A Teacher Like Me: A Review of the Effect of Student–Teacher Racial/Ethnic Matching on Teacher Perceptions of Students and Student Academic and Behavioral Outcomes

Shared Cultural Understanding

Students have the potential to benefit from assignment to a teacher of their own race to the extent to which students and teachers share similar beliefs about what it means to identify with a particular racial or ethnic group, and these beliefs are translated into higher expectations for student learning, improved teaching, and stronger relationships with students (Gay, 2000). As was noted above, shared racial or ethnic group membership does not necessitate that students and teachers will hold corresponding beliefs or values. This issue is particularly salient for Latino/a students and teachers, where differences in nationality or immigrant generation can hinder the formation of a shared cultural understanding. Sociohistorical patterns can also shape the ways in which students and teachers develop a shared cultural understanding. The history of racism and discrimination in the southern United States may result in similar conceptions about what it means to identify as Black, thereby improving the efficacy of student–teacher racial matching on student outcomes compared to other regions in the county.

Teachers’ perceptions of their students have long been considered an important precursor to a range of educational opportunities, including assignment to school services (e.g., special education and gifted programs), higher ability grouping, and grade promotion (Ford, 1998; Ready & Wright, 2011). When a student and teacher share cultural values rooted in their racial or ethnic group, there is the possibility that the teacher will offer a more fair appraisal of the students’ classroom behavior or academic performance than teachers lacking this shared cultural understanding (Weinstein, Tomlinson-Clarke, & Curran, 2004). As a result, classroom opportunities to learn become available to the student, and they may also be more likely to receive other school services. It is important to emphasize that these hypothesized benefits are in contrast to Black and Latino/a students’ normative classroom experience that is often defined by White teachers’ conscious and unconscious racial stereotyping of classroom behavior (Gregory & Mosely, 2004). As an example, Okonofua and Eberhardt (2015) show that teachers’ negative racial stereotypes of Black students resulted in elevated disciplinary infractions as opposed to White students, even when the student behaves similarly. These findings suggest that assignment to a teacher of the same race or ethnicity may be associated with less negative perceptions of misbehavior in the classroom, perceptions that might be linked to reduced office referrals for Black and Latino/a students. While teacher perceptions can influence a range of behavioral and academic outcomes, the strongest evidence for this component of a shared cultural understanding would come from evidence of an association between student–teacher racial/ethnic matching and teachers’ subjective ratings of students’ classroom behavior or academic ability.

Teachers’ cultural understanding of students can extend to their instructional decisions. While any teacher has the potential to adopt culturally relevant pedagogy (Aronson & Laughter, 2016; Young, 2010), teachers of color often have a greater awareness of the “cultural referents” that can assist in teaching knowledge, skills, and attitudes (Ladson-Billings, 1994, p. 18). With a greater understanding of the social and cultural backgrounds of their students, teachers of color can make connections between students’ identities and course material. This cultural understanding can shape all instructional decisions for which a teacher oversees, including the relevance of the curriculum and the evaluation of students. Awareness of student knowledge could lead a teacher to develop a diverse array of performance-based assessments that address the complexity of student learning, alongside standardized assessments (Lee, 1998). With unbiased beliefs about a child, a teacher may more effectively cater instruction to these students, differentially benefitting them in the process. Notably, this approach does not imply teacher partiality, this is, favoritism toward one group of students over another but rather an inclusive instructional approach. The improved connectedness with students requires valuing each child’s importance and working to develop commonalities (Ladson-Billings, 1994, 1995).

Alternatively, a teacher may demonstrate partiality, whereby their behavior offers a direct benefit to students of their own race (Grissom et al., 2015; Lim, 2006). Examples of partiality include time spent in (and out) of the classroom with certain students, who is called on to respond to questions, and who is praised. There is debate in the literature regarding the appropriateness of teacher partiality, depending on the degree to which scholars approach partiality as an issue of equality or equity. Political scientists have approached this topic from the lens of bureaucratic representation, that is, the notion that governmental services are delivered more fairly when the demographic composition of employees matches that of the client population (Lim, 2006). Even if preferential treatment regarding the allocation of school resources is meant to equalize prior discrimination faced by students, political scientists have raised questions about teacher bias and neutrality directed toward other students (Grissom et al., 2015). In contrast, a critical race perspective emphasizes the fundamental role that co-racial or co-ethnic teachers can play in countering the structural racism faced by Black and Latino/a students. Teacher partiality may be necessary to counter the history of racialization and racism in efforts to equalize student opportunities and outcomes (Kohli, Pizzaro, & Nevárez, 2017). As culturally relevant pedagogy or partiality are hypothesized to have the most immediate impact on students’ academic success, the strongest evidence for this mechanism would be a strong relationship between student–teacher racial/ethnic matching and student achievement, as opposed to subjective teacher ratings or other behavioral outcomes.

