Education Commons^™

Discrimination, Acculturative Stress, And Academic Achievement, Rebecca A. Steele

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers report an association of racial discrimination to academic achievement for racial/ethnic minority students. Racial discrimination is manifest on multiple levels, including interpersonal discrimination, discrimination in schools, and societal and cultural discrimination. Researchers have generally focused their efforts on examining the effects of one type of discrimination on academic achievement. Further, mediators of this relation have not been fully explored. In a sample of 78 college students, only interpersonal racial/ethnic discrimination, and not school-based or societal discrimination, was negatively associated with GPA. However, the effects did not hold once controlling for demographic factors. Two potential mediators of the relations of …

Let’S Talk About It: Bridging The Gap Between Diverse Students And Their White Teachers, Beth Dean Boring Shoff

Theses and Dissertations

The achievement gap is a notorious construct of 21st-century schools and refers to the achievement of marginalized groups as compared to their White counterparts. This qualitative action research studied this phenomenon in a small, suburban school district experiencing shifting demographics by analyzing educators’ perceptions and attitudes for multicultural education and culture-centered themes. Survey responses and interview data were coded using Banks’s five dimensions of multicultural education (content integration, knowledge construction, equity pedagogy, prejudice reduction, and empowering school culture) to frame professional learning opportunities for White, middle-class educators. Additionally, emergent themes were identified that impact the achievement gap in this setting: …

The Impact Of Collective Efficacy And Collective Inquiry On Closing The Achievement Gap, Anne Marie Yarborough

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this two-phased, mixed-method action research study was to investigate the impact of a professional learning community’s collective teacher efficacy and their practice of collective inquiry in closing the achievement gap of eighth-grade social studies English language learners. The research questions guiding this research: 1. How and to what extent will collective inquiry impact collective efficacy among teachers? 2. How and to what extent will a professional learning community's collective efficacy impact student achievement on the 8th-grade social studies state assessment for English language learners?

Social cognitive theory and adult learning theory provided the theoretical foundation for this …

Strategies Aimed At Helping African American Male Students Succeed In United States Secondary Schools: A Metasynthesis, Chibuzo N. Azinge-Walton

Theses and Dissertations

The persistent disparity in graduation rates between Black and White male students in U.S. secondary schools (the achievement gap) despite repeated efforts to even it out, is a thorn in the flesh of educators, the country over. The elimination of this continuous disparity through viable solutions, is the focus of this study. A problem is ninety percent solved when it thoroughly understood, with its comprehension necessitating a large investment of thought, time, and resources (Einstein, 1879-1955). To fully grasp the inner pinning of the achievement gap dilemma, this researcher selected, read, and reviewed 50 subject matter-related archived articles/studies obtained from …

The Impact Of Self-Regulated Learning Tutoring And Mentoring Program On Black Males In Eighth-Grade Science, Julie Liddle Lott

Theses and Dissertations

The problem of practice described in this paper was identified by the state testing gaps between White and Black male students at a middle school in central South Carolina. This identified problem of practice led to the development of the research question: What is the impact of a tutoring and mentoring program using self-regulated learning strategies on my Black male students and their academic achievement in eighth grade science? The purpose of this study is to determine if a tutoring and mentoring program will affect the academic achievement of my Black male students in science.

The action research model being …

Teachers’ Perspectives: Exploring The Reading Gender Gap Among Elementary School Boys, Teleshia Jones

Theses and Dissertations

Teachers’ Perspectives: Exploring the Reading Gender Gap Among Elementary School Boys. Teleshia Mincey-Jones, 2016: Applied Dissertation, Nova Southeastern University, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education. Keywords: academic achievement, achievement gap, elementary education, reading readiness, gender differences.

Reading mastery is essential for academic success. As an emphasis is placed on more rigor in education, some boys are being left behind in the area of reading. School districts are adopting new rigorous standards and transitioning to produce students who are career and college ready upon graduation. Girls are responding positively and thriving academically; yet, boys continue to underperform girls at the district, …

Rethinking The Achievement Gap: A Wholistic Humanistic View Of Student Academic Performance And Lack Of Performance, Immaculata Anayo Chukwunyere

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an ethnographic case study that explored minority and low SES inner city high school students’ perception and sense-making of school, learning, academic behaviors, and academic achievement through an integrated theory of human development, learning, and achievement. I sought an understanding of the reason behind the persistent academic failure of inner city minority and low SES high school students, as well as the academic achievement gap within and between this subgroup of students. The aim of this study was threefold. First, I explored the factors operating in high school students’ thoughts, feelings, actions, and reactions to school and …

Equality Of Opportunity: The Relationship Between Tracking And Educational Outcomes, Chris Colgren

Theses and Dissertations

To explore tracking policies and practices in relation to achievement equity, this quantitative study examined the relationship and differences between students who have completed Advanced Placement (AP)/Honors courses and those who have not in traditional Illinois public high schools. Using a cross-sectional survey design, the study used secondary data from the Illinois State Board of Education indicating high school students' socioeconomic status, race, placement in AP/Honors courses, and ACT scores to answer five research questions that reflected a general understanding of tracking policies and practices as currently employed in American public schools. Specifically, the study addressed the following questions:

1. …

Environments Of Excellence: Two Literate Homes And Teachers' Perspectives, Tracy Swinton Bailey

Theses and Dissertations

African American children and other children of Color and children living in low-income areas are not performing at the same academic level as their European American counterparts. Some educators have blamed those children and their families for their failure. However, studies show that teaching and learning is happening in all familial settings, and that environments of excellence where the characteristics, conditions, dispositions and practices support student academic success are being established and maintained in all communities, including low-income African American communities. Disregard for this fact has led to a challenge for marginalized children and a widening of the gap between …