Effects of Race Matching on Students' Sense of Belonging and Academic Achievement

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Date

2024-01-09

Authors

Cochrane, Cherice

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Volume Title

Publisher

University of Oregon

Abstract

Race matching has positive effects on students’ academic achievement and self-rated sense of belonging. However, when most public-school teachers identify as White, race matching is not always possible at the individual level. The present study extends current research to explore the effects of school-level diversity and race matching. Do the benefits of individualized student-teacher race matching extend to all students when the diversity of a school staff more closely matches the student body? Selected students and staff from elementary and high schools in a large public school in Oregon participated in the study. Utilizing a mixed methods design, quantitative academic achievement data and quantitative sense of belonging data were collected for students in grades 4-5, and qualitative data were collected for staff and 18-year-old students in high school. Statistically significant correlations were found between students’ sense of belonging and oral reading fluency scores, and statistically significant differences existed between Latine and White students’ academic scores. Keywords: race matching, sense of belonging, academic achievement, race, schools

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Keywords

academic achievement, race, race matching, schools, sense of belonging

Citation