Education Commons^™

A Case Study Of High School Students Affected By School Closure, Elizabeth Wolkowicz

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Recent charter school closures in a Southeastern Michigan community have created an influx of displaced students from communities where families are not provided systematic support to make the unexpected transition. The study utilized focus group and individual interviews to collect data from high school students who have experienced their charter high school closing and have transitioned into a single charter high school. Data analyses were done concurrently with data collection, and the first- and second-level codes were presented in matrix displays. Four themes emerged from the interviews of these participants. These themes were: sense of belonging, fear of the unknown, …

A Study Of The Effect Of School Management Upon 4th And 8th Grade Math And Reading Results In Relation To Market Driven Theory, Reginald Kirkland

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

There are several types of organizations that propose to educate students living within a large urban city in southeastern Michigan. These organizations manage portfolios of schools and differ in a variety of ways. Some of them are for-profit corporations, and others are nonprofit. There is a portfolio of schools directly managed by the traditional public school system, and yet another managed by a state agency. In addition to the aforementioned, there are several that are empowered by state law to authorize charter schools to founding boards of directors, who who in turn contract with management companies or attempt to manage …

An Examination Of The Effects Of School Choice On The Financial Integrity And Demographic Mix Of Traditional Public Schools, Jacqueline Abbey Johnston

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to study how the controversial yet expanding use of school choice affects traditional public schools' finances and socioeconomic and racial/ethnic student demographics. This mixed-methods study analyzed traditional public school districts in two Michigan counties in 2009/10 and 2013/14, answering three research questions: 1) Are the finances in districts with greater concentrations of student poverty and diversity more affected by choice than districts with lesser concentrations of student poverty and diversity? 2) Is there a relationship between choice impact and the socioeconomic and racial/ethnic concentration of student populations? and 3) What are superintendents' perceptions of …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between School Climate And Student Growth In Select Michigan Charter Schools, Benjamin P. Jankens

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what relationship exists between school climate and student growth in Michigan charter schools. Data were collected through the use of a school climate survey and standardized assessment results. The Organizational Climate Descriptive Questionnaire for Elementary Schools (OCDQ-RE) developed by Hoy, Tarter, and Kottkamp (1991) was used to assess teacher perceptions of school climate. Student growth data were calculated using the fall and spring reading and math results from the Performance Series test by Scantron, and the MAP test by NWEA.

The population of this study consisted of 355 teachers from 11 participating …