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Full-Text Articles in Education

Using Eighth Grade Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests To Predict Student Achievement On The Georgia End Of Course Tests, Janice Darnell Jun 2012

Using Eighth Grade Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests To Predict Student Achievement On The Georgia End Of Course Tests, Janice Darnell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this correlational study was to examine Georgia's Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) scores of 8th grade students and End of Course Test (EOCT) scores of the same students as 9th graders in the areas of language arts and mathematics to test the theory that a relationship exists between the two tests. The study also examined the 8th grade CRCT scores as being predictors of the 9th grade EOCT scores. Three cycles, or classes, of 8th grade CRCT scores and corresponding EOCT scores were used. The study used data from a small semi-rural school district in northeast Georgia. The …


A Phenomenology Of Nonparticipation In Extracurricular Activities By Hispanic Middle School Students, Janelle Garner Jun 2012

A Phenomenology Of Nonparticipation In Extracurricular Activities By Hispanic Middle School Students, Janelle Garner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to examine the reasons why Hispanic middle grade students choose not to participate in school-based extracurricular activities. Extracurricular activities have been recognized to have a positive influence on the educational success of students. Despite the positive effects, Hispanic students have been shown to participate in extracurricular activities at school less than other groups of students. The lack of participation by students in extracurricular activities is related to student disengagement and ultimately dropping out of school. This study uses three methods of data collection: analysis of documents and artifacts, a scaled survey, and a …


A Study Of The Relationship Between Caregiver Education Level, Time Spent On School Actvities, And Mathematics Achievement, Ebony Allen Jun 2012

A Study Of The Relationship Between Caregiver Education Level, Time Spent On School Actvities, And Mathematics Achievement, Ebony Allen

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the relationship between caregiver education level and time spent with a caregiver on school activities with regard to how Georgia Middle School students (N = 465) achieved on the mathematics section of the yearly Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) in Georgia. Caregiver education level and time spent with the caregiver on school activities was also examined to determine if a cumulative effect between the two factors could be found in relation to mathematics achievement on the CRCT. A causal comparative design was used and the data was analyzed using the 2009 version 16 of SPSS. A generalized …


The Effect Of The Private Classroom Blog On The Acquisition Of Formal Writing Proficiency With Spanish Iii High School Students, Olga Glymph Jun 2012

The Effect Of The Private Classroom Blog On The Acquisition Of Formal Writing Proficiency With Spanish Iii High School Students, Olga Glymph

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the impact of a private classroom blog implemented as an instructional technology on student writing proficiency in a world language with the focus on formal writing. The nonequivalent control-group, pre-posttest design was used to determine if the use of the private classroom blog in teaching world language formal writing affected student writing proficiency with the specific focus on task completion, comprehensibility, level of discourse, vocabulary, and language control. This research study used a convenience sample of sophomore, junior, and senior students in a Georgia public high school. Independent raters evaluated students' writings using the Fairfax County Public …


Effective Science Teaching In A High Poverty Middle School, Georgette Meyer May 2012

Effective Science Teaching In A High Poverty Middle School, Georgette Meyer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative case study described the characteristics of science teachers in a high poverty urban middle school whose 2010 scores on South Carolina's Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (PASS) ranked second in the state. Data was obtained through classroom observations, open-ended interviews, school documents, and photographs taken inside the school from ten participants, who were seven science teachers, a science coach, and two administrators. Findings revealed a school culture that pursued warm and caring relationships with students while communicating high expectations for achievement, strong central leadership who communicated their vision and continuously checked for its implementation through informal conversations, frequent …


The Impact Of Multimedia And Redundancy On The Efficiency Of History Presentations, Adam Leach May 2012

The Impact Of Multimedia And Redundancy On The Efficiency Of History Presentations, Adam Leach

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The use of educational technology to create classroom presentations is already commonplace in American history classes. Therefore, this study focuses on how multimedia presentations can promote efficient instruction specifically, can the employment of the multimedia and redundancy principles (Mayer, 2009) improve the efficiency of student learning in high school history. The goal is to identify methods of multimedia presentation design that maximize the efficiency of instruction, as a gap in literature exists when referencing the performance of adolescents in a public high school and in the study of history. Keeping the focus on efficient learning, this study uses a quasi-experimental …


The Effects Of Single-Gender Classes On Students' Physical Fitness Test Performances And Attitudes, Zachary Wilson May 2012

