| Noah Friedkin
University of California, Santa Barbara
Network Positions in Schooling: A Reconceptualization of Tracks
FINAL REPORT:
In research on the curricular activity of students, students often are categorized as being either in a college preparatory track or not. However, it is recognized (a) that the actual pattern of curricular differentiation in schools is more complex than the "two-track" model of such differentiation and (b) that the account of students' educational attainments would be improved with better measures of curricular activity. Presently, there is no consensus on suitable or promising concepts and methods for pursuing a more refined analysis. In this paper I bring social network theory and technique to bear on the description of patterns of social differentiation in schools. I develop the idea that a track is a type of network position in student relations with particular teachers and coursework. From this idea, a more general conceptualization of student social positions follows straightforwardly. An illustration of the approach is provided using data from High School and Beyond, a national survey of high school students.
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