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The Impact Of The No Child Left Behind Act And School Choice On Student Achievement, Wendy Ruddell Pettett

Dissertations

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act, signed into law in January 2002, established a decade of test-driven school reform in an attempt to increase student achievement and reduce the student achievement gap. The state of Georgia created the Criterion Reference Competency Test (CRCT) to align with the guidelines of NCLB. This study examined longitudinal student achievement data on eighth grade math CRCT in 25 middle schools from 2002–2007 and 2008–2011 in a large suburban school district in Georgia.

The study found that all subgroups increased in student achievement from the onset of NCLB in 2002–2011. Furthermore, the study found …

Do Teachers Modify Classroom Instruction And Management Plans Based On Student Gender, Mitchell Raymond Stubbs

Dissertations

National education statistics and data indicators show that a significant portion of both male and female learners struggle through their educational experience with little to no success. The male learner is less successful in school than the female learner and drops out of high school more often. It is even more alarming when these numbers are examined within minority populations. In 2009, almost twice as many African American males and females and three times as many Hispanic males and females dropped out of high school than Caucasian males and females. Caucasian males and minority students of both genders overwhelmingly populate …

Cultural Diversity And The Experiences Of Alaska Native Nursing Students, Margaret Gilmon

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Study Of The Effect Of Additional Reading Assistance On Student Achievement, Nicole A. Gillan-Sanderson

Dissertations

This study describes a procedure one school district used to increase students’ reading abilities through reviewing data and adjusting the instruction to give students intensive services, as needed. This school worked in a problem-solving team approach to develop a comprehensive team that followed the progression of student achievement. Professional development was utilized extensively to make adjustments for reading instruction to a data-driven approach. The targeted population consisted of third through fifth grade students in the Southern Illinois Area. The study school averaged student scores that dropped three years in a row between the years 2004-2008. With the demands of No …

The A+ Schools Program And School Improvement, Ashley Suzanne Moyer

Dissertations

This study examined Missouri’s A+ Schools Program and its impact on school improvement. Effective schools research combined with the mission learning for all provided a conceptual foundation for guiding research development. A mixed-method design allowing a triangulation of qualitative and quantitative data was applied using telephone interviews and Likert-scale surveys from A+ Coordinators having two or more years’ experience. Questions about the A+ Schools Program’s success centered on the following: graduation rate, curriculum and assessment, career preparation, rigorous coursework, and at-risk students. As a result, four themes emerged; the first of two were students realizing the importance to graduate and …

Interactive Whiteboard Use: The Catalyst Of Student Achievement, Tenneille Terrell Lamberth

Dissertations

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 forced school districts to become more accountable by requiring all students to read on grade level by the year 2014. However, President Obama’s educational policy shift is allowing states to develop their own accountability and improvement system. This study examined fourth and eighth grade math achievement on the Mississippi Curriculum Test, 2nd edition and interactive whiteboard use, attitudes and perceptions, and professional development. Data were collected from 21 participating Mississippi Gulf Coast area schools to determine if a correlation existed between fourth and eighth grade math achievement and interactive whiteboard use, …

Roadblocks To Integrating Technology Into Classroom Instruction, Courteney Lester Knight

Dissertations

Although research has concluded that technology can enhance the teaching and learning processes, teachers have not yet fully adopted technology to support their teaching methodologies. In the last decade or so, as the accessible gap narrowed, the focus switched to other factors. This study attempts to answer the question: Why teachers do not fully integrate technology into their classroom instruction?

Recently a preponderance of the literature on technology integration has inquired into teachers’ knowledge of technology, the role of the administrator, the curriculum and teachers’ perception of the benefits of technology in instruction. The problem was to determine the relationship …

Educational Technology Integration And High-Stakes Testing, Tracy Demetrie Daniel

Dissertations

Determining if the investment in educational technology will improve student achievement is complicated and multifarious. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of teacher technology integration on student achievement as measured by the Mississippi Subject Area Testing Program (SATP) and to explore the relationship between technology integration and other factors (a teacher’s age, gender, computer self-efficacy, and technology training).