The Effects Of Single-Gender Classes On Students' Physical Fitness Test Performances And Attitudes, Zachary Wilson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this pretest-posttest control group study was to test the Social Cognitive Theory by comparing the effects of class type, coeducational or single-gender, on physical fitness test performance and attitudes, controlling for previous fitness levels, among sixth-grade male and female physical education students at a Northwest Georgia Middle School. A total of 277 students participated in the newly state-mandated FitnessGram physical fitness test as part of their regular physical education class. The groups then participated in standard physical education lessons for four weeks. Then, in each of the two sixth-grade physical education periods, students were divided among the …


Teachers And Hand-Held Graphing Technology: An Examination Of Concerns, Edward Helton May 2012

Teachers And Hand-Held Graphing Technology: An Examination Of Concerns, Edward Helton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this nonexperimental causal-comparative study was to examine the concerns of teachers in reference to the graphing calculator, as measured by the Stages of Concern Questionnaire (SoCQ) and compare the results to a combination of levels of concerns between groups. The study participants were high school teachers of mathematics in Northwest Georgia and Southeast Tennessee (n = 128). This study utilized a two-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) to determine the effect of two independent variables, formal training and experience teaching with a graphing calculator, on seven dependent variables, teachers' Stages of Concern (stages 0-6). Also, a one-way …


The Relationship Between Text Message Volume And Formal Writing Performance Among Upper Level High School Students And College Freshmen, Brian Wardyga Apr 2012

The Relationship Between Text Message Volume And Formal Writing Performance Among Upper Level High School Students And College Freshmen, Brian Wardyga

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to reveal whether there is a relationship between students' volume of text messaging and formal writing performance on the Scholastic Aptitude Test writing section. The study also examined gender as a contributing variable in this measure. As a supplementary correlation, student text message volume was also compared to their Writing I course final grade. The study focused solely on texting because texting has become the preferred method of telecommunication among teens and young adults (Lindley, 2008, p. 19). The design included a questionnaire that collected data to show whether any relationships exist that indicate …


The Impact Of Georgia's Esol Endorsement On Teachers' Attitudes And Secondary English Language Learners (Ells)' Achievement, Traci Mcbride Apr 2012

The Impact Of Georgia's Esol Endorsement On Teachers' Attitudes And Secondary English Language Learners (Ells)' Achievement, Traci Mcbride

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

As school districts are facing increasing pressure to meet annual yearly progress goals based upon the No Child Left Behind legislation (2001), teacher preparation and effectiveness, especially in teaching specific subgroups, is an issue that resonates with many educators today. This quantitative, causal-comparative study examined the impact teachers who have obtained an ESOL endorsement have on standardized test scores in six high schools within one district in northeast Georgia. Additionally, the researcher compared teachers' attitudes and perceptions of six themes towards ELL inclusion in their mainstream classrooms in these same schools with findings from the original survey designed by Reeves …


Why Students Are Choosing Not To Participate In Honors And Advanced Placement Classes: The Phenomenon In One Georgia High School, Susan Buice Apr 2012

Why Students Are Choosing Not To Participate In Honors And Advanced Placement Classes: The Phenomenon In One Georgia High School, Susan Buice

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study is to determine the causes for high school students' decisions not to enroll in Honors or Advanced Placement (AP) courses. This study is a transcendental phenomenology whose participants are students who have been determined to be potentially successful in Advanced Placement classes by the AP Potential publication but who have chosen not to take any advanced classes. I will use an initial interest survey, individual interviews, and focus groups in order to gain knowledge from the students about their reasons for choosing not to participate in the Honors/AP classes. After coding the responses, I will …


The Effectiveness Of School-Wide Positive Behavior Programs In Georgia Middle Schools, Kristy Rutland Arnold Apr 2012

The Effectiveness Of School-Wide Positive Behavior Programs In Georgia Middle Schools, Kristy Rutland Arnold

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Discipline issues and inappropriate student behavior in the classroom are issues that administrators and teachers throughout the country deal with on a daily basis and often lead to a loss of instructional time. This causal comparative study examined school-wide discipline programs and compared the behavior of students in schools using school-wide positive behavior management systems to the behavior of students in schools that do not implement school-wide programs based on the numbers of office referrals at each level of behavior. Three middle schools in one northwest county in Georgia were compared based on the presence of School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions …


