Beyond Test Scores: The Impact of Black Teacher Role Models on Rigorous Math Taking

I. INTRODUCTION Black high school students participate in advanced math classes at low rates. In 1999, 24% of white high school juniors and seniors enrolled in precalculus or calculus, but only half as many black juniors and seniors enrolled in these same classes. (1) The low rates of advanced math taking among black students should concern policymakers, given that a rigorous high school math curriculum has been shown to have long-run implications for future labor market earnings and college success. The highest level of math completed is potentially a stronger predictor of bachelor's degree completion than socioeconomic status and has a greater impact on the graduation rates of black students than on white students (Adelman, 1999). An advanced high school math curriculum not only affects wages by increasing the likelihood of postsecondary degree completion, it also has a unique direct impact on wages 10 years after high school; the more demanding the math courses taken, the greater the earnings gain (Rose and Betts, 2001). The academic underachievement of black students relative to white students is often attributed to differences in family background characteristics, such as income, family structure, and parents' education (Phillips et al., 1998). In addition, black peers may discourage behavior conducive to academic success based on fears of "acting white" (Fordham and Ogbu, 1986; Cook and Ludwig, 1998; Farkas et al., 2002); predominantly black schools tend to have fewer school resources, including lower-quality teachers (Ferguson, 1998a; Phillips et al., 1998); and ability-grouping practices (tracking) disproportionately place black students on remedial or vocational academic tracks (Oakes, 1985; Gordon, 2000; Losen and Orfield, 2002). Black parents may also be less likely than white parents to intervene when their children are not placed in advanced academic tracks or in gifted and talented programs (Chmelynski, 1998; Darity et al., 2001). A less studied potential source of black underachievement is the shortage of culturally similar teacher role models. Poor black students, among whom teachers are often the only college-educated people they know, are in particular need of role models who (1) are interested in their educational progress; (2) understand the school system as an institution; and (3) actively encourage academic excellence and the pursuit of a challenging curriculum. Culturally similar teachers may take more interest in mentoring black students and have more credibility with those students. Given the importance of a rigorous mathematics curriculum and that math is frequently a gatekeeper subject for black students, same-race math teachers play a potentially vital role in preparing black students for their academic and working futures. This article examines the impact of black math teachers on the likelihood that a current black math student will choose to enroll in a rigorous math class the following year. Students are only allowed to proceed to the next-level math class if they pass the prerequisite class. Students will only be willing to proceed if they had a reasonably pleasant experience in the prerequisite class and/or they have strong expectations of attending college. The math continuation decision provides a better indicator of the effectiveness of a student-teacher relationship than do test scores, which have been utilized in previous studies, since continuation is determined in part by academic achievement and in part by expectations for future schooling, both of which can be influenced by effective academic role models. Using the Texas Schools Microdata Panel, this article finds that increasing the percentage of math teachers who are black has a nontrivial positive impact on the likelihood that a black geometry student will take additional rigorous math. II. THEORETICAL INFLUENCES OF MATH CONTINUATION Black math teachers may increase the likelihood that a black math student pursues rigorous math by (1) increasing learning such that a student has the option to continue and (2) making learning a positive experience such that a student has the desire to continue. …