Shared values between students and teachers may also facilitate the formation of supportive student–teacher relationships (Decker, Dona, & Christenson, 2007; Hamre & Pianta, 2006). Students of color are less likely than White students to report the presence of supportive relationships in schools (Saft & Pianta, 2001). For instance, Crosnoe, Johnson, and Elder (2004) show that Black male students felt less teacher bonding once the percentage of White teachers in a school increased. Saft and Pianta (2001) find teachers to report more positive relationships with students when of the same race/ethnicity. Results from recent meta-analyses indicate that more supportive student–teacher relationships are correlated with academic outcomes as well as greater attachment to school (Cornelius-White, 2007; Roorda, Koomen, Spilt, & Oort, 2011). Supportive teacher–student relationships could also buffer students from exclusionary school discipline or other school practices such as grade retention or referral to special education (Decker et al., 2007). While there is a hypothesized relationship between student–teacher relationships and academic and social outcomes, evidence of the presence of this mechanism would be supported by students’ demonstration of more prosocial behaviors, fewer classroom disruptions, and, ultimately, fewer disciplinary referrals.

Student assignment to a teacher of their own race or ethnicity may also lead to improved relationships with parents/guardians. Increased parental involvement has the potential to improve communication between the parent and school staff and even influence the child’s receipt of other important school services, including screening for special education or the school’s gifted program (Abrams & Gibbs, 2002; Harackiewicz, Rozek, Hulleman, & Hyde, 2012; Lareau & Horvat, 1999). Previous research suggests that the lack of shared cultural understanding between school staff that tend to be predominantly White and more racially and ethnically diverse families creates sharp disparities in terms of attending school events and volunteering at school between Black, Latino/a, and White families (Noel, Stark, & Redford, 2016). Among children within the same classroom, parent–teacher racial/ethnic mismatch is associated with significantly lower probability the teacher has contact with the parent or the parent attends conferences (Vinopal, 2018). The most salient evidence for this component of shared cultural understanding would be if student–teacher racial/ethnic matching has the largest influence in areas in which parents have an outsized influence, such as screening for gifted services or attendance.

Student Responsiveness

Students can positively respond to a teacher of the same race/ethnicity in a number of ways. First, students can internalize high expectations communicated by a teacher of the same race/ethnicity, modifying their own expectations and behaviors in efforts to reach the expectations set by the teacher (Brophy & Good, 1970; Clewell & Villegas, 1998; Ferguson, 2003). This occurrence is often characterized as the positive effect that role modeling has on students’ improved engagement in their education. In Cherng and Halpin’s (2016) analysis of data from the Measures of Effective Teaching study, Black students reported feeling more motivated, feeling more engaged with course material, and having a stronger relationship when assigned to a Black teacher compared to a White teacher.

Second, a child may identify with their racial or ethnic group in more positive ways when taught by a teacher of the same race/ethnicity, making the student less susceptible to stereotype threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995). Stereotype threat is the theory that students from nondominant groups face stresses linked to the identification with negative stereotypes related to their race/ethnicity (Steele, 1997; Steele & Aronson, 1995). When activated, the stress associated with fulfilling negative group stereotypes can cripple students’ classroom performance (Steele & Aronson, 1995; Walton & Spencer, 2009). Such stresses can also lead students to disengage from educational environments or even develop an oppositional outlook (Ogbu, 2003; Steele, 1997). Being in a classroom with a teacher of the same race may deter this adverse psychological process in two ways. Students may not face the same self-evaluative pressures as they would be less concerned with being judged as conforming to negative group stereotypes. The presence of a same-race teacher who has overcome racial barriers might also lead a student to discount negative group stereotypes and even adopt a self-affirming attitude.

Third, students may feel more comfortable reaching out to teachers whom they feel better understand them or their learning needs, possibly as a result of a shared cultural values and beliefs (Kozlowski, 2015). This help-seeking behavior could allow the teacher to more effectively support students’ learning needs. Notably, the recursive nature of co-racial or co-ethnic student–teacher interactions has made it difficult to identify the different ways in which teachers or students are driving the benefits of demographic matching.

One way to resolve this tension is to describe the instances in which the effect of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching differs across school levels. Research on racial identity development points to sharp divides in elementary and middle school students’ awareness of racial or ethnic categories and responsiveness to racism and discrimination. Even though children are aware of racial or ethnic categories by preschool, young children are less susceptible to negative group stereotypes as secondary school students (Ambady, Shih, Kim, & Pittinsky, 2001). When Black and Latino/a elementary school students face negative racialized perceptions from their teachers, they may be less likely to internalize these attitudes in a way that influences their performance. Consequently, evidence of a large effect of student–teacher matching in elementary school likely results from teacher behaviors that stem from a shared cultural understanding as opposed to student responsiveness.

Somewhat conflicting factors shape Black and Latino/a secondary school students’ responsiveness to a same-race teacher, resulting in a somewhat ambiguous relationship. A developmental perspective suggests that same-race teachers have the potential to serve as valuable role models for Black and Latino/a secondary school students given the heightened exploration and identification with a racial or ethnic identity (DeCuir-Gunby, 2009; Pahl & Way, 2006; Quintana, 2007). Zirkel (2002) argues that adolescents’ identity development is critical in the identification of extrafamilial role models, with co-racial or co-ethnic role models being of particularly importance to Black and Latino/a students’ educational aspirations. By encouraging group identification, student–teacher racial/ethnic matching may also encourage Black and Latino/a students to resist discrimination faced in other areas of their life (Pahl & Way, 2006). Yet the importance of role modeling is likely tempered by weakened student–teacher relationships and high levels of disengagement often experienced by Black and Latino/a students in middle and high school (Benner & Graham, 2009; Fredricks, Parr, Amemiya, Wang, & Brauer, 2019), possibly limiting the degree to which secondary students with same-race teachers adopt pro-academic behaviors.

