Academic profile development: An investigation of differentiation processes based on students’ level of achievement and grade level

• Published in: Journal of educational psychology 2024-03
• Main Authors: Breit, Moritz, Brunner, Martin, Fischbach, Antoine, Wollschläger, Rachel, Keller, Ulrich, Ugen, Sonja, Preckel, Franzis
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic Achievement; European Cultural Groups; Female; Grade Level; Human; Male; Students
• ISSN: 0022-0663; 1939-2176
• DOI: 10.1037/edu0000856

The level and profile of academic achievements affect students’ development in education and beyond. However, the utility of profile interpretation is a matter of debate and there is limited knowledge on the development of academic profiles. Conversely, for research of cognitive ability profiles, specifically differentiation processes, theories and statistical tools have already been developed. Taking advantage of the conceptual and theoretical framework as well as the methodological toolbox of differentiation research, we carried out two studies on academic profile formation. The academic achievement of Luxembourgish Students in German, French, and Math was assessed with standardized tests in both studies. Study 1 examined differentiation of academic achievement with longitudinal data of 1,848 students tested in Grades 5 and 7 ( M ageT1 = 10.62, SD ageT1 = 0.66). We found more balanced academic profiles with increasing achievement level, more balanced profiles with increasing grade level, and a stronger grade level effect for higher achieving students. Study 2 analyzed cross-sectional data from 5,235 Grade 9 students ( M age = 14.97, SD age = 1.04) who attended either an academic track or a vocational track to examine the effect of different educational contexts on differentiation. There were no substantial differences between the tracks regarding profile differentiation. The results overall indicate that academic profiles become more even over time, especially in high-achieving students. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)