Standing In The Gap: A Study Of College-Bound Latinas' Resilience In Completing High School Within An At-Risk Environment, Shane York Apr 2012

Standing In The Gap: A Study Of College-Bound Latinas' Resilience In Completing High School Within An At-Risk Environment, Shane York

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to look at the life experience factors that led to high school graduation through the eyes of resilient Latinas between the ages of 18 and 25. A grounded theory approach was used in combination with Paulo Freire's praxis and a resiliency conceptual framework to derive constructs directly from the data itself. Participants were selected through a purposive, snowball method until saturation was met. Extensive qualitative interviews were employed to gather the data used to derive theory. All data were coded and reviewed in light of the three research questions. Validity and trustworthiness were established …


Assessing Intrinsic Values Of A Lecture-Free High School Science Education For Collegiate Science Work: A Case Study, Christopher Dorais Apr 2012

Assessing Intrinsic Values Of A Lecture-Free High School Science Education For Collegiate Science Work: A Case Study, Christopher Dorais

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This case study examined the efficacy of the individualized instruction teaching methodology as it was applied within high school science classes. Also examined was how individualized instruction at the high school level prepared students to do collegiate science level work.


The Long-Term Social & Emotional Outcomes Of Subject-Area Acceleration On Gifted Learners, Dana King Apr 2012

The Long-Term Social & Emotional Outcomes Of Subject-Area Acceleration On Gifted Learners, Dana King

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative phenomenological study utilizing transcendental phenomenology methods sought to understand the long-term social and emotional outcomes associated with subject-area acceleration. The participants were high school gifted juniors and seniors from one rural high school the southeastern United States. Data was collected through surveys, individual interviews, and focus group interviews. The rich details produced by this study enabled the researcher to construct a voice for this population by analyzing overarching themes emerging from surveys and interviews. The results of this study indicated that participants experienced primarily positive social and emotional outcomes of subject-area acceleration. The study will help guide teachers, …


The Correlation Between The Three Reading Fluency Subskills And Reading Comprehension In At-Risk Adolescent Readers, Craig Courbron Apr 2012

The Correlation Between The Three Reading Fluency Subskills And Reading Comprehension In At-Risk Adolescent Readers, Craig Courbron

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to determine which of the three reading fluency subskills were most strongly correlated with reading comprehension in adolescent at-risk readers. The participants were 82 adolescent males (ages 13-19) who had been committed to a juvenile detention facility. Archival data from a two-year period was collected from a maximum security juvenile detention facility in a rural section of the Northeastern United States. The Measures of Academic Progress test was used to collect reading comprehension data; the Qualitative Reading Inventory-4 test was used to collect reading speed and reading accuracy data; the Multidimensional Fluency Scale was …


Comparison Of The Effects Block And Traditional Schedules Have On The Number Of Students Who Are Proficient On The Biology End-Of-Course Test In Forty Public High Schools In The State Of North Carolina, Tonia Bonner Apr 2012

Comparison Of The Effects Block And Traditional Schedules Have On The Number Of Students Who Are Proficient On The Biology End-Of-Course Test In Forty Public High Schools In The State Of North Carolina, Tonia Bonner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the difference between the number of overall students, African-American students, and students with disabilities on a semester 4 x 4 block schedule who were proficient on the North Carolina Biology End-of-Course Test and the number of the same group of students on a traditional 45-50 minute yearlong schedule who were proficient on the NC Biology End-of-Course Test in the state of North Carolina during the 2009-2010 school year. A causal-comparative design was used and three null hypotheses were tested using chi-square analysis. Archival data was used. The results showed that there was a significant association between the …


A Hermeneutical Phenomenological Study Of The Role Of New Secondary School Assistant Principals, David Stanton Apr 2012

A Hermeneutical Phenomenological Study Of The Role Of New Secondary School Assistant Principals, David Stanton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study followed five secondary school assistant principals during the 2010-2011 school year. The participants range in age from their early 30s to early 50s, three of the participants serving as assistant principals in high schools; and two as assistant principals in middle schools. All five participants work in two school districts in Oakland County, Michigan, a suburban county northwest of Detroit and were promoted to administrative work within the past three years. The participants provided monthly calendars and journals along with discipline reports to demonstrate through their schedules, duties, and, most importantly, their own words, the experiences of …


A Phenomenological Study Of The Characteristics Of A High School That Influence Former Senior Year Dropouts To Graduate With A Regular Diploma, Rebecca Royal Mar 2012

