Education Commons^™

Middle-School Mathematics Teachers' Use Of Formative Assessment Data, Shawana T. Green

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A school district located in the southeastern United States uses benchmark tests as formative assessment to provide teachers with data to differentiate their instruction to meet the individual needs of students in their classrooms. Despite this effort, student achievement in mathematics in this school district has not improved. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how middle-grade mathematics teachers used the benchmark results as formative data to guide instruction and meet student needs. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was the model of formative assessment developed by Black and Wiliam. For this basic qualitative study, …

Perceptions Of Home-Based Parental Involvement And Middle School Students' Science Outcomes, Staicy Anthony

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A low-income, urban school district has consistently failed to achieve the state’s target science performance index for several years at the middle school level. Studies have suggested that parental involvement affects student achievement. Middle school administrators and science teachers lack an understanding of home-based parental involvement behaviors regarding students’ science outcomes. There is a need for increased home-based parental involvement to enhance science outcomes among middle school students. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to fill the gap in practice by exploring administrators’ and science teachers’ perceptions of home-based parental involvement behaviors regarding middle school students’ science outcomes. …

The Relationship Between Co-Teaching Partnerships And Student Achievement, Tikki N. Middleton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Due to legislative mandates schools are required to educate SWDs in the least restrictive environment alongside SWODs, which lead to the rise of co-teaching. However, enhancing the quality of co-teaching partnerships to impact student achievement poses a challenge for many school leaders due to the absence of quantitative data involving the impact of co-teaching on student achievement. The purpose of this study was to identify correlations among the qualities of co-teaching partnerships in grades six through eight as measured by The Colorado Assessment of Co-teaching (CO-ACT), and student growth percentiles from Spring 2019 Georgia Milestones Assessment (GMAS) data in middle …

Happiness Advantage: The Impact On School Culture, Jillian Sagan

Dissertations

The purpose of this evaluation is to analyze the implementation of the Happiness Advantage principles (Achor, 2011) to address the mental well-being for all school district employees. In addition to Happiness Advantage Training (Achor, 2011), the study seeks to determine if the implementation of positive psychology principles affects school culture, teacher engagement and student achievement. The program design incorporates whole district training, ongoing professional development for employees and the autonomy to generate new ideas to sustain a positive mindset for individual schools sites and classrooms. The findings indicate that when positive psychology principles are implemented across a school district, teacher …

Leading For Excellence: Leadership Behaviors That Cultivate A High-Achieving School Environment, Kristen Belknap

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this explanatory mixed-methods study was to determine the degree of importance for the 12-step principles proposed by Harvey et al. (2014) to create a K–12 school environment that fosters high student achievement as perceived by public school elementary principals. A secondary purpose was to explore and describe the leadership strategies for implementing the 12-step principles proposed by Harvey et al. to create a K–12 school environment that fosters high student achievement as perceived by public school elementary principals.

Methodology: An explanatory mixed-methods study was completed to examine the degree of importance each of the 12 leadership …

Explicit Inclusion Of Fun In Instruction As A Catalyst For Academic Success, Kimberly Tyskiewicz

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Low graduation rates, rising drop-out rates, and increasing apathy and disengagement in learning has prompted the need for new strategies and interventions in education. This case study provides an analysis of the perceptions of high school teachers related to the impact of the explicit, intentional inclusion of fun in direct instruction. The participants included approximately 20% of the faculty in a semirural high school of approximately 1,325 students. The case study involved individual interviews with half of the participants and the other half participating in a focus group conversation. Six participants in each group were observed. All comments and concepts …

Leading Organizational Change: A Qualitative Examination Of Experiences Of Traditional Public School Principals, Nikeshia Leatherwood

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

The Every Student Succeeds Act has set the course for new accountability measures for school and system leaders. How principals lead organizational change might be key to the success their schools experience and the achievement results of their students. This phenomenological study examined the professional experiences, leadership trainings, and strategic initiatives of traditional public school principals who led organizational change efforts that resulted in two academic rating increases within a three-year period. Five principals, representing elementary and high school, were interviewed to collect data on their experiences of leading successful organizational change. Using Moustakas’ (1994) phenomenological method, rigor was established …

Fostering Agency In Single-Gender, Middle Level Ela Classrooms: A Descriptive Multiple-Case Study, Jennifer V. Stowe

