Summary and Discussion
AHN, FG, and Transfer Students Face Many Challenges
Achievement gaps exist between White and AHN students, FG and CG students, and transfer and non-transfer students. The ultimate causes of these gaps are numerous, varied, and interrelated, but the primary proximal drivers of the achievement gaps are 1) lack of belongingness, 2) increased stress and anxiety, and 3) decreased engagement and performance. Instructors who wish to ensure the success of all students in their classrooms must acknowledge and address these proximal drivers of the achievement gaps.
Instructor Practices Can Reduce the Primary Drivers of the Achievement Gaps
College instructors have many evidence-based practices in their toolkit that they can use to decrease the achievement gaps in their classrooms. First, because bias and racism can directly or indirectly affect all three of the proximal drivers of the achievement gap, countering bias and racism is a necessary first step to ensure equity and inclusivity in the classroom. Instructors can combat the barriers created by bias and racism by promoting multiculturalism, preventing and responding to microaggressions, using microaffirmations, and by recognizing and reducing their own implicit biases. Instructors can combat the barriers created by bias and racism by promoting multiculturalism, preventing and responding to microaggressions, using microaffirmations, and by recognizing and reducing their own implicit biases.Once steps have been taken to counter bias and racism in the classroom, instructors can then turn their attention to addressing the three primary proximal drivers of the achievement gap: 1) lack of belonging, 2) increased stress and anxiety, and 3) decreased engagement and performance. There are many approaches that instructors can use to increase student belonging in their classrooms and a central pillar of these approaches is respect for students and concern for their wellbeing. Students feel that they belong in the classroom when instructors create a welcoming environment, treat students with respect, increase instructor immediacy and instructor-student rapport, increase student autonomy, and encourage student participation. It is difficult for students who are stressed or anxious to perform at their best. For this reason, instructors should work to reduce student stress and anxiety by preemptively discussing stress and anxiety coping strategies, using warm calling instead of cold calling, increasing deadline flexibility, reducing the number of high stakes exams, and by using humor in the classroom. In addition, both lack of belongingness and stress and anxiety can be reduced by framing adversity as common and temporary. Both lack of belongingness, and stress and anxiety can be reduced by framing adversity as common and temporary. Lastly, in order to achieve the ultimate goal of reducing or eliminating the achievement gaps, instructors must work to increase student engagement and performance. All of the above approaches including countering bias and racism, increasing student belonging, and reducing stress and anxiety ultimately have the effect of improving student engagement and performance. That said, there are several additional things instructors can do to help their students succeed including using active learning, improving organization and structure, encouraging students to adopt a growth mindset, using real-world examples to increase interest and motivation, and by teaching effective studying techniques.
Psychosocial Interventions Can Help Reduce the Achievement Gaps
Some of the most effective strategies for countering the achievement gaps involve the use of psychosocial interventions. These psychosocial interventions all require students to engage in some sort of activity either inside or outside of class. These activities are typically short (~15 min to 1 hr) and only need to be done once to get long term benefits. One key aspect of psychosocial interventions is that students should not be told their true purpose if they are to be used most effectively. The effects of psychosocial interventions can be both powerful and long-lasting because they interrupt negative recursive behaviors; for example, a student who feels they do not belong is not likely to perform as well, and the poor scores they receive on assessments are likely to confirm their fears that they do not belong. This review discussed nine types of psychosocial interventions that instructors can use to combat achievement gaps; these interventions are summarized in Table 1.