A Phenomenological Study Of The Characteristics Of A High School That Influence Former Senior Year Dropouts To Graduate With A Regular Diploma, Rebecca Royal

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the characteristics of a high school environment that former senior year dropouts were looking for when they returned to school to attain their diploma. A phenomenological qualitative design was used to identify the reasons seniors dropped out of school, the factors that influenced them to return, the characteristics of the high school environment they deemed most desirable, and the differences between the perceptions of African American and Caucasian students in their responses. Eight former senior year dropouts from one South Georgia school district participated in two individual student interviews and one focus group interview to determine these …


The Impact Of Race And Education On Gifted Students Of Color: A Case Study Of High School Gifted Students Of Color, Rouel Cornejo Belleza Feb 2012

The Impact Of Race And Education On Gifted Students Of Color: A Case Study Of High School Gifted Students Of Color, Rouel Cornejo Belleza

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The examination of the relationship between race and education continues today as diversity across the country increases, while achievement scores remain stagnant or decreases. Among K-12 public education students in the United States, 7% are identified as gifted with ¾ categorized as Caucasian. Gifted students of color are a minority within an already minority community. This case study explores the influences and impact of race, education, and giftedness among four gifted high school students of color. The participants shared in their understanding of the following: what it meant to be labeled as smart; relating with friends and the importance of …


The Effects Of A Remedial Math Intervention On Standardized Test Scores In Georgia Middle Schools, Chastity London Adams Jul 2011

The Effects Of A Remedial Math Intervention On Standardized Test Scores In Georgia Middle Schools, Chastity London Adams

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Schools are looking for interventions to improve academic achievement and increase test scores due to the requirements of No Child Left Behind. One such intervention in middle schools is remedial math. This causal comparative study examined the differences in the standardized test scores for at-risk students who receive remedial math instruction and at-risk students who do not receive this intervention. In addition, this study examined gender differences for the remedial math students. The Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Test of 293 at-risk seventh-grade students was used in this study. Using the previous year's standardized math test scores as a control variable, there …


The Effect Of Teacher Pedagogical Content Knowledge And The Instruction Of Middle School Geometry, Sara Talley Lenhart Sep 2010

The Effect Of Teacher Pedagogical Content Knowledge And The Instruction Of Middle School Geometry, Sara Talley Lenhart

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigated the relationship between middle school math teacher pedagogical content knowledge as gathered from a teacher assessment and student Standards of Learning scores. Nine middle-school math teachers at two rural schools were assessed for their pedagogical content knowledge in geometry and measurement in the specific area of decomposing and recomposing one-dimensional and two-dimensional figures. A Pearson's Product Moment Coefficient statistical test was used to compare teacher assessment scores of each pedagogical content knowledge level with student Standard of Learning math scores. The results showed that there is a relationship between teacher pedagogical content knowledge and student Standards of …


Impact Of Freshman Transition Interventions On Ninth Grade Academic Achievement, Emily Spake Brown Apr 2010

Impact Of Freshman Transition Interventions On Ninth Grade Academic Achievement, Emily Spake Brown

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of various freshman transition interventions on student academic achievement. Specifically, this study aimed to measure academic success by focusing upon ninth grade End of Course Test (EOCT) scores. The data were collected using a researcher-developed survey. After securing permission from all superintendents, the survey was electronically mailed to all high school principals within the state of Georgia. Among participating systems, the survey response rate was 78.4 percent. Based upon expert opinion, the twenty individual intervention items were categorized into three domains. The domain data were analyzed using analysis of variance …


Comparing Academic Achievement Of African-American Males Who Do And Do Not Participate In High School Athletics, Thomas Victor Montgomery, Iii Apr 2010

Comparing Academic Achievement Of African-American Males Who Do And Do Not Participate In High School Athletics, Thomas Victor Montgomery, Iii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study was conducted to investigate the impact on academic achievement that high school athletics had on African-American male students who participated in high school athletics against African-American male students who did not participate in high school athletics during the 2008-2009 school year. The results were measured by grade point averages (GPAs) and surveys developed by the researcher. The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not African-American males that participated in high school athletics showed higher academic achievement than African-American males that did not participate in high school athletics. The study also assessed attitudes about the relation …


School Achievement For Students With Behavioral Disorders, Steven Wayne Burnett Feb 2010