Theses and Dissertations

Students’ sense of agency or self-efficacy has been linked to student achievement levels (Goodman & Eren, 2013; Johnston, 2004; Skinner, Wellborne, & Connell, 1990). Research has also established that teachers position their students as having agency in the context of the classroom, frequently by the ways that they use language (Johnston, 2004; Paulson & Theado, 2014). However, little, if any, extant research describes teacher language as it relates to agency within the middle level English Language Arts (ELA) classroom. Additionally, studies concerning agency rarely address the ways in which gender may influence the ways in which teachers position their students …

The Effectiveness Of The Flipped Classroom On Homework And Student Achievement In A Secondary Mathematics Classroom, Adam Welch

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

The purpose of this action research study was to determine the effects, if any, a flipped classroom had on homework and student achievement. The study took place in a high school mathematics classroom over a four-week timeline. Two sections of Algebra 2 were included in this study. Data sources collected from the students included the use of a pre-assessment, quiz, homework rubric, surveys, behavioral logs, and a final assessment that covered the mathematics concepts of rational exponents and radical functions. Additional qualitative data was also collected through teacher observations and teacher-student conversations. While 44% of students’ overall grades improved, the …

Comparing Experiences, Perceptions, And Achievement Of Students In Fully Online And Web-Enhanced Courses To Assess Differences In Course Quality, Jose A. Banda

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to compare students' achievements, perceptions and evaluations of fully online and web-enhanced courses taken at a technical college in South Texas in order to determine if students achievement, perceptions, and evaluations of course design was better in one modality over the other. The study collected information on students regarding learning experiences in 21 fully online and 12 web-enhanced face-to-face core courses common to all programs of study. These courses were taught in both delivery modes, meaning that the same instructor taught the same course, with identical resources and assignments in both online and the …

The Role Of Historical Simulations In An International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program Social Studies Class, Anna Hasenkamp

Theses and Dissertations

This paper presents an action research study as part of a Dissertation in Practice. Based on observations from the classroom of the participant-researcher, Problem of Practice is described: an over-reliance on teacher-centered instructional methods and the mismatch of these instructional techniques to the pedagogy endorsed by the International Baccalaureate. Through the identification of this PoP led to a research focus concerning student achievement, instructional methods, and the use of historical simulations in the social studies classroom. As a result of this research focus, the research question of what, if any, is the possible impact of historical simulations on student achievement? …

The Influence Of An Interdisciplinary Elementary Curriculum On Student Outcomes: Providing Cognitive Student Learning Through An Integrated Approach, Ann Marie Harris

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

In order to provide students at the elementary level a thorough and efficient method of learning, the integrated–interdisciplinary approach to teaching curriculum was explored to reveal the impact on student achievement of fourth graders across the state of New Jersey in a randomly selected grouping of 50 schools using integrated–interdisciplinary curriculum and 50 schools using subject-specific curriculum. The research was an investigation of the integrated–interdisciplinary approach to teaching when compared with subject-specific curriculum to explore the impact on student achievement.

Integration of curriculum aligned to the state standards at the elementary level was a focus for this research; elementary curriculum …

The Effect Of A Supplemental, Web Based Program On Student Achievement In A Suburban New York State School District, Matthew Younghans

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Since the inception of the Common Core, school districts have sought to implement effective and fiscally responsible ways to support under-performing general education students. The need for supplemental assistance for struggling learners has emerged, particularly when tied to high-stakes testing. To offer appropriate assistance, school districts analyzed the possible ways through which they could support students and boost achievement. One popular method for providing intervention services and supplemental instruction is web-based learning. This study examined the effect of one particular supplemental web based program on student performance. It examined students who used the Castle Learning Online Program at a suburban …

Impact Of Teacher Morale And School Culture On Student Achievement, Meredith Bost

Education Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of teacher morale and school culture on student achievement. The setting for this research was a high school in a small, semi- urban school district in the Piedmont of North Carolina. For the purpose of this study, teacher morale and school culture were based on the opinion of English II and biology teachers at the study site. The study’s methodology included surveying English II and biology teachers on teacher morale and school culture. To measure teacher morale, the Purdue Teacher Opinionnaire was given to each participant. To measure the school’s …

A Program Evaluation Of The Implementation Of Personalized Learning In A Rural Elementary School, Jaime Hembree

Education Dissertations and Projects

The global workforce is constantly changing. Students sitting in today’s classrooms are being prepared for jobs that do not currently exist. Students must graduate ready to be problem solvers, collaborators, and self-starters. Students must become in charge of their learning, and teachers must possess the skill set in order to facilitate this kind of learning. As a result, many states and school districts are implementing personalized learning. This study provides a program evaluation of the implementation of personalized learning, and focused primarily on the implementation of student data notebooks and teacher-shared flexible grouping and measured teacher efficacy and student achievement …

White Paper: The Effects Of Block Scheduling And Traditional Scheduling On High School Student Achievement, Lesley Mizhquiri

EDUC 17: What Works in Education?