Changes in the role of student–teacher and parent–teacher relationships throughout a child’s formal schooling might further elevate the role for co-racial or co-ethnic teachers in elementary school, where such relationships tend to be much stronger than in secondary school (Decker et al., 2007; Lynch & Cicchetti, 1997; McQuiggan & Megra, 2017). When assignment to a co-racial or co-ethnic teacher in elementary school facilitates improved student–teacher relationships, it could be particularly valuable for behavioral outcomes, such as reduced disciplinary referrals. If student–teacher racial/ethnic matching in elementary school is also linked with stronger parent–teacher relationships, the influence may extend into additional domains in which parents have an outsized influence, such as attendance or screening for gifted services. In short, stronger evidence of an effect of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching in elementary rather secondary schools would suggest that teachers’ behavior toward students—whether enacted by higher expectations for student learning, the delivery of culturally relevant pedagogy, or improved student–teacher or parent–teacher relationships—would be more influential than student responsiveness.

Organizational Influence

The previously described mechanisms outline direct benefits to students that stem from the assignment to a teacher of the same race or ethnicity as the student. The presence of teachers of the same race might improve student outcomes through changes in school policies or the behavior of other teachers in the school. Milner (2006) describes how Black teachers “often advocate for Black students in spaces where others misunderstand their life experiences, worldviews, and realities” (p. 101). Such advocacy has the potential to change other teachers’ beliefs about students of color or even press to change school policies that disadvantage nondominant groups of students. Changes could include pressuring the instructional staff to adopt restorative justice approaches to school discipline (Weinstein et al., 2004; Welsh & Little, 2018), implementing culturally sensitive curriculum (Ladson-Billings, 2004), or participating in implicit bias training (Warikoo, Sinclair, Fei, & Jacoby-Senghor, 2016). This organizational influence may also be quite passive, in that the presence of Black and Latino/a teachers alters White teachers’ beliefs about their students’ academic capabilities. This influence may also be contingent on a “critical mass” of co-racial or co-ethnic teachers. Grissom, Rodriguez, and Kern (2017) show that a much larger share of Black and Latino/a students participate in their school’s gifted program when at least 20% of the teachers identify with the same racial or ethnic group.

Despite this conceptual basis, there is little evidence indicating the extent to which this organizational influence actually occurs. The few studies that have compared teachers’ direct classroom-level influence with their indirect organizational influence have generally found that the direct influence teachers have on their students overshadows these indirect influences (Nicholson-Crotty, Grissom, Nicholson-Crotty, & Redding, 2016; Vinopal, 2018; Yarnell & Bohrnstedt, 2018). Other work shows that teachers’ beliefs about instruction and instructional practices transfer within groups of teachers, although this research has not specifically shown how teachers’ race or ethnicity moderates this relationship (Sun, Loeb, & Grissom, 2017; Sun, Penuel, Frank, Gallagher, & Youngs, 2013). In addition, a growing research base describes how personal and organizational pressures placed on teachers of color can take a psychological toll (Amos, 2016; Jay, 2009; Pizarro & Kohli, 2018; Quiocho & Rios, 2000). Witnessing racism within the school, feeling ostracized for voicing antiracist beliefs, being expected (or compelled) to support students outside the school day, and requirements to adopt standardized curriculum or pedagogies introduce psychological burden and stress for teachers of color.

Literature Search Strategy

The goal of this review is to understand the relationship between student–teacher racial/ethnic matching and teacher ratings of students and student academic and behavioral outcomes. The following inclusion criteria was used to identify articles for review: (1) published between 1995 and August 2018, (2) available in full text, (3) published in English, (4) published in a peer-reviewed journal or working papers or reports from the grey literature, (5) located in the United States, (6) K–12 setting, and (7) used quantitative data. The review begins in 1995 as it was the year in which Ehrenberg, Goldhaber, and Brewer (1995) published the first study to use matched student–teacher data to examine the individual benefits students face when assigned to a teacher of the same race/ethnicity.

A variety of terms were used to identify studies that have examined this topic. The following terms were combined with a Boolean AND: “racial match,” “ethnic match,” “ethnoracial match,” “demographic match,” “race match,” “race congruence,” “racial congruence,” “cultural synchrony,” “racial interaction,” “racially symmetrical,” “representative bureaucracy,” “bureaucratic representation,” “racial mismatch,” “ethnic mismatch,” “ethnoracial mismatch,” “demographic mismatch,” and “race mismatch.” Additional terms included “same race teacher,” “own race teacher,” “teacher like me,” “student-teacher matching,” “teacher-child ethnic match,” and “teacher-child racial match.” These search terms were entered into four databases: Education Resources Information Center, EbscoHost’s Education Source, ProQuest’s Education Database, and Google Scholar.

