Access Is Progress
Understanding Rural Secondary Student Access and Outcomes of Advanced Placement Courses
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 16945784 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Phillip D Grant (0000-0002-0176-7719, Clemson University, corresponding author), Ali Jahanaray (0000-0003-1738-7259, Clemson University), T Logan Arrington (0000-0002-9093-3378, University of West Georgia) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue | 7 |
| Pages | 143 |
| Publication date | 2025-07-21 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2174-8144 • E-ISSN: 2254-9625 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/ejihpe15070143 |
| PMID | 40709976 |
| OpenAlex | W4412539827 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 48 |
This study examines the availability and outcomes of Advanced Placement (AP) courses in secondary schools in Georgia (USA) and South Carolina (USA), focusing on how school locale (rurality) and demographic composition influence AP availability and student achievement. The authors analyzed population-level school data from the 2021–22 academic year using a two-step quantitative approach. A zero-inflated negative binomial regression model (ZINB) was employed to assess AP course participation and AP exam performance while addressing overdispersion and excess zeros in the data. Key predictors included school locale (rural versus nonrural), state (Georgia versus South Carolina), and minoritized-majority status. This study finds that rural schools and those where minoritized students make up the majority (i.e., fewer than 50% White students) are significantly less likely to offer AP courses or have any students participate in AP exams. Moreover, these schools had a significantly lower success rate; for example, rural schools were 59% less likely to have students with scores above three. The findings indicate that gaps in access to advanced curriculum may exacerbate existing college and career readiness disparities. Moreover, this study confirms that previous research using sampled datasets underestimates the disparity of AP access
Academic achievement · Advanced Placement · African american · Curriculum · Mathematics education · Medical education · Overdispersion · Pedagogy · Poisson regression · Population · Rural area · Rurality · Sociology · Computer Science · Demography · Education Systems and Policy · Higher Education Research Studies · Medicine · Psychology · School Choice and Performance
Advanced Placement
Growing Up in Rural America
Putting the “A” in AP
Teacher Shortages and Turnover in Rural Schools in the US
Relation of Opportunity to Learn Advanced Math to the Educational Attainment of Rural Youth
The Moderating Role of Race and Ethnicity on Rural Adolescents’ Educational Expectations and Rural Residential Aspirations
Narrowed Gaps and Persistent Challenges
Rural–Nonrural Differences in College Attendance Patterns
Legislating Instruction in Urban Schools
Dually Noted
Rural-Nonrural Disparities in Postsecondary Educational Attainment Revisited
The College Preparatory Pipeline
College Acceleration for All? Mapping Racial Gaps in Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment Participation
Research on the Academic Benefits of the Advanced Placement Program
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |