Fish swimming into the ocean: How tracking relates to students’ self-beliefs and school disengagement at the end of schooling.

Abstract

In this study, we analyzed how secondary school tracking relates to students' self-beliefs (i.e., their academic self-concepts in different domains and their beliefs regarding their labor market chances) and school disengagement during a time period that has received little attention in educational psychological research on tracking: when students are at the end of schooling and on the verge of entering the labor market. In doing so, we disentangled 2 distinguishing features of tracking: tracks as social contexts (operationalized via track level and the mean achievement of students' schoolmates) and tracks as pathways to different future opportunities (operationalized via educational certificates). Using questionnaire, achievement, and administrative school data from 2,155 students from 29 low-track schools, 23 intermediate-track schools, and 35 comprehensive schools in Berlin, Germany, we found educational certificates to be the most important factor shaping students' self-beliefs and school disengagement. Irrespective of their individual achievement, their schoolmates' achievement, and their track level, students who received the intermediate school-leaving certificate had higher academic self-concepts, believed that their certificate would give them better chances of success in the labor market, and were less disengaged from school than students who received the low school-leaving certificate. In contrast, students' track level did not serve as a predictor for the outcomes considered. The achievement of students' schoolmates (i.e., the big-fish-little-pond effect) was only relevant for students' academic self-concepts and not for students' self-beliefs regarding labor market entry or their school disengagement.

Effortless or less effort? Effects of tracks on students’ engagement

“…Our results are similar to the results of Dumont, Protsch, Jansen, and Becker (), who investigated the effects of tracks on disengagement with the Maslach Burnout Inventory cynicism scale. Because students from the same track could receive different certificates, they could distinguish between the effect of the track as a social context and the effect of a certificate.…”

“…The only other study that shows that tracks do not affect engagement is the study of Dumont et al . () in Germany.…”

Personality, cognitive ability, and academic performance: Differential associations across school subjects and school tracks

“…In addition to varying across school subjects, trait-performance relations may also vary across school tracks. Most countries' secondary education systems implement some form of ability grouping (also referred to as tracking or streaming; Chmielewski, Dumont, & Trautwein, 2013;Dumont, Protsch, Jansen, & Becker, 2017). Ability grouping places students in homogeneous learning environments that are meant to fit their needs and abilities in terms of cognitive demands and instructional styles (Chmielewski et al, 2013).…”

Conceptualizing Individual Agency in the Transition from School to Work: A Social-Ecological Developmental Perspective

“…As we have described previously, in some countries, such as Germany, students can become "locked" into tracks offering different learning opportunities and subsequent differential path-dependent career chances. Although these pathways facilitate a smooth transition from school to work, there can be the danger that being locked into a rigid and inflexible system can undermine individual agency, in particular via detrimental effects on self-concepts and control beliefs (Chmielewski et al 2013;Dumont et al 2017;Marsh et al 2007;Steinhoff and Buchmann 2017). In contrast, in countries with more flexible and permeable transition systems, such as the UK or the US, high levels of agency are required to navigate a complex action field (Evans 2002;Heckhausen and Chang 2009).…”