This non-experimental, quantitative study included 106 secondary school teachers from six school districts in Mississippi. The respondents completed a questionnaire based on their SATP course (Algebra I, Biology, English II, and U. S. History) teaching experiences. This study …

An Examination Of The Perception Of Special Education Teachers In The Mississippi Delta Toward Their Transition Competencies, Vickie Elaine Curry

Dissertations

Transition from high school to post-school activities is recognized as a serious challenge for students with disabilities (Shandra & Hogan, 2008; Wehman, 2006). The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (2006) outlines the development of the IEP and transition plan as an essential task. However, the preponderance of secondary special educators lacks self-assurance in the ability to address students’ transition desires (Prater, Sileo, & Black, 2000). Little is known about how special education teachers proffer transition services to students with disabilities and the scope to which teachers are equipped and pleased with the services they provide. This quantitative descriptive study …

The Effect Of Teachers’ Expectations And Perceptions On Student Achievement In Reading For Third And Fifth Grade Students, Alfreda Ragland Williams

Dissertations

All too often, a student’s lack of success is blamed on his or her background, and/or the parent or the parent’s educational level. Many factors such as socioeconomic conditions, student behaviors, attendance, and teacher demographics can directly or indirectly affect class environment, classroom management, interaction with students, and equal treatment of students. In addition, a teacher’s perception of students plays a vital role in the teacher’s expectations, interactions, and relationships with his or her students. The purpose of the study was twofold. First, this study investigated the relationship between teachers’ expectations of equal treatment of students, class environment, interaction with …

New Dual Initiators For Polyisobutylene-Based Block And Star Polymers, Yaling Zhu

Dissertations

Polyisobutylene (PIB), available solely by living carbocationic polymerization (LCP), is a commercially important polymer with excellent thermal stability, good flexibility and extraordinary impermeability to gases. Due to these attractive properties, coupling PIB to other polymer blocks is expected to result in new and useful products. Two types of new dual initiators possessing initiating sites for both LCP and atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), have been designed for the preparation of AB linear and A2B miktoarm star copolymers, where A is PIB-based block copolymer that grows cationically and B is polyacrylate or other radically-derived polymer block, without intermediate modification.

Mono-cationic mono-radical …

Departmentalization And Twenty-First Century Skills, Toy Coles Watts

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between school organizational style and student outcomes. The research questions that guided this study were, “Is there a difference in mathematical performance of fourth graders who receive departmentalized instruction as compared to fourth grade students who receive self-contained instruction?,” Does the number of years of implementation affect academic outcomes in a departmentalized organizational style?,” “Are teacher attitudes toward a departmentalized organizational style influential on the academic outcomes of the students?,” and “Does teacher preparation in their area of instruction affect testing outcomes?”

The results of this study indicated no significance …

Teacher Perceptions Regarding Positive Behavior Intervention Support, Lawanda Joy Singleton Thornton

Dissertations

Almost every school uses positive behavior intervention support (PBIS) to not only increase students’ academic achievements but also their behavioral and social/emotional needs. The participants in the study were a random sample of K-12 public school teachers in the state of Mississippi; the instrumentation was a 32-question teacher perception survey.

For this study, teacher perceptions regarding PBIS were linked to five research questions. Following are the research questions with their findings with the level of significance set at the .05 level:

RQ1 Is there a relationship between the perception of PBIS and the number of years of teaching experience at …

Is There A Correlation Between Teacher Efficacy And Effectiveness To Re-Engage At-Risk Students And Graduate On Time?, John Daniel Guillory

Dissertations

Teachers are in the perfect position to be an influential source of help to students with life and academic circumstances that inhibit them from staying on the path to graduation, but they often underestimate their role in helping students develop the resilience to do so. Re-engaging students in the learning process who are severely off the graduation path may threaten the teacher’s efficacy. Once school personnel have identified students with at-risk indicators this questions still exists: Are teachers ready to intervene in ways that will help students re-engage in school and become resilient so that they graduate on time?

The …

The Relationship Between Student Achievement Of At-Risk Students And The Georgia Performance Standards In Mathematics, Loralee Ann Hill

Dissertations

Educational leaders continue to be challenged in terms of accountability measures for increased student achievement, as mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). In particular, schools must show adequate yearly progress (AYP) reaching 100 % proficiency levels for all students in the areas of English language arts and mathematics by 2014. In 2008, the Georgia Performance Standards (GPS) in mathematics were implemented at the high school level. Coupled with this new curriculum, a newly developed Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT) in mathematics was administered in March 2011. The purpose of this study was to add …

Teacher Perception Of Their Initial Traditional Or Alternitive Teacher Training Program, Daphne Yolanda Lowe

