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  • Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes
19 Aug 2016
Brief

Deeper Learning and College Attendance: What Happens After High School?

Updated Findings From the Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes

Rui Yang, Kristina Zeiser, and Nina Siman

What do today’s students really need to learn to succeed not only in the classroom, but also later in college, careers, and society? At a time when new standards for college and career readiness pivot to a new focus on complex thinking tasks and 21st Century learning, the answer to this question has become critically important.

The Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes, funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, assessed whether students who attended high schools that focused on deeper learning got more opportunities for deeper learning and whether they had better outcomes than students in comparison high schools. In an updated set of analyses from the study, AIR found that students who attended high schools focused on deeper learning were more likely to enroll in four-year institutions and in college in general than their peers who attended comparison schools.

This brief describes further analysis of the effect of attending a deeper learning network high school on students’ college enrollment based on updated postsecondary data.

See the original report, Evidence of Deeper Learning Outcomes (September 2014), and the first set of updated findings, Graduation Advantage Persists for Students in Deeper Learning Network High Schools (March 2016). For an overview of all research findings from the study, as of August 2016, see the Summary of Study Results - Does Deeper Learning Improve Student Outcomes? (PDF).

Key Findings

  • Students who attended network high schools were significantly more likely to enroll in college than were students in non-network high schools.
  • Students who attended network high schools were significantly more likely to enroll in four-year institutions and selective four-year institutions than were students who attended non-network high schools.
  • The estimated effects of attending a network high school on postsecondary enrollment differed across the pairs of network and non-network high schools.
  • The effects of attending a network high school on postsecondary enrollment were stronger for students who entered high school with lower achievement than for those who entered with higher achievement.
  • Among students who ever enrolled in college, students who attended network high schools were significantly more likely to enroll in college during the fall immediately after expected high school graduation, but rates of retention and consecutive enrollment were similar for students who attended network schools and nonnetwork schools.

These findings contribute to a growing body of evidence that students who attend deeper learning network high schools experience more positive academic outcomes than students who attend non-network high schools. More research is needed to better understand how deeper learning affects students’ longer term outcomes (such as postsecondary degree completion), and to identify which student experiences in high school and which deeper learning competencies are associated with on-time high school graduation and postsecondary outcomes.

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Creative Commons License
Deeper Learning and College Attendance: What Happens After High School? and its technical appendix by American Institutes for Research is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available from AIR at copyright_PS@air.org.

PDF icon Brief: Deeper Learning and College Attendance - What Happens After High School? (PDF)
PDF icon Technical Appendix: Deeper Learning and College Enrollment What Happens After High School? (PDF)

Related Projects

Project

Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes

AIR is studying the ways in which schools provide opportunities for students to acquire complex knowledge and deeper learning skills. Funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the study examines the impact of these opportunities on how students develop five dimensions of deeper learning: mastery of core content, critical thinking skills, collaboration skills, communication skills, and independent learning skills.

Related Work

Kristina Zeiser
31 Aug 2016
Blog Post

Three Studies Show Impact of Deeper Learning

Today, success isn’t just about what you know. It’s also about how quickly you can grasp and apply new knowledge. That’s the theory behind “deeper learning,” a broad term encompassing the goals of an increasing number of U.S. schools and school systems. In a series of reports, researchers at AIR examined whether and how opportunities for deeper learning change high school graduation and college attendance rates for students. In this blog post, Kristina Zeiser, Jordan Rickles, and Mette Huberman share the studies’ results.
19 Aug 2016
News Release

Students in Deeper Learning Network High Schools Significantly More Likely to Enroll in College, AIR Study Finds

Students who attend “deeper learning” network high schools are significantly more likely than their peers in other schools to enroll in college, particularly in four-year and selective institutions, according to a new study by AIR. The brief, funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, focused on more than 20,000 students in 25 schools in New York City and California with largely diverse and underserved populations.
Students working together
17 Jul 2019
Spotlight

Spotlight on Deeper Learning

What do today’s students really need to learn in order to succeed, not only in the classroom but also later on in college, careers, and as engaged citizens? What role can deeper learning—“a set of competencies students must master in order to develop a keen understanding of academic content and apply their knowledge to problems in the classroom and on the job”—play?

Further Reading

  • Evidence of Deeper Learning Outcomes
  • Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes
  • AIR Study Finds Persistent Graduation Advantage For Students in Deeper Learning Network High Schools
  • Students in Deeper Learning Network High Schools Significantly More Likely to Enroll in College, AIR Study Finds
  • Providing Opportunities for Deeper Learning
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Contact

Kristina Zeiser

Kristina Zeiser

Senior Researcher

Topic

Education

DEEPER LEARNING STUDY PUBLICATIONS

The Shape of Deeper Learning: Strategies, Structures, and Cultures in Deeper Learning Network High Schools

Providing Opportunities for Deeper Learning

Evidence of Deeper Learning Outcomes
Update: Graduation Advantage Persists for Students in Deeper Learning Network High Schools
Update: Deeper Learning and College Attendance: What Happens After High School?

Deeper Learning and Graduation: Is There a Relationship?

School Features and Student Opportunities for Deeper Learning: What Makes a Difference?
Brief: School Features and Student Opportunities for Deeper Learning What Makes a Difference?

RESEARCH. EVALUATION. APPLICATION. IMPACT.

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