner among all undocumented ado- financial gap, by providing work authorization to
lescents. As immigration scholars have noted, its beneficiaries, it does not address financial aid
local institutions mediate immigrants’ incorpora- exclusions (Gonzales and Bautista-Chavez
tion prospects. While adult immigrants typically 2012). And for those without work authorization,
become incorporated into the U.S. economy once they leave school they exit a legally pro-
through the labor market, children are woven into tected space and enter a world of low-wage work
the country’s social and cultural fabric through and legal exclusions (Gonzales 2016).
schools (Gleeson and Gonzales 2012). Schools
provide immigrant students opportunities to learn In his longitudinal work on undocumented
the language, customs, and culture of their new immigrant youth, Gonzales (2010a, 2011,
country and to integrate into a peer group that 2016) has examined the diverging experiences
will experience common milestones together of two groups of differently achieving young
(Rumbaut 1997; Suárez-Orozco et al. 2009). people, the college-goers and the early exiters.
The college-goers benefited from positive
Participation in K–12 schools is undoubtedly school-based networks, nurturing relationships,
a defining and integrative experience. However, and avenues of access to academic counseling
undocumented students, like their peers, are edu- and advanced curricula. The early-exiters, on
cated in a stratified public educational system the other hand, did not make meaningful social
(Gonzales et al. 2015a) that structures opportuni- connections in high school, followed trajecto-
ties for its pupils. Increasingly, poor, minority, ries that ended in dead-end jobs, and exposed
and immigrant students attend high-poverty, low- them repeatedly to a harsher world of legal
achieving school districts with fewer resources exclusions. During high school, extra-familial
(Miller and Brown 2011). Operating with limited mentors, access to information about postsec-
resources, schools often make decisions regard- ondary options, and financial support for col-
ing how students are integrated into the larger lege helped college-goers to bypass some of the
curriculum and they determine student access to negative effects of undocumented status. These
scarce resources. These decisions benefit a small benefits enabled them to make transitions from
portion of students while disadvantaging large high school to college and to continue member-
segments. ship in an institution for which participation
was legally permissible. They also allowed
While access to school resources has an them to engage in meaningfully productive
important bearing on the success of all students, activities and to maintain positive aspirations
decisions that negatively affect a larger student about the future.
162 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
For those unable to make transitions to post- undocumented immigrants the ability to apply
secondary education, the onset of adult responsi- for driver’s licenses and in-state tuition at public
bilities coupled with legal exclusions dramatically universities. Others have taken a more restrictive
shrunk their worlds. Limited to low-wage approach—for example, by attempting to crimi-
employment and driven deeply into the shadows nalize unauthorized presence and exclude undoc-
by legal exclusions and fear of deportation, early umented immigrants from public universities.
exiters settled into lives of limitation and strug-
gle. As a result, their future aspirations flattened Neither undocumented nor DACAmented stu-
and stress and worry developed into mental and dents are eligible for federal financial aid.
physical ailments. However, opportunities for postsecondary educa-
tion still vary widely by state. In states with the
Undocumented youth enter the transition to most inclusive policies, undocumented and
adulthood with varying resources. Public schools DACAmented students receive in-state tuition
offer them access and inclusion. The school is rates and qualify for state-based financial aid.
arguably the single most important institution in Currently, 20 states offer in-state tuition to
their education and integration. However, as undocumented immigrant students, 16 by state
decades of research suggest, schools are not mer- legislative action (California, Colorado,
itocracies, and stratification within and across Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland,
school districts detours the postsecondary trajec- Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico,
tories of many undocumented students. As such, New York, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington)
the futures of undocumented students are tied to and 4 by state university systems (the University
school reform efforts. Similarly, state and local of Hawaii Board of Regents, University of
contexts have a great bearing on their futures. Michigan Board of Regents, Oklahoma State
Regents for Higher Education and Rhode Island’s
7.4.2 T he Influence of State Laws Board of Governors for Higher Education estab-
and Policies on Educational lished policies to offer in-state tuition rates to
Trajectories and Belonging undocumented immigrants). In addition, 5 states
(California, New Mexico, Minnesota, Texas, and
As previously mentioned, much of what sociolo- Washington) offer state financial assistance to
gists know about the undocumented undocumented students. In states with the most
1.5-g eneration has been based on research about exclusionary policies, these students may be
immigrants living in California, arguably an ideal barred from in-state tuition rates and scholar-
locale to study this group because of the long his- ships, be excluded from state-based financial aid
tory of immigrant flows to the state and the large and scholarships, or be banned from public uni-
size of the undocumented immigrant population versities and colleges entirely (e.g., Georgia and
(Gonzales 2016; Rumbaut 2012). In recent years, South Carolina). Presently, 6 states (Alabama,
undocumented immigrants have dispersed to new Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, Missouri, and South
destinations, including the Midwest and the Carolina) bar undocumented students from in-
South (Marrow 2011; Massey 2008; Waters and state tuition benefits, while public university sys-
Jiménez 2005; Singer 2004; Zuniga and tems in Alabama, South Carolina, and Georgia
Hernandez-Leon 2009). In the absence of a bar undocumented students from admission.