Evaluating Study Quality

Studies were screened to ensure that the review was limited to articles pertinent to this study’s research question. In most cases, the title and abstract were reviewed, although there were instances in which the full text of the articles was also examined. Studies were excluded under the following conditions: (1) the dependent variable was not measured at the student level, (2) subjective ratings of students were conducted by someone other than the classroom teacher, (3) student–teacher racial/ethnic matching was not measured at the individual level, or (4) the study did not comply with American Educational Research Association’s standards for reporting social science evidence. This inclusion criteria separates the current study from Driessen’s (2015) review of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching, which included fewer studies, many of which used school-level data. Importantly, by focusing on student-level outcomes, the studies in the current review are able to control for student characteristics that are correlated with both teacher assignment and future academic outcomes.

Figure 1 describes the phases of the search process, the number of articles that were excluded in each phase, and the reasons for exclusion. Five studies were excluded that were not conducted in a K–12 setting (e.g., Saft & Pianta, 2001). Six studies were excluded that did not have a relevant dependent variable. The primary reason for excluding this set of studies was that subjective ratings were made by the student rather than the teacher (e.g., Cherng & Halpin, 2016; Crosnoe et al., 2004). Forty-two studies were excluded that did not explicitly measure student–teacher racial/ethnic matching at the individual level. The predominant reasons for excluding this set of studies was that teacher or student race/ethnicity was aggregated to the school level (e.g., Ehrenberg & Brewer, 1995; Pitts, 2007) or studies looked at teacher perceptions or student outcomes by race, but did not focus explicitly on student–teacher racial/ethnic matching (e.g., Cooc, 2017; Minor, 2014). A separate decision rule was followed for studies that examined student discipline, as only one study of student discipline measured student–teacher racial/ethnic matching at the individual level. For this outcome, studies were included that measured teacher racial composition at the school or grade level, as long as the dependent variable (e.g., office referrals, exclusionary discipline) was measured at the student level. In total, 35 studies were identified through this process. Driessen’s (2015) review, from which this study builds, included two studies that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria but were not identified through the literature search (Clotfelter, Ladd, & Vigdor, 2007, 2010). For comprehensiveness, these studies are included in the review, for a total of 37 studies.

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Figure 1.

Study selection process for systematic review.

Interpretation and Synthesis

Key features of each study were recorded, including the sample, outcomes, research methodology, and results. Studies were synthesized across the four main outcomes examined in this review: (1) teacher ratings of student behavior, (2) teacher ratings of student academic performance, (3) student test scores, and (4) and other behavioral outcomes. This approach allowed for identification of instances of consistent and discrepant evidence across studies. When synthesizing evidence of the effect of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching on student outcomes, Black and Latino/a students are the focus of the study given the disproportionate number of disciplinary referrals and achievement disparities for these groups and less available evidence for other racial/ethnic groups. Although the studies in this review define Latino/a (or Hispanic) identity broadly, it is important to emphasize that such categorization overlooks important heterogeneity in academic achievement depending on Latino/a students’ national origin and generational status (Reardon et al., 2015).

Supplemental Table A1 (in the online version of the journal) provides a brief summary of the studies examined in this review. Studies are listed chronologically, separated by these four main outcomes. Studies are listed more than once if they examined outcomes across these general categories. In addition to identifying the main effect of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching, the conceptual framework guided the review of the literature to the extent that any of the reviewed studies could speak to the mechanisms driving any observed effects. For instance, when reviewing the effect of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching on student achievement, differences for Black and Latino/a students are considered, as well as any evidence of a moderating relationship with gender identity, school level, and region.

Teacher Ratings of Students

The predominant outcome in studies of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching has been subjective teacher ratings of students’ classroom behavior or academic performance. Teachers’ ratings of their students are most relevant in this review to the extent to which they provide evidence that student–teacher racial/ethnic matching is associated with more positive perceptions of Black and Latino/a students. In the following sections, the review reports how teacher ratings of Black and Latino/a students’ classroom behavior and academic performance differ by racial/ethnic matching. Table 1 summarizes the findings of teacher ratings of student classroom behavior. Table 2 summarizes the findings of teacher ratings of student academic ability.

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Table 1

Overview of studies examining the relationship between student–teacher race/ethnicity matching on teacher ratings of student classroom behavior

	Externalizing problem behavior	Internalizing problem behavior	Interpersonal skills	Self-control	Disruptive	Inattentive
Overall	Same-race teacher: 2.2% of a SDU lower rating	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	Other race teacher: Increased risk of disruptive rating (OR = 1.51)	Other race teacher: Increased risk of inattentive rating (OR = 1.34)
Black students	Black teacher: 7.6% to 40% of a SDU lower rating	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence
Latino/a students	Latino/a teacher: 22% of a SDU lower rating	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence

Note. OR = odds ratio; SDU = standard deviation unit. Reported estimates at least significant at the 5% level. See Supplemental Table A1 (in the online version of the journal) for full summary.

