Organization by Design: Supply- and Demand-Side Models of Mathematics Course Taking

Autor/inn/en	McFarland, Daniel A.; Rodan, Simon
Titel	Organization by Design: Supply- and Demand-Side Models of Mathematics Course Taking
Quelle	In: Sociology of Education, 82 (2009) 4, S.315-343 (29 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0038-0407
DOI	10.1177/003804070908200402
Schlagwörter	Course Selection (Students); Socioeconomic Background; High School Students; Mathematics Instruction; Mathematical Models; Supply and Demand; Simulation; Student Motivation; Socialization; Social Influences; Rural Schools; Mathematics Achievement; Urban Schools; Educational Sociology; Educational Environment; Social Environment; Social Networks; Predictor Variables; Correlation; Comparative Analysis; Magnet Schools; Sociometric Techniques + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Course selection; Student; Students; Kurswahl; Sozioökonomische Lage; High school; High schools; Oberschule; Schüler; Schülerin; Studentin; Mathematics lessons; Mathematikunterricht; Mathematical model; Mathematisches Modell; Bedarfsplanung; Simulation program; Simulationsprogramm; Schulische Motivation; Socialisation; Sozialisation; Sozialer Einfluss; Rural area; Rural areas; School; Schools; Ländlicher Raum; Schule; Schulen; Mathmatics sikills; Mathmatics achievement; Mathematical ability; Mathematische Kompetenz; Urban area; Urban areas; Stadtregion; Stadt; Bildungssoziologie; Erziehungssoziologie; Lernumgebung; Pädagogische Umwelt; Schulumwelt; Soziales Umfeld; Social network; Soziales Netzwerk; Prädiktor; Korrelation; Soziometrie
Abstract	Prior work has proposed different theoretical mechanisms to explain students' course-taking patterns in schools. On the one hand, there are oversocialized accounts that claim that rules, social background factors, and supply-side factors shape observed career patterns. On the other hand, there are undersocialized accounts that claim that the decisions of strategic agents and demand-side dynamics shape course-taking careers. In this article, the authors use simulations to illustrate how these theoretical mechanisms can generate course-taking patterns. Grounding the simulations in empirical data on the mathematics course taking of students in two high schools, they assess the relative merits of these competing theories by testing how closely observed and predicted career patterns align. The results reveal that the characteristics of students and the organizational rules and requirements of course-taking career systems render certain allocation mechanisms more salient than others. In particular, highly competitive and structurally constrained systems are shaped by supply dynamics, while less regulated systems of diverse populations are shaped by agent-based decision making. (Contains 5 figures, 7 tables and 22 notes.) (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10