Racial/ethnic and Gender Inequalities in Third Grade Children's Self-perceived STEM Competencies.

Studies have sought to understand the underrepresentation of women and racial/ethnic minority groups in STEM, but less attention has been paid to primary school students. Using data from a nationally-representative sample, this study identified factors influencing US third-grade children's self-perceived competencies in math and science, while controlling for their actual abilities. Results indicate that girls had degraded self-perceptions of their math competencies compared to boys, but similar self-rated science competencies. Black students exhibited buoyed self-perceived math competencies, while Hispanic and indigenous students underestimated their science competencies. Students who reported being satisfied with parental attention, friends, and neighborhood had higher self-perceived competencies in both math and science.

Lifetime cancer risks from hazardous air pollutants in US public school districts.

BACKGROUND: Children are sensitive to the health impacts of environmental contaminants, but research assessing outdoor environmental exposures for children and schools is underdeveloped. There are no national-level studies examining geographical and social disparities in air pollution exposure for children in school districts. Focusing on school districts is important because they are meaningful decision-making entities for schools. METHODS: Using data from the National Air Toxics Assessment, we spatially reallocated lifetime cancer risk (LCR) from hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) within US school district boundaries, and paired those estimates with school district level sociodemographic measures obtained through the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series National Historic Geographic Information System. We employed local Moran's I to identify district-level hotpots and generalised estimating equations (GEEs) to quantify risk disparities. RESULTS: We identified hotspots of elevated LCR from all sources of HAPs (called 'total'). A regional hotspot extends throughout the southeastern USA and smaller regional hotspots are present in southern Arizona, southern California and in California's central valley. School districts with higher proportions of children, children with disabilities, foreign-born children, black children and multiracial/other race children, and lower proportions of Native American children, had greater total LCR (p<0.001). The effect of poverty on total LCR (p<0.001) was nonlinear; the lowest and highest poverty districts had lower total LCR. CONCLUSIONS: Geographical and social disparities in LCR across US school districts may be affecting children's health and future potential. This new knowledge can inform policy changes, as school districts can advocate for the environmental health of children.

Is there a Hispanic Health Paradox in Sensitivity to Air Pollution? Hospital Admissions for Asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Congestive Heart Failure Associated with NO2 and PM2.5 in El Paso, TX, 2005-2010.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Linkages between pollution and morbidity have been observed in numerous studies. But race/ethnicity has been underemphasized as a modifier of that association, and few studies have tested for a Hispanic Health Paradox in sensitivity to air pollution. METHODS: Daily asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and congestive heart failure (CHF) hospital admissions in El Paso, Texas were studied in age groups and insurance groups. Daily PM2.5 and NO2 were calculated from pollution monitors and all models adjusted for apparent temperature and wind speed. Conditional logistic regression for the case-crossover design was used for a between-group comparison and for a within-group comparison for Hispanics. RESULTS: Hispanics were at lower risk than non-Hispanic whites and non-Hispanics of other races for NO2-associated admissions, but at greater risk for PM2.5-associated admissions. While Hispanics were generally protected with regards to NO2, Hispanic children (vs. elderly) faced increased risk for asthma and uninsured Hispanics (vs. Private) faced increased risk for COPD admissions. While Hispanics were at increased risk of PM2.5-associated admissions, certain characteristics heightened their risks: being a Hispanic child (vs. Elderly) for asthma; being a Hispanic with Medicare (vs. Private) for asthma; and being a Hispanic with private insurance (vs. all other insurance types) for CHF. The main effect of pollution on admissions was more significant for asthma and CHF than for COPD, which had the fewest cases. CONCLUSIONS: There was heterogeneity in sensitivity to air pollution based on social characteristics and moderate evidence for a Hispanic Health Paradox in sensitivity to NO2.