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Table 2

Overview of studies examining the relationship between student–teacher race/ethnicity matching on teacher ratings of student academic performance

	Overall academic rating	Approaches to learning	Effort	Expect to go to college/graduate	Recommend for advanced courses	Rarely completes homework	Use good grammar	Clearly organize ideas
Overall	Same-race teacher: 4.3% to 7.1% of a SDU higher rating	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	Other race teacher: rarely completes homework rating (OR = 1.29)	No significant evidence	No significant evidence
Black students	Black teacher: 14% of a SDU lower rating to 6.2% of a SDU higher rating	No significant evidence	Black teacher: 0.39 units more likely to rate students (on a 3–6 scale)	Black teacher: 11 p.p. more likely to expect student completes more education than high school	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	White teacher: reduced risk of using good grammar (OR = 0.77)	White teacher: reduced risk of organizing ideas (OR = 0.78)
Latino/a students	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	Latino/a teacher: 13 p.p. more likely to expect student to graduate from college	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence	No significant evidence

Note. OR = odds ratio; SDU = standard deviation unit, p.p. = percentage points. Reported estimates at least significant at the 5% level. See Supplemental Table A1 (in the online version of the journal) for full summary.

Student Achievement

Most studies that look at the effect of student–teacher race/ethnicity matching on student achievement look specifically at student–teacher racial dyads (e.g., Black students with Black teachers). That being said, the few studies that look at the overall relationship of having a teacher of the same race/ethnicity indicate a small, positive effect. In an analysis of over eight million student observations from Florida, Egalite, Kisida, and Winters (2015) find an overall effect of racial/ethnic matching of 0.002 standard deviations in reading and 0.008 standard deviations in mathematics, with much larger effects in elementary than middle school. Clotfelter et al. (2007) show evidence of slightly larger effects (in elementary school), with effects ranging from 0.007 to 0.020 in reading and 0.017 and 0.029 in mathematics. Dee’s (2004) reanalysis of data on over 23,000 elementary school students from the Tennessee Student Teacher Achievement Ratio (TN STAR) experiment shows that students gained 3.6 percentile points in mathematics when assigned to a teacher of their race/ethnicity. Reading scores increased by 2.9 points. Two studies examining district or state administrative data from a single school year find no overall evidence of a relationship between student–teacher racial/ethnic matching (Howsen & Trawick, 2007; Huang & Moon, 2009). As shown in the next subsections, however, results are distinct for Black and Latino/a students, with much stronger findings of benefits to achievement for Black students.

Black Students

There is evidence that Black students score higher on achievement tests when assigned to a Black teacher, although there are notable exceptions to this pattern, particularly in analysis of nationally representative student surveys. Figure 2 presents the standardized coefficients from studies that have disaggregated student achievement results for Black students. To obtain estimates displayed in the table, the author conducted several calculations in effort to report standardized coefficients, including (1) calculating standard errors from reported t-statistics, (2) standardizing percentile scores, and (3) calculating a weighted average for Black male and female students. It is worth emphasizing that several studies discussed below are not reported in this figure as the original authors report unstandardized test scores. Still, Figure 2 shows a range of positive, null, and negative estimates of the relationship between Black student–teacher matching and student achievement, many of which are estimated with little precision. That being said, there is more evidence of a positive, significant effect, particularly in reading.

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Figure 2.

Forest plot of the studies examining the relationship between Black student–teacher matching on student achievement.

Dee (2004) finds that Black students’ mathematics scores increased by an average of 3 to 5 percentile points when assigned to a Black teacher and reading scores increased by 3 to 6 percentile points. Quasi-experimental studies of district and state databases generally replicate this finding, although the magnitude of this relationship varies. Egalite et al. (2015) show that for Black students assigned to Black teachers, reading scores increased by 0.004 standard deviations and 0.019 standard deviations in mathematics. In a large urban district in Texas, Hanushek, Kain, O’Brien, and Rivkin (2005) find a 0.105 standard deviation effect on mathematics achievement for Black students assigned to Black teachers. The exception to this pattern is Buddin and Zamarro’s studies (2009a, 2009b, 2009c) from Los Angeles. Although Black students assigned to Black teachers generally have higher test scores, the authors find no evidence of test score gains, and even find Black high school students assigned to Black mathematics teachers scored 0.03 standard deviations lower.

Studies of nationally representative data offer less conclusive evidence of the benefits of race matching on Black students’ test scores. In their analysis of NELS:88, Ehrenberg et al. (1995) find limited evidence of a relationship between the race (and gender) of 10th-grade students and their teachers. The only observed test gains occurred for Black male students assigned to Black male teachers in history. In Fryer and Levitt’s (2004) and Jennings and DiPrete’s (2010) studies of test score gains for kindergarten and first-grade students in the ECLS-K, both sets of authors find no evidence that Black students have greater gains in mathematics or reading when assigned to a Black teacher. In a later analysis of ECLS-K, Easton-Brooks, Lewis, and Zhang (2009) and Eddy and Easton-Brooks (2011) use growth curve modeling to show that Black students with at least one Black teacher made larger test score gains than students without Black teachers (0.64 and 1.75 on a 100-point scale, in mathematics and reading, respectively).