Table 1. Psychosocial Interventions That Reduce the Achievement Gap.
| Intervention | Description | Effects | Reference(s) |
| Value Affirmation Intervention | Students select and write about 2-3 values from a list that are important to them. | ↑ belongingness
↓ stereotype threat ↓ stress ↓ achievement gap |
(Harackiewicz et al., 2014; Jordt et al., 2017; Yeager & Walton, 2011) |
| Belongingness Intervention | Current students write an essay to incoming students about how belongingness concerns are normal and short-lived. | ↑ belongingness
↑ social integration ↑ health & mood ↑ grades ↓ achievement gap |
(Walton & Cohen, 2007, 2011; Yeager, Walton, et al., 2016) |
| Scientist Spotlight Intervention | Students complete reflection assignments about counter-stereotypical scientists. | ↑ belongingness
↑ science interest ↑ grades ↓ stereotypes |
(Schinske et al., 2016) |
| Study Skills Intervention | Students are given a 10-minute lecture about good study practices and receive weekly reminders. | ↑ self-testing
↑ spacing ↓ achievement gap |
(Rodriguez et al., 2018) |
| Utility-value intervention | Shows why the course content is valuable and relevant to the student. | ↑ interest
↑ motivation ↓ achievement gap |
(Harackiewicz et al., 2016) |
| Goal Setting Intervention | Students create goals related to their learning, habits, or career aspirations and detail how to obtain those goals. | ↑ retention
↑ self-regulation ↓ achievement gap |
(Schippers et al., 2015) |
| Growth Mindset Interventions | Students learn intelligence is malleable and write reflections or advice about overcoming challenges. | ↑ GPA
↑ enrollment rates ↓ achievement gap |
(Yeager & Dweck, 2020) |
| Difference-
Education Intervention |
FG students learn how senior students overcome their challenges to be successful. | ↑ GPA
↓ anxiety |
(Stephens et al., 2014) |
| Transitional Difficulties Intervention | Frames transition-related performance-declines as normal and transient. | ↑ GPA
↑ retention |
(T. D. Wilson & Linville, 1985) |
Conclusion
Instructors teach students, not topics, and therefore they have the responsibility to do whatever is in their power to improve student experiences and outcomes. They can work towards reducing the achievement gaps in their own classrooms by using, adapting, and building on the approaches detailed above. Most of these strategies and interventions are free and require only a small amount of time. Making an inclusive classroom is a lifelong process rather than a ‘one and done’ exercise. Making an inclusive classroom is a lifelong process rather than a ‘one and done’ exercise. Recommendations in the primary literature may change or become more refined with time. Instructors should collect and analyze their own student performance and opinion data to monitor the effectiveness of whatever interventions, activities, and strategies they are using. Because learning is a complex task, any individual intervention is not likely to have a large effect on student learning gains. By testing and (where appropriate) combining different interventions instructors can find the best way to eliminate the achievement gap in their classrooms.
Significant performance differences between any two populations of students that are not based solely on merit, but are instead based on the different life experiences of those students
Historically it referred to people with light skin pigmentation of predominantly European ancestry. Racial terms such as these are now considered to be obsolete as they are based on the disproven biological theory of race.
African Americans/Blacks, Hispanic/Latino(a), and Native Americans/Alaskan Natives.
Students whose parents do not have a degree from a 4-year college.
Students who have at least one parent with a degree from a 4-year college.
A student who transferred from one undergraduate institution into another.
A student who has done all of their undergraduate education in a single institution.
Prejudice against one thing, person or group. Usually it is considered to be unfair.
Prejudice and/or discrimination directed against against groups of people with a particular skin color or ethnic background.
Ideology that acknowledges racial, ethnic, and cultural differences and views them as a strength.
Refers to unconscious attitudes, beliefs, or stereotypes that can affect our actions, decisions, or thoughts about certain groups.
An affinity for a place, situation or group; a feeling that you are welcome and 'fit in'.
Feelings of pressure, frustration, and mental discomfort that occur when an individual feels overwhelmed and unable to adequately cope with their current situation.
A mental state characterized by a variety of symptoms which vary in intensity and frequency. Symptoms include nervousness, uncontrollable worry, restlessness, sweating, trembling, insomnia, and the inability to maintain focus.
Behaviors that reduce the perceived distance between students and instructors and make the instructor seem more present and accessible.
Activities that interrupt negative recursive behaviors (e.g. feeling like a failure can lead to more failing) in order to improve health and well-being.