The Contours of Tracking in North Carolina

In this analysis of North Carolina high schools the author examines school tracking policies using an amended version of Sorensen's (1970) conceptualization of the organizational dimensions of tracking. Data from curriculum guides in a stratified sample of 92 high schools reveal both consistency and variation in how tracking is implemented at the school level. Understanding the policies that promote inclusive course taking, or that affect other dimensions of tracking, such electivity and scope, is the first step to improving the implementation of tracking. Research on tracking will continue to be disconnected from school improvement efforts until the relationships between school policies, the organizational dimensions of tracking, and outcomes for students are understood.