The lack of significant evidence from many nationally representative studies, may be attributable, in part, to the comparatively smaller sample sizes. Yarnell and Bohrnstedt (2018) use multilevel structural equation modeling to of 165,410 students who participated in the 2013 National Assessment of Educational Progress. Although the study examines student achievement levels in reading—as opposed to student gains in the aforementioned analyses of administrative data—assignment to a Black teacher is associated with higher achievement levels for Black students. Black male students’ reading achievement was 6.23 points higher than Black male students not taught by a Black teacher. Black female students’ reading achievement was 4.80 points higher than Black female students not taught by a Black teacher. Given that the Black–White achievement gap is 23.8 points in this study, these differences account for a 20% to 25% reduction in this achievement gap for Black female and male students, respectively. Although promising, the evidence that Black students’ assignment to Black teachers improves average test scores is not definitive. As discussed below in greater detail, there is also evidence that the benefits of assignment to a Black teacher are moderated by school level and region.

Latino/a Students

There is less overall evidence of an effect of Latino/a student–teacher matching on student achievement, and the existing evidence is mixed. Figure 3 presents the coefficients from the studies that have disaggregated student achievement results for Latino/a students. The only positive effects of ethnic matching for Latino/a students are found in Los Angeles (Buddin & Zamarro, 2009b, 2009c). Here, the authors observe small but positive effects in middle school mathematics and high school reading and mathematics test score gains but null findings in middle school reading and elementary school reading and mathematics. Hanushek et al. (2005) show evidence of a 0.084 standard deviation effect on mathematics achievement, although this estimate is sensitive to model specification. Similarly, Jennings and DiPrete (2010) find a marginally significant effect of ethnic matching for Latino/a students in mathematics (0.29 standard deviations). Egalite et al. (2015) find a negative effect for Latino/a students assigned to Latino/a teachers in both reading and mathematics (−0.010 and −0.008 standard deviations, respectively). In summary, although there is some evidence that Latino/a students benefit with a Latino/a teacher, the evidence is not conclusive.

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Figure 3.

Forest plot of the studies examining the relationship between Latino/a student–teacher matching on student achievement.

Additional Behavioral Outcomes

Researchers have drawn on survey and administrative data to examine possible benefits of assignment to a same race/ethnicity teacher on other student outcomes, including disciplinary referrals and exclusionary discipline, assignment to a school’s gifted and talented program, attendance, and dropout. With the exception of five reviewed studies on school discipline, there are fewer studies examining these outcomes offering less definitive evidence of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching than the studies of teacher ratings of students or student achievement. That being said, the general pattern across these studies is that Black students face less exclusionary discipline, are more likely to be assigned to a gifted and talented program, attend school slightly more frequently, and are less likely to drop out of school, although this overarching pattern is generally contingent on the use of quasi-experimental research designs. It should be noted that Latino/a students have generally not been a focus in these studies, although there have also been null findings in terms of gifted assignment (Grissom & Redding, 2016).

Overview of Findings

The reviewed evidence on teacher ratings of students’ classroom behavior indicates that externalized problem behaviors are the only behavioral rating that are consistently rated differently depending on the race of the teacher. That is, Black and Latino/a students are perceived by their co-racial or co-ethnic teachers as fighting, being disruptive and being argumentative less frequently than when assigned to a teacher of a different race/ethnicity. These differences were substantive. Black and Latino/a students’ assignment to a teacher of the same race or ethnicity narrowed negative ratings of externalized problem behaviors between roughly half and the complete difference with White students (Bates & Glick, 2013; Downey & Pribesh, 2004; Wright et al., 2017). As these behaviors are precursors to office referrals and other disciplinary action (Irwin, Davidson, & Hall-Sanchez, 2013), this evidence points to one clear way in which Black and Latino/a students benefit from assignment to a teacher of the same race/ethnicity. Black and Latino/a students also tend to receive more favorable ratings of their academic ability when assigned to a co-racial or co-ethnic teacher, although this evidence is generally stronger in middle and high schools than elementary schools.

In terms of student achievement, the reviewed studies suggest that assignment to a Black teacher is linked with improved achievement for Black students. These improvements have a nonnegligible influence on the Black–White achievement gap. Yarnell and Bohrnstedt’s (2018) study finds that assignment to a Black teacher is associated with 20% to 25% reduction in the Black–White achievement gap. Yet there are notable studies using survey or administrative data that find no evidence of improved test performance (Buddin & Zamarro, 2009a, 2009b, 2009c; Ehrenberg et al., 1995; Fryer & Levitt, 2004; Jennings & DiPrete, 2010). The reviewed evidence suggests that the possible benefits of Black students’ assignment to a Black teacher are sensitive to contextual factors, given that the largest effects are observed in elementary schools and in studies conducted in the southern United States. Black students are also more likely to benefit from assignment to Black teacher in terms of a reduced risk of exclusionary discipline, an increased likelihood of being assigned to a gifted and talented program, improved attendance, and a decreased risk of dropping out of school.

Evidence of a benefit of Latino/a student–teacher matching on behavioral outcomes is inconclusive, with no overall evidence of whether or not Latino/a students’ behavior changes as a result of assignment to a Latino/a teacher. It is worth emphasizing, this conclusion results not only from consistently null findings but the lack of attention to Latino/a students assigned to Latino/a teachers in a number of studies. The primary explanation put forward to explain this finding is that differences in nationality or immigrant generation between Latino/a students and teachers limits their ability to develop a shared cultural understanding (Egalite et al., 2015).

