Two Ecological Models of Academic Achievement Among Diverse Students With and Without Disabilities in Transition

Abstract

School experiences can have positive effects on student academic achievement, yet less is known about intermediary processes that contribute to these positive effects. We examined pathways between school experiences and academic achievement among 117 low-income urban students of color, many with disabilities, who transitioned to other schools following a school closure. Using structural equation modeling, we tested two ecological models that examined the relationships among self-reported school experiences, school support, academic self-efficacy, and school-reported academic achievement. The model in which the relationship between school experiences and academic achievement is mediated by both school support and academic self-efficacy, and that takes previous academic achievement into account, was an excellent fit with the data. The roles of contextual and individual factors as they relate to academic achievement, and the implications of these findings, are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• academic achievement
• disabilities
• school experiences
• school support
• school transitions

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We sincerely thank DePaul University and the participating school district for their valuable support of this project, especially staff members Teresa Garate, Renee Mitchell, Pam Wells, and Stacy Norris. Additionally, we would like to thank members of the DePaul research team who helped to collect, analyze, and organize the data used in this study: Judah Viola, Ronald Crouch, Anna Parnes, Sangeeta Parikshak, Luciano Berardi, Benjamin Graham, Oscar Donoso, Jessica Plum, Praveena Gadiraju, and Irma Porcic. We also thank the students who participated in our research project. Without their insight and advice, this research would not have been possible.

Notes

Note. ^a Weighted GPA in the semester before the transition. ^b Weighted GPA in the semester following the transition.

*p < .05 level (2-tailed). **p < .01 level (2-tailed).