Dissertations

This study was conducted to identify if there was a need for reform within initial traditional teacher and/or alternative route teacher training programs. The purpose of this study was to gather data about teachers’ perceptions of their initial teacher training program (traditional undergraduate or alternative route) as adequate training to prepare them to complete their actual teacher job tasks. The study compared the perceptions of teachers with varying years of teaching experience (one to two, three to four, and more than five) to identify if there was a difference and/or how years of teaching experience impacted teachers’ perceptions of their …

Modern Approaches For Multifunctional Hydrolyzying Thiol-Ene Networks, Nicole Marie Mackey

Dissertations

Marine fouling has been an expensive and time-consuming process for navies and fishermen by the accumulation of marine algae and animals on artificial surfaces. Many coatings have been proposed to combat marine fouling in efforts to extend the lifetime of objects immersed in sea water. However, all coatings tested have either failed to resist fouling for a significant length of time or have released toxins into the environment. We have investigated an environmentally friendly approach to address the problem of marine fouling through the synthesis and preparation of a biocidal and a self-polishing coating. Both novel monomers were prepared containing …

Closing The Achievement Gap: A Study Of Leadership Behaviors Of Principals At Title I Distinguished Schools, Liss Althea Maynard

Dissertations

Education, a fundamental privilege in America, has been deemed the great equalizer that should afford each individual access and opportunity (Hale, 2004). However, research has proven that for many students of color, the American dream is simply a nightmare. Many minority students have lagged behind academically, failing to graduate and failing to become productive, law abiding citizens. A huge educational disparity has evolved and closing the achievement gap has become crucial in today’s educational system. However, despite the many challenges, there are schools across this nation that experience noteworthy achievement for all students including high minority and high poverty schools. …

The Relationship Between Schools Utilizing Positive Behavior Interventions And Support Programs And Student Achievement, Lori Herrington Massey

Dissertations

Incidents of student misbehavior are on the rise in classrooms across the United States. The acts of misconduct committed by students are increasing in both frequency and severity. While there is a broad spectrum of causal factors for the presentation of these behaviors, the end result is the decline of student achievement. These behavioral issues are negatively impacting student achievement by creating disruptions in the teaching process, loss of instruction for students who are serving suspensions, preoccupying administrators with dispensing office discipline referrals rather than serving as instructional leaders. To combat this rise in behavioral concerns both federal law and …

High-Stakes Testing And Its Relationship To Stress Levels Of Coastal Secondary Teachers, Sheneatha Lashelle Alexander Mcdaniel

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between high-stakes tests and stress with secondary teachers. Furthermore, this study investigated whether veteran teachers experience more stress than novice teachers and whether or not self efficacy, gender, accountability status, and years of experience influence teacher stress as it relates to high-stakes testing. This contributed to the existing literature that relates to teacher stress and high-stakes testing.

The participants for the study included Mississippi public coastal secondary school teachers who have administered the Mississippi Subject Area Testing Program system. The districts chosen were all secondary coastal schools. There was a …

Teacher Attitudes Toward The Use Of Accommodations In The Classroom And On Standardized Tests, Michele Penny Meadows

Dissertations

Educating students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment necessitates the use of accommodations and modifications to help these students have better access to the general education curriculum. As a result of inclusion, general education teachers are required to teach students with disabilities in their general education classrooms. Even though regular education teachers have assistance from special education teachers, not all general education teachers (and some special education teachers) believe they have the education, experience, or support to teach these students effectively. This study measured general education teacher and special education teacher attitudes toward the use accommodations for special education …

The Relationship Between Academic Optimism And Academic Achievement In Middle Schools In Mississippi, Laquanta Murray Nelson

Dissertations

As we constantly seek to increase educational attainment and increase student achievement in the United States, it is critical that we not only look at the effect of research based instructional practices or socioeconomic status on academic achievement, but also at any other factors that may potentially have a positive impact. The current state of education in Mississippi is still behind that of its counterparts, which suggests that providing schools with extra funds and an aligned curriculum alone will not raise student achievement.

According to Beard, Hoy, and Hoy (2009) academic optimism is a factor that influences academic achievement, even …

Teacher Certification And Student Achievement, Patricia Lewis Moss

Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed-method study was to determine if there is a significant difference between the achievement of students who are taught by traditionally prepared teachers and that of students who are taught by alternatively prepared teachers. The study further addressed the perspectives of both groups of teachers regarding selected dimensions of teaching.