The reviewed studies also shed light on the ways in which the development of a shared cultural understanding between students and teachers or student responsiveness to a same-race teacher improves student outcomes. Two key pieces of evidence point to teachers’ critical role in developing and acting on a shared cultural understanding. First, evidence from kindergarten and early in the school year underscore how assignment to a same-race teacher leads improved teacher perceptions of students’ classroom behavior and academic ability. Second, as student responsiveness is hypothesized to be more influential in secondary schools compared to elementary schools, that the influence of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching on student test scores was strongest in elementary schools suggests that Black teachers play a critical role in creating a culturally relevant instructional climate where Black students can thrive academically. At the same time, studies of high school teachers’ expectations for future academic attainment and students’ persistence in high school suggests that student responsiveness to also be an important factor (Fox, 2016; Gershenson et al., 2016; Gershenson et al., 2017). Joshi, Doan, and Springer (2018) come to similar conclusion by examining how students differentially benefit from assignment to a same-race teacher, depending on the measured quality of the teacher.

Directions for Future Research

First, future research can continue to reconcile the different mechanisms driving the effect of racial/ethnic matching. Research on student–-teacher gender matching suggests additional approaches to identifying the relative influence of these mechanisms. Paredes (2014) considers the degree to which female students differentially benefit from assignment to a female teacher in gender-segregated classrooms. Paredes reasons that the effect of teacher impartiality would be mitigated in a class with all female students, with any resulting effect being driven by positive student responses to a teacher role model of the same gender. This design feature could be extended for students enrolled in racially segregated classrooms. Sansone (2017) finds that female students’ self-confidence in ninth-grade mathematics or science subsides when controlling for teacher beliefs and classroom behaviors. More important, female students’ self-confidence is substantially lower when a female teacher believes boys perform better in mathematics and science, underscoring the importance of directly measuring how teachers’ biased beliefs shape students’ self-concept and achievement. Future studies on student–teacher racial/ethnic matching could integrate teacher beliefs into regression models as important, policy-relevant moderators.

Second, the mechanisms by which assignment to a same-race teacher are, at face value, consistent for Black and Latino/a students. As a result, the lack of consistent evidence of a benefit of assignment to Latino/a teachers for Latino/a students outside of perceptual measures suggests other factors are likely at play and should be a focus of future research. To the extent to which differences in Latino/a students’ and teachers’ diverse histories and cultures limit their ability to develop a shared cultural understanding, more careful research is likely needed that focuses on country of national origin. Another avenue for ongoing research is to better understand how discriminatory experiences in schools differentially shape the racial/ethnic identity development of Black and Latino/a students (DeCuir-Gunby, 2009; Pahl & Way, 2006; Quintana, 2007). Research on racial/ethnic development indicates that exposure to discrimination can spur reflection on identity and increase perception of later bias, possibly shifting how a student acts in the classroom. Longitudinal studies of children and adolescents’ racial/ethnic identify development could integrate not only student-reported data on experiences of classroom discrimination but teachers’ beliefs about the students’ classroom behavior and academic performance, as well as their racial/ethnic identity.

Third, with the exception of Gershenson et al.’s (2017) study of the effect of Black students’ assignment to a Black elementary school teacher on high school graduation, there has been no examination of the long-term benefits of student–teacher race/ethnicity matching. The importance of this research is underscored by two recent studies showing benefits of gender-specific exposure for children and youth. Bottia, Stearns, Mickelson, Moller, and Valentino (2015) find that the proportion of female high school mathematics and science teachers to be associated with an increased likelihood that a female student declares and graduates with a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) degree. Bell, Chetty, Jaravel, Petkova, and Van Reenen (2017) show that women who grow up around a greater share of female inventors from certain technological classes are more likely to become inventors in similar domains. Given teachers influence on students’ aspirations (Fox, 2016), educational researchers are uniquely positioned to examine this important question of the long-run effects of assignment to a same-race teacher.

Fourth, of the outcomes examined in this study, the evidence base is weakest for student behavioral outcomes. Two outcomes that have hypothesized relationship with the race/ethnicity of teachers that have not been examined are grade retention and special education assignment, particularly for categories such as emotional disturbance or an intellectual disability. In addition, stronger evidence is needed for school discipline. Although researchers have long recognized that school discipline is a complex, multistage process involving multiple school stakeholders, few studies have collected data on both the referring teacher, school administrator, and disciplinary action (Skiba et al., 2011). To understand how the racial and ethnic identity of students, teachers, and administrators all interact to exacerbate (or ameliorate) the exclusionary discipline faced by Black and Latino/a students, future research needs to leverage much richer data than what have been used to date. For instance, in one school, the low rate of school exclusion could be attributable to the low rates in which the primarily Black teacher workforce refers Black students to the front office. In another school, Black students are frequently referred to the front office but face little exclusionary discipline because the Black assistant principal overseeing school discipline favors a graduated discipline system with less severe infractions. In short, even in instances when a student is not assigned to a teacher of their own race or ethnicity, other school staff may serve an important compensatory role.