national comprehensive immigration reform,
states and localities have enacted a number of In addition, several states have passed laws
laws and policies that impact the day-to-day lives providing additional access to DACA beneficia-
and incorporation of undocumented immigrants, ries, otherwise unavailable to undocumented
resulting in a variegated legal climate (Olivas immigrants without DACA. While state govern-
2008; Walker and Leitner 2011). Some states ments cannot directly alter DACA itself, they can
have broadened access to the polity—offering control the state benefits available to individuals
receiving deferred action. The driver’s license is
an important example. Rules for governing
7 Undocumented Youth and Local Contours of Inequality 163
eligibility for driver’s licenses vary by state, and our interview, which we conducted at the dining
currently, only 12 states plus the District of table of his parents’ home, he shared that it was
Columbia offer undocumented immigrants eligi- during 10th grade that he became serious about
bility for driver’s licenses.3 However, otherwise- attending college. He was looking forward to
eligible DACA recipients who obtain an starting the college application process, but after
employment authorization document and a Social learning that the ban would prevent him from
Security number are now able to obtain a license attending college in Georgia, he fell into a depres-
in every state. This benefit provides DACA hold- sion. He stopped doing his homework and he let
ers the ability to travel freely and safely to school his grades slip. Despite this setback, in his senior
or work, a significant form of relief for DACA year, with prodding from a good friend, Saul
beneficiaries and their families. decided to explore community college as an
option. He visited the admissions office of
Higher education is an important area where Southern Crescent, the closest 2-year college,
DACA beneficiaries have added layers of access. and learned the following:
In addition to being able to legally work to help
pay for college, DACA beneficiaries in certain So we went there and like asked about the like
states now have significant advantages over those applications, and then that’s when I found out
without DACA. For example, several states, again, they were like “Well, these are the in-state
including Arizona, have passed state legislation tuition rates, but this is what you have to pay, out-
allowing eligible DACA beneficiaries to pay of-state tuition, which is like 3 or 4 times more,”
tuition at in-state residency rates. Also, South and I was like “Wow, this is ridiculous”…I was
Carolina, which otherwise bans undocumented like, I’m not paying this, especially for a technical
students from enrolling in its public higher edu- school.
cation systems, allows DACA beneficiaries to
enroll. In addition, certain postsecondary institu- Several of the respondents in Georgia echoed
tions offer scholarships to DACA beneficiaries Saul’s statement that the financial challenge of
that are not open to other undocumented immi- paying out-of-state tuition prevented them from
grants. DACA has also opened up possibilities attending even 2-year colleges. For example,
for beneficiaries to pursue graduate studies. Georgia Perimeter College, the 2-year university
Many graduate programs offer funding packages in the Atlanta area, would cost an undocumented
to their graduate students that include teaching or immigrant $21,000 for 2 years versus the $7600
research assistantships and fellowships; each are in-state tuition rate.
considered a form of university employment.
And, many medical schools have opened up At the time of his interview, Omar had been
opportunities to DACA beneficiaries. But univer- out of high school for 2 years. While he attended
sity employment and participation in residency the University of North Georgia directly after
programs is tied to the ability to lawfully work. high school, he was not able to continue because
Without work authorization, many of these he could not meet the costs of tuition, fees, and
opportunities would not be available and, as such, books. When we spoke, he was taking a year off
a range of graduate programs would not be an from the University of North Georgia, and was
option for DACA beneficiaries. planning to work while he attended the less
expensive technical college in his community:
Saul, a lanky 20-year-old, was in the 11th
grade when Policies 4.1.6 and 4.3.4, collectively It’s hard for me to pay for college. Last year I
known as “the Georgia ban,” took effect. During attended University of North Georgia, and it was
hard cuz I was paying out of state tuition. I paid
3 These states are: California, Colorado, Connecticut, five grand for twelve credits…and here in Tech I
Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, tried to apply earlier to enter spring semester but
Nevada, Utah, Vermont, and Washington. apparently their policies have changed and now
even for [DACA] students from the beginning,
they’re charging them as international. So that’s
three to four times.
