Multiplying Disadvantages in U.S. High Schools - An Intersectional Analysis of the Interactions Among Punishment and Achievement Trajectories

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Adam

An intersectional analysis examines how accumulated disadvantages interact between punishment and mathematics achievement trajectories for U.S. high school students. Using structural equation modeling on HSLS-09, the study finds bidirectional influences between punishment trajectories and math, with differences by math performance and math attitudes. Gender, race, and race-gender groups show significantly distinct relationships, and intersectional disadvantages accumulate both within and across trajectories, especially for Black males, with implications for policy and practice.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Intersectional accumulation of disadvantages

Methods and findings

Interaction between punishment and math trajectories

Differences by gender and race-gender groups

Implications

AERA Open January-December 2024, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 1–19 DOI: 10. 1177/23328584241230971 Article reuse guidelines: [sagepub.com/journals-permissions](sagepub.com/journals-permissions)[ ](sagepub.com/journals-permissions)© The Author(s) 2024. [https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero](https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero) Multiplying Disadvantages in U.S. High Schools: An Intersectional Analysis of the Interactions Among Punishment and Achievement Trajectories Jason Jabbari Washington University Odis Johnson, Jr. Johns Hopkins University We examined recent process models of accumulated disadvantage with an intersectional lens in order to provide a more complete picture of how disadvantages across punishment and math trajectories can accumulate over time and disparately affect marginalized race-gender groups. Using structural equation modeling (SEM) with a nationally representative longitudinal study of high school students (HSLS-09), we found that punishment trajectories were influenced by math and vice versa, as well as that these relationships differed across math performance and various aspects of math attitudes, including efficacy, utility, and identity. Furthermore, we found that gender, race, and race-gender groups experienced significantly different relationships. When considering the intersection of punishment and math disadvantages, these differences appear to not only accumulate disadvantages within punishment and math trajectories but also across them for marginalized race-gender groups. This was especially true for Black males. We conclude with a discussion of implications for policy and practice. Keywords: disparities, educational policy, gender studies, mathematics education, punishment, race, social stratification, structural equation modeling Racial and gender disparities in educational achievement tend to accumulate as students progress through school (Hanushek & Rivkin, 2009; Lee, 2002) . The culmination of these accumulated disparities in high school results in higher proportions of Black, Hispanic, and male students dropping out when compared to White and female students (McFarland et al., 2018), which can lead to higher rates of unemployment (McFarland et al., 2018) and increased rates of incarceration (Sum et al., 2009) . While decades of previous research have demonstrated the importance of both punishment and academic trajectories in educational attainment (Suh et al., 2007; Werblow et al., 2013), only recently has research began to explore how these trajectories are related in such a way that disadvantages not only accumulate within these trajectories but also across them. Here, it is not only that early disadvantages in punishment lead to increased disadvantages in later punishment, but also that early disadvantages in punishment lead to increased disadvantages in later math, and vice versa. For example, suspended students may miss out on core math instruction, which may make it difficult for them to catch up to their nonsuspended peers; unable to catch up, these students may become disengaged or labeled—or both, leading to further suspensions and more missed math instruction. Some authors have referred to this relationship as a “vicious cycle” (Anderson et al., 2019) . Thus, from a longitudinal perspective, the accumulation of disadvantages can “cycle”students through increasing trajectories of punishment and academics—with each turn making it more difficult for a student to alter their respective paths. Indeed, with a particular focus on exclusionary discipline and math, recent research has demonstrated that students are cycled across punishment and math achievement trajectories—the former representing academic exclusion and the latter representing academic inclusion—in such a way that eventually cycles students out of school altogether (Jabbari & Johnson, 2022) . When considering how various facets of identity operate within and across these trajectories, this research has

FAQs

What does the study examine about punishment and math over time?

It investigates how disadvantages accumulate through interactions between punishment trajectories and mathematics achievement trajectories, considering how early disadvantages in one domain can increase later disadvantages in the other.

Which analytical method and dataset are used?

The analysis uses structural equation modeling (SEM) with HSLS-09, a nationally representative longitudinal study of high school students.

How do findings differ across gender and race-gender groups?

Gender, race, and race-gender groups show significantly different relationships between punishment and math disadvantages, with especially strong patterns for Black males.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Adam