Since the National Education Commission on Time and Learning published Prisoners of Time in 1994, which criticized the use of traditional schedules and asked readers to think differently about class scheduling in schools, the use of block scheduling in high schools has increased. However, there is still a lack of well-implemented and well-designed studies that explore the effects of block scheduling on high school student achievement. The purpose of this white paper is to investigate the effects of block and traditional scheduling on high school student achievement, as measured by grade-point averages and standardized test scores, by analyzing ten research …

Understanding The Authenticity Of University-Based Mentoring Experiences Of Aspiring Principals In The Turnaround School Leaders Program (Tslp): A Multiple Case Study, Christine Spear

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to understand how university-based mentoring facilitates the acquisition of leadership skills in aspiring principals and if aspiring principals are able to make direct connections between authentic leadership responsibilities and what they experienced during their fieldwork. University-based leadership preparation programs are expected to produce graduates who can lead schools to successful outcomes. However, many of those programs do not provide sufficient mentoring support that allows aspiring leaders to experience authentic leadership challenges while being supervised by experts in the field. A multiple case study design was used to examine three cases to investigate the concept …

Transformational Leadership Practices And Student Achievement In Diverse Urban Elementary Schools, Matilda Maria Mendez-Keegan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The relationship between transformational leadership and student academic achievement in diverse urban elementary schools is under-researched. However, studies have indicated that there are no evident gains in student achievement when administrators and teachers differ on views of effective leadership practices. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between teachers' perceptions of administrator leadership practices and student achievement in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics within diverse elementary schools. Burns's seminal theory on transformational leadership was the theoretical framework for this study. The research questions were designed to explore the relationship between teachers' perceived rating of transformational …

Improving Student Achievement Through The Implementation Of A Classroom Performance System, Stacy Maria Artis

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to implement and examine the impact of a classroom performance system (CPS) on student achievement for Grade 9 mathematics students. Seventy-five students in 4 Coordinate Algebra classes were observed during the regular school day for 9 weeks. The treatment group received CPS-based instruction, and the control group received traditional mathematics instruction without the use of a CPS. The teacher was the same for all classes.

Data from benchmark assessments as well as quarterly grade reports were compared for both groups. The findings of this study showed mixed results in relation to the impact of CPS-based …

The Relationship Between A School District's Administrative Information Technology Budget As Proportion Of The Overall Undistributed Expenditures Budget And New Jersey 2016-2017 Parcc Performance, Peter S. Lutchko

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

The purpose of this relational, nonexperimental, explanatory, cross-sectional study with quantitative methods was to explain the relationship, if any, between the administrative information technology budget as a proportion of the overall undistributed expenditure account on PK-12 and K-12 New Jersey public school districts’ student achievement in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics, as measured by the high-stakes New Jersey standardized test entitled Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), during the 2016–2017 school year. The administrative information technology budget refers to networking, technology infrastructure, and support, rather than hardware. Additionally, the study included examination of the influence …

Social And Emotional Learning And Student Achievement In A Culture Of Care, Odalys G. Pritchard

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This capstone project was part of a group project completed by five school and district administrators in Hillsborough County, Florida. The project began because of our passion for teachers who are able to establish a culture of care in their classrooms that support students academically but transform their learning through experiences that enable them to be more highly engaged and productive students, regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, perceived academic abilities, and backgrounds.

My focus in this group project looked at social emotional learning, student behavior, and student achievement in high needs schools. Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and its related activities …

Enhancing Educational Dialogue To Promote Student Successin An Online Independent Study Statistics Course, Perpetua Lynne Nielsen

Theses and Dissertations

This two-article dissertation examined the impact of enhanced educational dialogue, in terms of periodic email feedback on course progress and an invitation to participate in a discussion board, on student achievement and course satisfaction in an introductory statistics course offered in an independent study setting. Participants in the study were students enrolled in the year-long online course. They were randomly assigned to different types and levels of educational dialogue and their completion status, final exam scores, average quiz scores, and course satisfaction ratings were compared after controlling for the following covariates of interest: age, gender, high school GPA, Math ACT, …

Student Achievement And The Career And Technical Education Medical Career Academy: A Quantitative Study, Krista J. Schweers

