Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID), 2014-2015. Research Educational Program Report
Author: Houston Independent School District (HISD), Department of Research and Accountability
Date: 2016-02-05
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Secondary School Students,College Bound Students,School Districts,Acceleration (Education),Grades (Scholastic),Scores,Enrollment Trends,Advanced Placement Programs,Academic Achievement,Reading Tests,Mathematics Tests,United States History,Racial Differences,Economically Disadvantaged,Mathematics Achievement,Reading Achievement,Writing Achievement,Student Characteristics,Dual Enrollment,Program Effectiveness

The Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program was developed to increase the number of secondary students who participate in rigorous academic courses, to accelerate student learning, and to improve student performance. The AVID program in the Houston Independent School District (HISD) targets students who (1) are in the academic middle and earn grades of B, C, and D; (2) desire to go to college; (3) are willing to work hard; (4) are capable of completing rigorous curricula; and (5) are not reaching their full academic potential. The program's mission is to close achievement gaps through the use of educational strategies that prepare all students for success. Key findings are the following: (1) Overall, 1,310 students were enrolled in the 2014-2015 AVID program, a 10.4 percent decrease from 2013-2014. Student enrollment increased 37.8 percent at the middle school level and decreased 45.6 percent at the high school level; (2) Nearly two-thirds of AVID students (64.4 percent) and slightly more than one-third of nonAVID students (34.2 percent) enrolled in pre-AP courses. In addition, 19.9 percent of AVID students versus 4.8 percent of non-AVID students enrolled in AP courses; (3) The number of Advanced Placement exams on which AVID students scored three or higher increased 18 percent from 2013-2014 to 2014-2015. In addition, the percentage of the AP exams on which students in AVID scored three or higher increased 2.7 percentage points from 2013-2014 to 2014-2015; (4) Students in AVID achieved higher average scale scores than their non-AVID peers on all five STAAR EOC assessments administered in 2014-2015 (English I, English II, Algebra I, Biology, and U.S. History). Differences between the groups' scores were statistically significant on all the exams; (5) Greater proportions of AVID students than non-AVID students met or exceeded (combined) Progress Measure standards on STAAR writing and STAAR EOC English II and Algebra I exams; (6) Across student groups assessed, AVID students had greater proportions of students who met or exceeded (combined) Progress Measure standards on STAAR and STAAR EOC exams than did non-AVID students, with the exceptions of African American, White, and male AVID students in reading; Hispanic and economically disadvantaged AVID students in writing; and AVID students not at-risk for dropping out of school in all subjects analyzed; and (7) In 2014, AVID eighth-grade students scored slightly higher than their non-AVID peers in each subject on the ReadiStep assessment. The performance difference in writing was statistically significant.