What the Research Says about Ethnic Studies

Ethnic studies directly confronts the historical legacy and ongoing manifestations of racism in schools (Montaño & Gallagher-Geurtsen, 2022). Well-prepared teachers of ethnic studies represent an opportunity to reduce inequality in academic outcomes of high school students, particularly Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) students. Ethnic studies has been shown to have academic, cognitive, social, and emotional value for students (Sleeter, 2011; Sleeter & Zavala, 2020) and can improve their academic achievement, engagement, and sense of agency (Cabrera et al., 2012; Cammarota, 2017; Dee & Penner, 2016, 2017; Montiero, 2020; Sleeter, 2011; Sleeter & Zavala, 2020). Both BIPOC and white students have been found to benefit socially from ethnic studies with increased acceptance and understanding of one another (Sleeter, 2011). Dee and Penner (2016) found that ethnic studies participation increased high school student attendance by 21 percentage points, cumulative ninth-grade GPA by 1.4 grade points, and credits earned by 23 credits. In 2021, Bonilla, Dee, and Penner found high school ethnic students experienced an increase in longer-run academic engagement and attainment including probability of postsecondary matriculation.

The benefits of ethnic studies courses are documented in this brief review.