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The researcher investigated the benefits of enrolling in a career and technical medical career academy at the secondary school level. It was unknown if there is a significant difference in the student achievement of career and technical education medical career academy participants versus the student achievements of their non-academy participant peers. This study was guided by the following research questions: (a) Is there a significant difference in scores on the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) test of students in a medical career academy when compared to their non-medical career academy peers? (b) Is there a significant difference in the attendance …

Correlation Between Instructional School Culture And Student Achievement In An Urban District, Wayman Graham

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The Teachers Talent Toolbox needed a tool that could compile usable information on any given learning institution through data collection and analysis and provide usable qualitative and quantitative data that could be used to identify the causes of low achievement and provide necessary interventions within the school to improve student outcomes. To answer this need, the Instructional Culture Index/Insight Survey was developed by the New Teacher Project in 2016 and has been widely used and implemented in many schools and districts. This survey instrument was validated and deemed reliable by the RAND Corporation also in 2016. The purpose of this …

The Association Of Principal Leadership Styles With Student Achievement In Traditional New Jersey Public Schools, Thomas J. Gallahue Jr.

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

As the achievement gap widens, it is even more critical than ever to examine factors that may influence the closing of that chasm. Principal leadership is one such component that needs further study.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine which leadership styles principals employ in traditional public schools in the State of New Jersey, and to determine whether principal leadership styles are associated with student achievement.

Furthermore, and more specifically, this study examined the principal leadership styles utilized in the highest academic achieving schools and the least academically successful schools. Additionally, this study also analyzed the principal …

Collective Efficacy, Teacher Beliefs And Socioeconomic Status In Title I And Non-Title I Schools, Betsy Furr

Education Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the association between collective efficacy, teacher beliefs, and socioeconomic status with reading and math student achievement in the Title I and Non-Title I schools of one school district. This study examined factors that influence student achievement in a district with a majority of Title I schools. Of the eight K–8 schools in the participating district, five are Title I. Collective efficacy and teacher beliefs were used to gather data about what teachers believe regarding student learning. The efficacy survey in this study provided data about instructional strategies and student discipline. The …

Mathematics Student Achievement In The Context Of Idaho’S Advanced Opportunities Initiative, Nichole K. Hall

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Mathematics coursework a student completes in high school often directly affects their subsequent post-secondary education and career opportunities. In recent years, in a push to prepare a larger number of students for post-secondary education and career opportunities in Idaho, state initiatives have focused on addressing mathematics preparation in the middle grade years to increase the number of students completing an advanced mathematics pathway in high school, including the Advanced Opportunities Initiative to support financial costs of advanced coursework. Starting 2011, each year of the initiative has seen annual increases in students participating in dual credit and Advanced Placement (AP) coursework. …

Influences On The Sources Of Teacher Self-Efficacy In A Lutheran School, Kimberly Lavado

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Teacher self-efficacy influences teacher effectiveness and, in turn, affects student academic achievement. Improving teacher effectiveness can improve student achievement. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) measures student growth across the United States, and Lutheran schools consistently record strong achievement scores on NAEP. Exploring the influences on the sources of teacher self-efficacy in a Lutheran school can help deepen our understanding of the influences on teacher effectiveness. Guided by Bandura's social cognitive theory (1977), which asserts that an individual's belief in his ability to affect and control a desired outcome is impacted by mastery experience, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and …

Change In The Middle: Implementing Professional Learning Communities For Sustained Instructional Change, Johnna L. Bryd-King

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to explore the influence of school leaders and teachers on surface level vs. sustained change through the implementation of professional learning communities, furthering the understanding of why some schools increase student achievement and others do not. Two predominant psychological theories, Kruglanski’s lay epistemic theory and Schwartz’s value theory, were used to explore the influence of cognition formation and values on the phenomenon within a complex environment. This research studied three Southeastern Virginia suburban middle schools. Case study methodologies were utilized, including school leader and PLC teacher member interviews, and an online survey that included …

Realizing The Ideal School District Size: How District Size Affects Achievement And Expenditure, James L. Hayes Iii

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what size district (or range of sizes) better fosters an environment conducive for high student achievement and low district expenditure. The ideal district size debate goes back centuries, with the initial efforts to reform small districts that had their start in the early 19th century as rural single room schools. Literary work on this topic is quite polarized, without a clear and modern consensus. This study contained a quantitative study using a correlational research design to explore the affects of district size on student achievement and district expenditure.