Effects of high school location on first-year students’ research confidence and college readiness

Study conducted by Matt Benzing, Abigail Morgan, and Jerry Yarnetsky of Miami University

Abstract

In Ohio, K-12 public school funding models have been ruled unconstitutional four times due to the great discrepancies among districts from different economic and geographic areas. One of these discrepancies is often the availability of library services. In our research, we aimed to examine how these discrepancies may have altered preparedness for college-level research for incoming first-year students from various backgrounds. 

Introduction

Research Slide Deck

Citations

1. Jackson, V. (2016). Number of Ohio’s vital school professionals dwindling: Student health, career preparation, art exposure suffer (ED573586). Policy Matters Ohio; ERIC. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED573586.pdf

2. National Center for Education Statistics. (2015-2016). National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS): Number of schools with a library media center and number of full–time and part–time school technology specialists and librarians/library media specialists, by selected school characteristics: 2015–16 [Data set]. U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/ntps/tables/ntps1516_20180119002_s1n.asp

3. National Center for Education Statistics. (2017-2018). National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS): Percentage of public schools with a library media center, percentage with students attending across 12 months, percentage that offered any courses entirely online, and percentage that offered a foreign language immersion program, by state: 2017–18 [Data set]. U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/ntps/tables/ntps1718_table_03_s1s.asp

4. Napp, C. (2020). DeRolph v. State school funding case (Members Briefs Volume 133, Issue 10). Ohio Legislative Service Commission. https://www.lsc.ohio.gov/documents/reference/current/membersonlybriefs/133%20DeRolph%20v%20State%20School%20Funding.pdf 

Related links

Ohio's Public School Funding:

1. Important Ohio education-related court cases (via Education Law Center)
2. DeRolph v. State, 97 Ohio St.3d 434, 2002-Ohio-6750  (Ohio Supreme Court decision text)
3. Phillis, W. (2005). Ohio's School Funding Litigation Saga: More Money and Some New Buildings but the Same Unconstitutional School Funding Structure. Journal of Education Finance, 30(3), 313-320. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40704238

Rural Students

1. Griffith, K. M. (2017). Beating the odds: A multi-site case study of college preparation in rural, western New York (10629055) [Doctoral dissertation]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

School Libraries and College Readiness

1. Lance, K.C. & Kachel, D.E. (2018).  Why school librarians matter: What years of research tell us. Phi Delta Kappan, 99 (7), 15-20. http://kappanonline.org/lance-kachel-school-librarians-matter-years-research/

2. D’Orio, W. (2019, September 6). School librarians poised to support student success, information literacy survey shows. School Library Journal. https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=School-librarians-poised-to-support-student-success,-information-literacy-survey-shows

3. D’Orio, W. (2019, September 4). Lacking research skills, students struggle. School librarians can help solve the college readiness gap. School Library Journal. https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=lacking-research-skills-students-struggle-school-librarians-solve-college-readiness-gap-information-literacy

Contact Us

• Abigail Morgan, social sciences librarian at Miami University, morgan55@miamioh.edu
• Jerry Yarnetsky, web services librarian at Miami University, jerry.yarnetsky@miamioh.edu