School Achievement For Students With Behavioral Disorders, Steven Wayne Burnett

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of the descriptive qualitative study was to examine the successful strategies, accommodations, and interventions utilized for students with emotional behavior disorder (EBD) and the influences they have on the students' academic achievement (GPA, passage rates of courses, passage rates of state mandated assessments, student satisfaction, attendance rates, and disciplinary infractions) and glean greater understanding of instructional strategies and environmental differences alternative schools offer to students with EBD. In addition to a parent and a student with EBD, an alternative school staff was analyzed in rich detail to glean understanding of environmental influences. Data were collected using document analysis, …


No Child Left Behind Act: The Impact On The Performance Levels Of Gifted Students Relative To Those Of Non-Gifted Students, Rochelle Lenea Hopson-Lamar Aug 2009

No Child Left Behind Act: The Impact On The Performance Levels Of Gifted Students Relative To Those Of Non-Gifted Students, Rochelle Lenea Hopson-Lamar

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this causal comparative study was to determine the impact of the implementation of NCLB on the performance levels of gifted students relative to those of non-gifted students. The study involved the 2001, 2002, 2008, and 2009 Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT) results of 1,978 middle grades students from a school in rural Northwest Georgia. The analysis included comparing the Mann-Whitney statistics, two-sample independent z-test statistics, and the percentage of improvement in performance levels of the gifted and non-gifted students, as measured by the CRCT in reading, language arts, and mathematics. The findings revealed that, since the implementation …


Teachers’ Perceptions Of How Leadership Styles And Practices Of Principals Influence Their Job Satisfaction And Retention, Eric Matthew Denton Jul 2009

Teachers’ Perceptions Of How Leadership Styles And Practices Of Principals Influence Their Job Satisfaction And Retention, Eric Matthew Denton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study addresses the challenge principals face in retaining highly qualified and effective teachers in their schools. Although efforts to recruit new teachers have proven successful, teachers are leaving education at alarming rates, especially in the first four years of their careers. The purpose of this study was to identify what school principals can do to increase teachers' job satisfaction and retention. To do so, 12 veteran teachers from four schools were interviewed from February to April 2009. The participants answered questions concerning their levels of job satisfaction, their perceptions of their principals' leadership styles, and their reasons for continuing …


The Effect Of The Use Of Christian-Published Science Textbooks On The Act Science Reasoning Subtest Scores Of Midwest Christian High Schools, Janice Marie Guthrie Apr 2009

The Effect Of The Use Of Christian-Published Science Textbooks On The Act Science Reasoning Subtest Scores Of Midwest Christian High Schools, Janice Marie Guthrie

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Statistics indicate that students in conservative Christian schools earn higher standardized test scores in mathematics, reading, science, and writing compared to their public school counterparts, while many are criticized for using curricular materials deemed inferior in quality and for employing uncertified and ill-trained teachers. This study investigates the effectiveness of Christian-published science textbooks in preparing students for college-level science courses as measured by the Science Reasoning subtest of the ACT college entrance examination. A questionnaire was sent to conservative Christian high schools in five Midwest states which are affiliated with the American Association of Christian Schools, Association of Christian Schools …


A Theatrical Take On Educational Self-Esteem, David Seagraves Apr 2008

A Theatrical Take On Educational Self-Esteem, David Seagraves

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the constructs of self-esteem and theatre arts. The experimental research utilized a Solomon four-group design, which included four groups of public high school freshmen. The study investigated whether or not self-esteem would increase after studying theatre arts, and if a cause and effect relationship existed between theatre arts and self-esteem. The study’s independent variable was a theatre arts treatment of ten lessons centered around a novel. The dependent variables were the scores on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (1965), a self-reporting and numerically measurable self-esteem survey. The scale was administered in a pretest and posttest format. The self-esteem …


The Relationship Of Principal Leadership And Teacher Morale, Keith A. Rowland Mar 2008

The Relationship Of Principal Leadership And Teacher Morale, Keith A. Rowland

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This Study examined the relationship of the leadership practices of middle school principals and the morale of the teachers in these schools. Seven middle schools in a Metropolitan Atlanta school system participated in the study. The Leadership Practices Inventory was used to collect information on the principal practices and the Purdue Teacher Opinionaire was used to collect information on teacher morale. Results indicated that principal leadership and teacher morale were significantly correlated and that the leadership practice of Enable Others to Act had the strongest positive correlation to teacher morale. These results imply that a principal’s daily behavior plays a …