Education Commons^™

Development And Use Of Essential Learning Goals And Their Effect On Student Achievement In Grades Two Through Five

Dissertations

This study looks at the use of Essential Learning Goals and their effect on student learning in grades two through five. Teachers in the treatment group participated in a yearlong professional development program. The treatment incorporated the concepts developed by Wiggins and McTighe (2011) in their research “Understanding by Design”, Marzano’s (2009) work on development of learning goals and objectives, and Hess’s (2007) work on Learning Progressions. The treatment provided training to teachers through a professional development program designed to enhance teachers’ content knowledge to improve student achievement. Student achievement was measured using a district wide communication arts assessment tool. …

A Study Of Best Practices And Student Achievement In Elementary And Middle School Reading, Tracey L. Hankins

Dissertations

Reading and writing proficiency are skills necessary to be successful academically and in today’s workplace. Literacy skills are directly linked to a better quality of life, the ability to read labels, civic documents, to expand knowledge, and to boost self-esteem (SIL International, 2012). Teaching reading and writing is a complicated arena in education and must be addressed in a systematic manner in order for students to excel. In this study, state test scores in Communication Arts for students in grades 3 through 8 in Missouri were examined to determine the top 10% of schools. Once the top 10% of schools …

The Effect Of Preschool On Reaching Achievement Among Kindergarten Students, Reisha Monique Mckinney

Dissertations

As early childhood education continues to move to the forefront of public policy debate, more attention is being paid to early literacy. Strickland and Riley-Ayers (2006) indicated that early literacy and early learning opportunities play a vital role in academic achievement. This study invested whether there were statistically significant relationships between preschool attendance based on the reading and language arts scores from the Georgia Kindergarten Inventory Developing Skills test.

The study also determined if there were differences in the reading and language arts for those who attended preschool and those who did not based on free/reduced and full paid lunch. …

Developmental Reading Course Repeaters With Significant Cognitive Disabilities At The Community College: Evaluating Enrollment Motivations And Goals, Juliet Katherine Lilledahl Scherer

Dissertations

This study investigated the enrollment motivations of developmental reading course repeaters at St. Louis Community College (STLCC) who are judged to be highly unlikely to exit the developmental reading sequence by their instructors and/or counselors in the Access Office, the office that assists students with disabilities. This three-phase study consisted of interviewing STLCC students in this population (Phase I) and surveying their parents (Phase II), as well as surveying fulltime reading faculty and Access counselors at STLCC (Phase III) to ascertain their opinions of the Phase I and Phase II findings and to collect their opinions on a range of …

Examining Predictive Validity And Rates Of Growth In Curriculum-Based Measurement With English Language Learners In The Intermediate Grades, Ella Farmer

Dissertations

In the current educational climate, school districts and states are being held accountable for the progress of all students. Students who speak another language at home and have limited English proficiency, known as English Language Learners (ELLs), continue to underperform when compared to English proficient peers. The purpose of the study was to determine whether a brief, standardized reading fluency probe (R-CBM) is an effective tool for measuring growth over time and identifying students at risk of failure of a state standards test, considering ELL status. Archival data was used with a sample of 1,056 students in fourth through sixth …

Student Achievement In Middle Grades: Gauging The Effect Of Teacher Training On Student Learning, Natalya Gnedko

Dissertations

In the United States, teacher certification has been a baseline measure of teacher quality and gateway to the teaching profession for many decades. Research suggests that teacher certification is beneficial to student achievement, with findings particularly promising when content area of teacher certification is taken into account. Positive findings are largely limited to high school. However, in recent years middle grades have been increasingly viewed as a starting point for success in high school and college, which led many school districts to require advanced training for middle grades teachers. To examine the effectiveness of advanced teacher training in middle grades, …