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The report examines how mobility relates to educational outcomes and why English Learner students face increased risk due to broader equity concerns, linking district goals for graduation and EL outcomes to the need for targeted supports.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & 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does the study define student mobility?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"Student mobility is defined as students transferring or changing schools either within the school year (within-year mobility) or during the summer between years (between-year mobility).","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"Why is student mobility a concern in large urban school districts like Philadelphia?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"The report highlights that mobility is pervasive and can be negatively associated with grade promotion, on-time graduation, and standardized test scores, while also weakening school performance and staff morale.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What does the report say about English Learners and mobility risk in Philadelphia?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"It states that English Learner (EL) student enrollment is rapidly growing and that research suggests groups including English Learners are more likely to experience mobility, raising equity concerns and linking to graduation goals.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},587102,1792165838,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,110,114,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & 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Learner Students in Public High Schools in Philadelphia  \nMARCH 2025  \nLindsey Liu & Sean Vannata Research for Action  \nElisabeth Fornaro & Ebru Erdem School District of Philadelphia  \nAcknowledgments  \nThe authors gratefully acknowledge the intellectual contributions of researchers and program office staff at the School District of Philadelphia, including Joy Lesnick, Tonya Wolford, Benaline Baluyot, Miulcaeli Batista, Donna Sharer, and Aaron MacLennan.  \nAt Research for Action, Alyn Turner provided invaluable insights on report design and drafts.  \nThis work was made possible through the support of the William Penn Foundation. The Foundation did not exercise editorial control over this report, and the contents ofthe report do not necessarily reflect the Foundation’s views.  \nAbout PERC  \nThe Philadelphia Education Research Consortium is a partnership between the School District of Philadelphia’s Office of Research and Evaluation and Research for Action, a nonprofit education research organization. Launched in August 2014, PERC conducts research that is community-informed, equityfocused, and based on a critical analysis of District needs. We engage in longer-term, sustained areas of investigation that can be leveraged at the right time by the right people for real change in Philadelphia. PERC is funded by the William Penn Foundation and is a member of the National Network of Education Research Practice Partnerships.  \nSuggested Citation  \nLiu, L., Vannata, S., Fornaro, E., & Erdem, E. (2025). Patterns of student mobility among English Learner students in public high schools in Philadelphia. Philadelphia Education Research Consortium.  \nPatterns of Student Mobility Among English Learner Students in Public High Schools in Philadelphia  \nLindsey Liu, Sean Vannata, Elisabeth Fornaro, & Ebru Erdem March 2025  \nWhy this study?  \nStudent mobility is de􀏐ined as students transferring, or changing, schools during the school year (within-year mobility) or summer (between-year mobility) and is pervasive in many large, urban school districts, including Philadelphia (Burdick-Will et al., 2020; Rumberger, 2015; Miller & Sadowski, 2017) . 1 2 In the School District of Philadelphia (SDP), rates of student mobility are high: one-third of high school students either experienced mobility or dropped out of school from SY2013-14 through SY2016-17 (Steinberg et al., 2019) .  \nStudent mobility can be challenging for both students and schools, and school districts, including in Philadelphia, have worked to reduce mobility and mitigate its negative impacts.  \nWhile some forms of mobility can be bene􀏐icial for students, on average, it is negatively associated with grade promotion, on-time graduation, and standardized test scores (Rumberger, 2015; Herberset al., 2012; Gasper et al., 2012; de la Torre & Gwynne, 2009; Xu et al., 2009; Engec, 2006; Hanushek et al., 2004). At the school level, high rates of student mobility are associated with weaker school performance, teacher instability, and low staff morale (Rumberger, 2015; South et al., 2007). As a result, district leaders, educators, and researchers have been exploring ways to reduce unnecessary mobility, mitigate its negative impact, and better support students who experience mobility (Rumberger, 2015). Within SDP, reducing unnecessary mobility is tied to the District’s goal of supporting all students in their pathway towards graduation and increasing graduation rates.3 As of SY2023-24, the 4-year high school graduation rate of all students was 74% across all SDP schools (81% when excluding alternative schools) while about 68% of EL students enrolled in all SDP schools graduated within four years (70% when excluding alternative schools) (The School District of Philadelphia, 2024a) .  \n1 For example, in 2021-22, in Chicago, Baltimore City, and Atlanta, on average, about 10% to 18% of students experienced  \nmobility. Data accessed from:  \n[https://reportcard.","cbCaipzD4tmNKsIQ","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaipzD4tmNKsIQ","pdf",719716,16,"English","# Why this study?\n## Definitions and scope of student mobility\n## Mobility challenges and effects on outcomes\n## Equity concerns for English Learners\n## Context: Philadelphia School District trends","[{\"question\":\"How does the study define student mobility?\",\"answer\":\"Student mobility is defined as students transferring or changing schools either within the school year (within-year mobility) or during the summer between years (between-year mobility).\"},{\"question\":\"Why is student mobility a concern in large urban school districts like Philadelphia?\",\"answer\":\"The report highlights that mobility is pervasive and can be negatively associated with grade promotion, on-time graduation, and standardized test scores, while also weakening school performance and staff morale.\"},{\"question\":\"What does the report say about English Learners and mobility risk in Philadelphia?\",\"answer\":\"It states that English Learner (EL) student enrollment is rapidly growing and that research suggests groups including English Learners are more likely to experience mobility, raising equity concerns and linking to graduation goals.\"}]","Patterns of Student Mobility Among English Learner Students in Public High Schools in Philadelphia - March 2025 | PDF",1792060724]