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13 Dec 2011
Report

Access to Algebra I: The Effects of Online Mathematics for Grade 8 Students

Jessica Heppen, Kirk Walters, Ann-Marie Faria, and Nicholas Sorensen

This study, conducted by AIR and Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) for the Regional Educational Laboratory Northeast and Islands (REL-NEI), tested the impact of expanding access to Algebra I to grade 8 students by offering an online course in schools that do not typically offer Algebra I in grade.

The study, the first randomized control trial of its kind to examine the impact of an online Algebra I course on students’ mathematics achievement and future math course enrollment, was conducted in Vermont and Maine. A total of 1,885 students from 68 schools participated in the study. Ninety percent of the schools were in rural communities. Analyses of longitudinal data from the ECLS-K study (U.S. Department of Education 2009) indicate that a significant proportion of schools do not offer Algebra I to grade 8 students (approximately 16% nationally), and moreover, that the proportion of schools in rural areas with limited access to Algebra I is higher than in urban and suburban areas.

The results indicate that offering Algebra I as an online course to algebra-ready (AR) students is an effective way to broaden access in schools that do not typically offer Algebra I in grade 8. Taking this course significantly affected students’ algebra achievement at the end of grade 8 and increased their likelihood of participating in an advanced coursetaking sequence in high school. The course had no discernible side effects on AR students’ general mathematics achievement at the end of grade 8 or any negative effects on N–AR students’ measured outcomes.

The report was authored by Jessica B. Heppen, AIR; Kirk Walters, AIR; Margaret (Peggy) Clements, EDC; Ann-Marie Faria, AIR; Cheryl Tobey, EDC; Nicholas Sorensen, AIR; and Katherine Culp, EDC. It was prepared for the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, under contract ED-06C0-0025.
 

PDF icon Access to Algebra I: The Effects of Online Mathematics for Grade 8 Students

Related Work

28 Nov 2012
Report

Research Brief: Broadening Access to Algebra I: The Impact on Eighth Graders Taking an Online Course

To study the effectiveness of using an online course to broaden eighth graders’ access to Algebra I, AIR and the Education Development Center performed the first rigorous evaluation of the impact of an online course on student outcomes. This three-year study examined the effects of offering a fully online Algebra I course to eighth-grade students in mostly rural schools in Maine and Vermont.
Topic: 
Education, Mathematics Education
13 Dec 2011
News Release

Online Algebra Course Leads to Higher Achievement

Eighth-grade students who are "algebra ready" and take an online Algebra I course because their schools do not offer the class, outperform their peers in algebra knowledge and are twice as likely to take advanced mathematics classes in high school. The findings are in a rigorous new federally funded study conducted by AIR and the Education Development Center, Inc. for the Regional Educational Laboratory Northeast and Islands.
28 Nov 2012
News Release

Research Brief Outlines Findings Examining the Impact on Students Who Took Online Algebra I

AIR is releasing an easy to understand research brief describing the results of a rigorous, federally funded study of students who took an online Algebra I course. The study found that eighth-grade students who are “algebra ready” and took an online course outperformed their peers in algebra knowledge and were twice as likely to take advanced mathematics classes in high school. The study is the first of its kind to examine the impact of an online Algebra I course on student achievement.

Further Reading

  • Online Algebra Course Leads to Higher Achievement
  • Research Brief: Broadening Access to Algebra I: The Impact on Eighth Graders Taking an Online Course
  • Course Progression for Students Who Fail Algebra I in Ninth Grade
  • Getting Back on Track: Who Needs to Recover Algebra Credit After Ninth Grade?
  • Getting Back on Track: What Math Content Is Taught and Learned in Online and Face-to-Face Algebra Credit Recovery Courses?
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