The findings indicated that, overall, no significant difference existed in student achievement on MCT2 math scores for teachers who were alternatively prepared or traditionally prepared. However, there were significant differences in student achievement in grades 6 and 7 when examined by teacher preparation type. There was …

Retaining Urban Middle School Teachers: An Investigation Of Influencing Factors, Jacqueline Elaine Richardson

Dissertations

President William Jefferson Clinton is often credited with beginning a new era of improving teacher quality. Since the late 1990‘s, the federal government has presented a number of reforms that have encouraged states to develop methods to address the revolving door of teachers entering and exiting schools yearly. Retaining teachers has been documented as a historical problem, specifically at the urban middle school level where the most at-risk students need and deserve more stability and effectively trained teachers. Students at-risk of failing need a high-quality teacher in order to attain high standards and graduate with the necessary skills to succeed …

Molecular Network Development Of A Thermosetting Epoxy-Amine Polymer, Christopher Michael Sahagun

Dissertations

i ABSTRACT MOLECULAR NETWORK DEVELOPMENT OF A THERMOSETTING EPOXY-AMINE POLYMER by Christopher Michael Sahagun May 2012 Epoxy-amine resins find wide application as the matrix material of high performance polymer composites due to their favorable mechanical properties, thermal properties and solvent stability. These properties are derived from the complicated, highly crosslinked molecular network that is characteristic of these thermoset polymers. The connectivity of the molecular network has a strong influence on the physical performance of the finished part. Non-homogeneity in the network structure can degrade these favorable properties through the introduction of low-energy pathways for solvent penetration or fracture propagation. This …

Adhd In Young Boys: A Correlational Study Among Early Childhood Educators In Louisiana, Jessica Hart Stubbs

Dissertations

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a psychiatric condition that has been increasingly diagnosed in young American children, with boys being diagnosed three times more frequently than their female peers. As a result, more children than ever are being treated with powerful stimulant medications which can have various desired and undesired effects. Early childhood curriculums have become more academic in nature, and early childhood teachers are under growing pressure to help their students master academic skills at earlier ages than ever before. Pharmaceutical companies aggressively market medications directly to consumers, promising improved academic and behavioral success for even the youngest children. …

The Relationship Between School Leadership And Graduation Coach Interventions In Rural And Urban Settings, Christopher Nicholas Amos

Dissertations

The primary purpose for the Graduation Coach intervention is to increase the graduation rate and help schools produce a student that can be a productive citizen. The increasing dropout rate in the United States of America, coupled with the recent addition of some legislation, has forced schools and districts to implement programs to combat this deficiency. The economic and social impacts that dropouts have on society are vast and can be devastating for some communities. The setting in which a school resides and the leadership style of the school principal are factors that could have a significant impact on the …

Pre-Kindergarten Education: Is There A Relationship Between Pre-Kindergarten Participation And Student Achievement?, Carol Goldate Barlow

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if the intervention of attending public school pre-kindergarten had an impact on student achievement as measured by the Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP) considering gender, socioeconomic status, and grade retention. This research study included both quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data included all 2009-2010 fourth-grade LEAP math and English language arts scaled scores collected from a specified public school district. To determine the impact of pre-kindergarten attendance on student achievement, the LEAP scores of students who attended public school pre-kindergarten were compared to LEAP scores of students in the same school district …

The Influence Of Classroom Instruction And Test Preparation On School Accountability Levels, Karen Adair Carter Bryant

Dissertations

Federal and state educational agencies provide guidelines for public schools across the United States to follow (Linn, 2008; Levy, 2008). During a time of highstakes testing fueled by school accountability standards, educators strive to meet requirements for academic growth in order to maintain a successful accountability level and avoid being labeled as a school under improvement (Behrent, 2009; Hardman & Dawson, 2008). Some argue that the demands of accountability standards pressure administrators and teachers to provide less than adequate instruction in order to focus on the content of mandatory state tests (Abrams & Madaus, 2003; Anderson, 2009; Behrent, 2009; Hamilton, …

A Bisphenol-A-Based Resin System That Cures Via Triazole Ring Formation For Marine Composite Applications, Irene Elizabeth Gorman

Dissertations

Large composite panels, such as those utilized in marine applications, cannot be economically cured in an autoclave. For these structures the elevated temperatures necessary to achieve high crosslink density must come from the curing reaction itself. We are developing a resin system that cures via triazole ring formation (cycloaddition reaction of azides with terminal alkynes) instead of the traditional oxirane/amine reaction. The high exothermicity of the azido/alkyne reaction is expected to yield higher extents of reaction under ambient-cure conditions, making the resin system potentially suitable for "out-of-autoclave" curing processes. This work was conducted through a multi-tiered approach involving synthesis, kinetic …