Positive School Climate and Underrepresented Groups: A Multilevel Model Describing Math Scores in Brazilian High School Graduates

Mathematics ability is considered the underlying “fabric of society”. Thus, disentangling specific differences between individual and school-level factors is critical for understanding disparities in mathematics achievement, particularly among underrepresented groups. In this brief report on over 700,000 Brazilian adolescents (ages 18–21), we used a multilevel modeling approach to predict math scores based on a number of individual-level and between-level variables. Our findings show that males still outperform females and that students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds achieve higher scores. Beyond these individual differences and the advantages associated with private school attendance, positive school climate as a school-level factor was also linked to better math scores. Nevertheless, positive climate was more strongly related to math grades for male students attending private schools. Furthermore, positive school climate was more strongly related to math scores for students with higher socioeconomic statuses attending private schools. These findings replicate those of previous literature while also expanding on the multifaceted impact of school-level positive climate. We close by calling for more studies that disentangle differences between underrepresented groups in mathematics.