164 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
As Omar emphasized, even attending Athens to be close to their parents, of whom many were
Tech was out of his financial reach. As such, he also undocumented.
was actively saving to return to college. He man-
aged to save about $150 from each paycheck for While the Board of Regents policies presented
college, but could not maintain the level of sav- structural barriers to college completion and
ings because his father, also an undocumented entry for undocumented young adults, these poli-
immigrant, was out of work. So Omar contrib- cies also had symbolic implications. During
uted a portion of his weekly earnings to his fam- interviews many undocumented young adults
ily for food and bills, reducing the amount of expressed feelings of rejection, disappointment
money he could save in order to return to UNG. and frustration over these policies. Like Saul,
who fell into a depression upon learning that his
In addition to the policies explicitly excluding legal status would make it difficult for him to
undocumented immigrants from Georgia public attend college, other undocumented young adults
universities, the Board of Regents announced in described similar instances of depression both
2015 that some smaller colleges would merge during and after high school (Gonzales et al.
with larger colleges in order to streamline admin- 2013). Jovan, for example, shared that at a party
istrative costs. Two of the colleges that merged during his senior year of high school,
were Georgia Perimeter College, the 2-year col-
lege in the Atlanta area, and Georgia State I do remember this one time I went to a party, my
University, one of the five colleges included in friends and me were drinking, and you know hav-
the ban. The announcement created uncertainty ing fun, and, I just broke down crying in front of
about whether or not undocumented young adults them because I told them, you know I couldn’t go
would also be banned from Georgia Perimeter to school, you know I couldn’t do the military, I
College. Jovan, a 23-year-old DACA beneficiary couldn’t do all of this, and I felt just stuck…
was working in retail and not enrolled in college
although he hoped to be. During our interview, he For Jovan, who went to a predominantly White
shared that the merger created uncertainty for high school in a suburb of Atlanta, this incident
him and other students who might consider was one of the first times he disclosed his immi-
attending Georgia Perimeter, gration status to his friends, many of whom were
not undocumented. While most of his friends
…There is Georgia Perimeter, but, it’s soon merg- planned to attend technical or state colleges,
ing with Georgia State University, and that’s one of Jovan felt stuck and excluded from the opportu-
the schools where I’m banned from, so I don’t nity to “go off and leave this small town to find
know if they are going to continue the same poli- something…figure out life.” Similarly, both
cies of banning us from that. So it’s in a limbo alto- Diana and her younger sister, who was also
gether, and I don’t really want to put up a fight with undocumented, worked hard in high school to
that… take full advantage of the educational opportuni-
ties that were available to them, including taking
The consolidation of several campuses across the Advanced Placement courses. Diana who
state created a sense of anxiety about narrowing described herself as a “very hard worker,” shared
educational opportunities. While Policy 4.3.4 that she regularly worked 50–60 h a week as a
(out-of-state tuition) made the cost of attending server at a local restaurant, both to contribute to
2- and 4-year colleges nearly impossible for her family’s household income and to be able to
undocumented young adults, Policy 4.1.6 (ban save enough to eventually go to college. Because
from top five colleges and universities) height- of her full-time work schedule, her interview
ened the negative impact of seemingly neutral took place on her one day off. During our inter-
policies like the consolidation of smaller colleges view she shared,
and universities with larger ones. Participants
shared that like most of their citizen classmates, It’s just the limitation of what I can do frustrates
they preferred to stay in the state of Georgia to me. It’s frustrating. That’s how I feel. I feel frus-
attend college. This was due in part to their desire trated. I know for a fact that my parents do too.