Fifth, the possibility for a compensatory role among other school staff points to the contextual factors that are at play in shaping how student–teacher racial/ethnic matching influences teacher perceptions of students and various student outcomes. Yarnell and Bohrnstedt’s (2018) recent work points the direction for ongoing research on the ways in which the racial/ethnic composition of classrooms and schools moderates the benefits of racial/ethnic student–teacher matching. Importantly, current research does not demonstrate the extent to which assignment to a same-race teacher differs systematically across teacher characteristics and school contexts. Future research could examine how Black and Latino/a teachers’ education and experience moderate the effect of student–teacher racial/ethnic matching. In terms of school context, the mechanisms driving the effect of student–teacher matching are arguably quite distinct for a Black student who attends a racially segregated school with numerous Black teachers compared to a Black student in a racially diverse school who is assigned to one Black teacher throughout their entire schooling. As students and teachers are not equally distributed across schools (Hansen & Quintero, 2018; Sun, 2018), understanding the school conditions in which students benefit the most from a racially or ethnically similar teacher is important, as it can inform administrator’s decisions about how to consider student and teacher race/ethnicity in assignment decisions. Furthermore, this research could also enhance our understanding of the ways in which the classroom environment becomes racialized under different conditions.

Sixth, while the sociocultural environment of a school likely moderates the effect of student–teacher race/ethnicity matching, the most relevant contextual factors are unmeasured in federal surveys and state administrative databases. For instance, Salerno and Reynolds (2017) develop a “place conscious” conceptual model to point to the importance of school ethnic enclaves. Their study points to ways in which “culturally flexible” teachers (who do not necessarily identify as Latino/a) use various instructional resources to support the academic success of minoritized students in a predominantly White school. As another example, student–teacher relationships are of paramount importance in the delivery of cultural relevant pedagogy, role modeling, and relationships with parents, among other factors (Decker et al., 2007; Hamre & Pianta, 2006). Cohen and Steele (2002) argue that improved student–teacher relationships have the potential to improve educators’ cultural understanding of their students, thereby refuting negative stereotypes that could undermine the fair treatment of Black and Latino/a students. Improved relationships may also lead students to be more trusting of the educational system and more likely to invest in their educational success (Okonofua et al., 2016). Although the quality of student–teacher relationships is likely a key mediating factor in the effect of student–teacher matching, it remains unmeasured in the studies examined in this review.

Seventh, the value of student–teacher relationships may extend across racial and ethnic lines. Positive, racially sensitive relationships may improve teachers’ cultural understanding of students in a way that allows them to uphold high expectations for all students’ learning and adopt equitable classroom practices that demonstrates this orientation. While research has documented the ways in which White teachers can thrive with non-White students (see Goldenberg, 2014, for a review), results from this review indicate that, on average, Black and Latino/a students continue to face more negative perceptions of their externalized classroom behavior and academic performance, differences that are consequential for academic and school outcomes, particularly for Black students. Research that continues to examine the ways in which White teachers can support Black and Latino/a students is critical, given that the overwhelming majority of teachers identify as White (Goldenberg, 2014). Quantitative researchers could add to this literature by examining the conditions under which White teachers lead to systematic improvements of children from traditionally underserved racial/ethnic groups. In addition, while this review has focused on the benefits of co-racial and co-ethnic teachers, future research could also probe the ways in which White students benefit from assignment to non-White teachers, including in terms of less-measured outcomes (e.g., racial sensitivity, implicit bias).

Finally, in addition to examining how Black and Latino/a students benefit from assignment to a teacher of the same racial or ethnic identity, future research could continue to examine the psychological burden and stress placed on Black and Latino/a teachers, including how these factors shape burnout and turnover.

Policy Implications

The policy recommendations that emerge from the literature on student–teacher racial/ethnic matching include recruiting a more racially and ethnically diverse teacher workforce, preparing White teachers to work in racially diverse classrooms, either through preservice or in-service training, and retaining teachers of color (Achinstein, Ogawa, Sexton, & Freitas, 2010). In terms of preparation, programs can work to differentially select more equity-oriented teachers, regardless of racial or ethnic identity. While traditional preparation programs will likely play a critical role in recruiting and preparing teachers to engage with more racially and ethnically diverse students (Ladson-Billings, 2004, 2005; Milner, 2011), alternative certification programs aimed at recruiting more diverse teachers also show promise (Gist, 2017; Redding & Baker, 2019). Recent research indicates that “Grow Your Own” programs provide an important pathway into teaching for school and community members, many of whom come from traditionally underserved racial and ethnic groups (Gist, Bianco, & Lynn, 2019).

Evidence that teachers of color are more segregated than students in some states suggests that policies that promote the more even distribution of teachers of color across schools may also prove beneficial for students (Hansen & Quintero, 2018). In response, teacher education programs might become more intentional about the schools in which they place prospective teachers, given that where prospective teachers conduct their student teaching is linked with the location and demographic characteristics of the school in which they begin their career, particularly for underserved racial/ethnic minorities (Krieg, Theobald, & Goldhaber, 2016).

In terms of training, one practical area to emerge from this review relates to the racial/ethnic disparities in how teachers rate externalized problem behaviors among Black and Latino/a versus White students. Since singling out such behaviors often precludes office referrals, policies should focus on teacher perceptions and biases, a point Welsh and Little (2018) arrive at in their review of school discipline policies. Policies and programs that aid teachers in developing a shared cultural understanding between students and teachers have the potential to shape Black and Latino/a students’ success in other academic and behavioral domains.