A Longitudinal Test of a Model of Academic Success for At–Risk High School Students

Abstract

Whereas previous researchers have described at–risk students' deficiencies, in the present study their academic success was investigated. Longitudinal data from 8,100 high school students participating in a national study were used to test a model of at–risk students' school learning. The results indicated that ability, quality of schooling, student motivation, and academic coursework are important predictors of academic achievement. Although the present findings indicate that student motivation may have a stronger impact on at–risk students' achievement than on the achievement of high school students in general, overall school learning influences appear very similar to those found for high school students in general.