Nettles: Multiple Factors Determine Student Success

DURHAM, N.C. — Key factors in a student’s chance for school success include one’s home environment, the quality of the school, and enriching after-school activities, said Dr. Michael T. Nettles, senior vice president of policy, evaluation and research at the Center of Educational Testing Services (ETS). Dr. Nettles was the inaugural speaker in North Carolina Central University School of Education’s new Excellence in Education Speaker Series on Feb. 22.

Though there has been some progress, substantial gaps remain, including opportunity, achievement, and education, he said. Black students are more likely than White students to have lower-quality teachers. In high schools with 50 percent or more Black enrollment, 25 percent of the teachers have neither a college major nor standard certification in the subject that they are teaching. In high schools with 50 percent or more White enrollment, the percentage of teachers who do not have a college major nor standard certification in the subject that they are teaching is only 8 percent.

For years Dr. Nettles has conducted research at ETS on the dangers of the achievement gap.