They want us to go to school. They came here to
7 Undocumented Youth and Local Contours of Inequality 165
give us a better life, to get a better education. The 7.5 E ducational Exclusion
fact that I can’t get it frustrates me. It makes me and Belonging
angry. I can’t do anything about it. I don’t have a
say in the government. I can’t vote. I can’t. It’s my This chapter captures the varied educational
country, too. This is all I know. The fact that they’re experiences of undocumented immigrant youth
limiting me to not only my potential, my success, as they navigate the transition out of the legally
my education, my right as a human being to get protected spaces of the K–12 system and into
that education frustrates me. adulthood. As this chapter shows, schools are not
only crucial for undocumented immigrant youth’s
During our interview, it was clear that Diana educational mobility, but they are also a signifi-
was proud of her work ethic and her contribu- cant socializing institution. It is in America’s
tion to her family’s economic well-being. But public schools where undocumented immigrant
like many of the undocumented young adult youth learn and begin to internalize both a sense
respondents in Georgia, she was frustrated that of belonging and exclusion. In addition, schools
her intellect and her work ethic were not being are nested within a broader web of immigration
used to improve her own and her family’s life. laws and policies that have become increasingly
In short, Diana and other undocumented youth hostile. These laws and policies, in conjunction
felt that they were failing not only themselves, with the complete absence of a comprehensive
but also their parents. Like Diana, Ines worked immigration reform for the nearly 11 million
between 60 and 70 h per week as a manager at a undocumented immigrants living in the United
pizzeria. Her work schedule was demanding and States, has created a variegated landscape of
unpredictable, and because of this, her interview belonging and exclusion for undocumented
took place at the restaurant when her shift was immigrants broadly, and more specifically for
over. Ines, who shared that she had done very undocumented immigrant youth. Despite the
well in high school, wanted to attend a culinary Plyler v. Doe holding in which the Supreme
arts program to become a pastry chef. While she Court explicitly sought to avoid creating an edu-
knew that there were different routes she could cational underclass, many undocumented immi-
take to achieve her goals, she wanted to attend a grant youths find it difficult to realize the promise
culinary arts program to give herself the best of Plyler. The temporary relief provide by DACA
chance of securing a good job in a competitive has in some ways eased the transition to adult-
industry. Nevertheless, attending a culinary arts hood for this group. However, their long-term
program at a technical college or a culinary futures are still uncertain.
school was impossible because of the cost.
During our interview, it became apparent that And while there have been considerable
being prevented from attending school not only strides in gathering systematic, empirical research
meant that she felt stuck but it was also taking on the contradictory circumstances that frame the
an emotional toll on Ines. Through tears, she lives of undocumented immigrant youth, there
said, “I always get teary, because it means a lot has been considerable focus on the experiences
to me. It means a lot to me to be able to go to of college-bound and high-achieving youth. In
school. I felt like, in a way, I felt like I had let this chapter, we draw from our own work to
my parents down, because I wasn’t able to do introduce additional axes of stratification and
more. But [my mom] was like, ‘You don’t have show how they play out differently across educa-
to go to school to be good.’” For Ines and many tional attainment and place. Highlighting the
of the other undocumented young adults inter- experiences of differently achieving young peo-
viewed in Georgia, the Board of Regents poli- ple is key to painting a more complete picture of
cies not only created a structural barrier to the educational trajectories and experiences of
upward mobility but also had significant impli- undocumented immigrant youth.
cations for their sense of belonging.
166 R. G. Gonzales and E. M. Burciaga
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Sociological Perspectives on 8
First-Generation College Students
Irenee R. Beattie
Abstract Being the first-generation in my family to go to
First-generation college students (FGS)— college is amazing. It means a lot to me because I
postsecondary students whose parents did make my family proud and also because I am
not complete college degrees—are a theo- proving to my family and everyone else that I can
retically critical group for understanding reach my goals and dreams that I work so hard to
social inequality in higher education and achieve. My mom has helped me so much along
processes of social mobility. They are suc- the way because she teaches me valuable lessons
cessful in navigating into higher education and makes me believe more in myself.
institutions in spite of a lack of parental —Odalize from Garland, TX
experience, and may derive particular bene-
fits from their social origins in terms of …I’m [a first generation high school senior] from
motivation and novel sources of support. a low-income area, and my mom knows little about
However, college experiences can prove college. So, I had to do my college research on
challenging for FGS due to more limited my own. I go to an underfunded public school, so
social and cultural capital. Sociologists have my guidance counselor isn’t very helpful. I’ve
arrived relatively late to the study of this struggled a ton during high school, with issues
group. I argue that sociological perspectives such as bullying and homelessness. Today, I’m a
can add to our understanding of FGS by happy, successful student with a 90 GPA. I’ve been
investigating the ways that first-generation accepted into two schools so far, and I’m waiting
status intersects with other dimensions of on four more… Being a first generation student is
identity and experience (race/ethnicity, gen- difficult... But, it also gives us motivation to con-
der, social class, sexuality, immigration sta- tinue our education, so we’re able to have easier
tus, etc.). Sociological insight can also lives than our parents.
further develop understandings of how insti- —Nina from Garfield, NJ1
tutional variation as well as institutional
neglect and abuse shape FGS experiences As these quotes from first-generation college
and outcomes. students illustrate, young adults who are the
first in their families to attend college experience
both barriers and benefits from their situations.
On one hand, they often attend more poorly
I. R. Beattie (*) 1 Quotes from: More Stories | I’m First. (n.d.). Retrieved
Department of Sociology, University of California, January 20, 2016, from http://www.imfirst.org/more/
Merced, CA, USA
e-mail: [email protected]
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 171
B. Schneider (ed.), Handbook of the Sociology of Education in the 21st Century, Handbooks
of Sociology and Social Research, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76694-2_8
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