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There is growing interest in the relation between the racial achievement gap and the racial discipline gap. However, few studies have examined this relation at the national level. This study combines data from the Stanford Education Data Archive and the Civil Rights Data Collection and employs a district fixed effects analysis to examine whether and the extent to which racial discipline gaps are related to racial achievement gaps in Grades 3 through 8 in districts across the United States. In bivariate models, we find evidence that districts with larger racial discipline gaps have larger racial achievement gaps (and vice versa). Though other district-level differences account for the positive association between the Hispanic-White discipline gap and the Hispanic-White achievement gap, we find robust evidence that the positive association between the Black-White discipline gap and the Black-White achievement gap persists after controlling for a multitude of confounding factors. We also find evidence that the mechanisms connecting achievement to disciplinary outcomes are more salient for Black than White students.

Recent evidence points to the early elementary grades as a pivotal point for the development of science learning trajectories and achievement gaps. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, this study estimates the degree to which time spent on science and the breadth of science topics/skills covered predict science achievement in the earliest grades of elementary school. Using regression along with school fixed effects and student fixed effects models, we find suggestive evidence in some models (student fixed effects and regression with observable controls) that time on science instruction is related to science achievement but little evidence that the number of science topics/skills covered are related to greater science achievement. These results are generally consistent across student subgroups. We discuss the implications for early science policy and practice.

Background: There is a well-documented divide between education research and practice. In 2004, Mosteller, Nave, and Miech argued for a focus on the research abstract, particularly structured abstracts, to improve the translation of research into practice. Since their call, no study has systematically examined the quality of abstracts in education research or the degree to which structured abstracts are utilized. Purpose: This study addresses two questions. First, what are the characteristics of the research abstracts required by journals in the field of education research? Second, to what extent do research abstracts in the field of education research contain the basic components of a research study? Data: Original data are drawn from the top 150 education research journals. Data include the instructions to authors regarding abstracts for each journal (n = 150) and a random sample of abstracts (n = 189). Methods: Journal instructions and abstracts were coded. Codes included whether they were structured and whether they included components of a research study, such as the data or findings. Results: A nontrivial proportion of abstracts fail to include important components of a research study. More than one in three lacked information regarding the background, and a similar proportion lacked information on conclusions. Over one quarter omitted information regarding the data, and a similar proportion lacked information on methodology. Only 7% of the top 150 journals explicitly require a structured abstract. Conclusions: The quality of abstracts in educational research could be improved. Suggestions for improving abstracts, such as shifting toward structured abstracts, are offered.

Leveraging data from two nationally representative cohorts from the ECLS-K (Early Childhood Longitudinal Study--Kindergarten), we examine the types of transition practices that schools use to ease children's adjustment to formal schooling. The transition to kindergarten is a critical juncture in a child's life that entails a host of social, behavioral, and academic changes. We find a modest increase between the two cohorts in the number of transition practices that schools offer children and their families, although we also find that fewer of these practices are offered in traditionally underserved schools. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of these findings and suggest areas for future research.