Educating male and female students in separate learning environments has been a common practice since the early inception of educational programs. However, this practice was heavily debated in the 20th century for its perceived inequalities in the treatment of students based on their gender resulting in today's coeducational classroom structure. Recently, interest in single-sex classrooms returned as an alternative for educating America's youth. Political support for this educational approach was evident in modifications to the 2006, No Child Left Behind Act which in turn led to increased availability and popularity of this educational venue. Despite same-sex classrooms' acceptance, research results on the effectiveness of single-sex classrooms have been mixed contributing to inconclusive findings that do little to support the use of public funds for such initiatives. The purpose of this research is the analysis of data to clarify the outcomes of single-sex classroom environments and their effects on students. South Carolina Department of Education survey results (2008) were examined using ANOVA analysis to identify differences in the group means between the male and female students and regression analysis was used to test the influence of the control (independent) variables on the dependent variables. The statistical analysis did not find significant differences in how the single-sex classrooms impact males and females in terms of academic achievement. However, motivation and self-esteem were found to have significant differences for male and female students in single-sex classrooms. Notably the analysis results iv indicated 4th, 5th, and 6th grade levels demonstrated the greatest disparities between the genders. Regression results highlighted the inability of the independent (control) variables of grade level, gender, or ethnicity in explaining the variation in any of the dependent variables, failing to confirm the model used in analysis. Likewise, grade level was generally found to have a greater impact than gender or ethnicity on the academic achievement, motivation and selfesteem dependent variables. It is recommended that additional research be conducted to further consider these variables and their effects on students utilizing a wider range of control (independent) variables.

The focus of this research was to identify variables reported in the 2008-2009 Florida School Indicator Report (FSIR) that had a statistical impact, positive or negative, on the likelihood that a school would achieve Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in reading or mathematics using the logistic regression technique. This study analyzed four broad categories reported by the FSIR to include academic, school, student, and teacher characteristics. FSIR and AYP data was collected for 468 Florida high schools that were categorized by the Florida Department of Education as presenting a comprehensive curriculum to grades 9-12 or grades 10-12. It was determined in this study that academic data associated with ACT results and the grade 11 FCAT Science were effective predictors of a school’s academic health in reading and mathematics. Student absenteeism showed the greatest impact on a school obtaining AYP in reading while the percentage of students qualifying for free and disabled populations within a school showed the greatest impact on a school obtaining AYP in mathematics. Teachers teaching out of field were identified as having a negative influence on AYP in reading and mathematics while a teacher’s experience was considered a positive influence on AYP in mathematics only. Further research is necessary to fully explore the use of logistic regression as a predictive tool at the state, school district, and school level.

This study examined how self-efficacy beliefs, a central construct of social cognitive theory, might be used to inform educational leadership and policy decisions related to school accountability measures. A survey of 112 principals in Florida was used to investigate the degree to which principals believed the goals of federal and state school accountability measures (the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the Florida School Grades Plan) were actually attainable, and to what degree they believed their leadership actually helped achieve these goals. A large majority (83.8%) of respondents believed the state goals to be attainable, whereas only a minority (20.7%) believed the federal goals could be attained. This disparity was associated with a significant difference in self-efficacy beliefs related to the plans, and in the associated leadership behavior of principals. This significant difference in principal self-efficacy beliefs could predict a disparity in leadership effort toward goal attainment. The study suggested that policymakers should be cautious about revising the goals of the Florida School Grades Plan, since principals' self-efficacy beliefs related to the plan were already quite high. In contrast, the findings suggested that policymakers should look to revising the goals of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 to correct the dearth of principal belief in the actual attainability of its goals.

This study investigated how education policy influences student success, and if there are linkages between K-12 education policy and higher education. Historically, education has primarily been a function of state and local governments. The role of the federal government drastically changed with the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2001. This thesis focused on the influence of No Child Behind on several indicators of student success in K-12 and postsecondary education. All fifty states were examined in this study. This approach is rather unusual since it is typical to focus on one state or a small group of states. In addition to the state level analyses, macro analyses were also conducted to generate sounder policy prescriptions. This study tested three primary research questions. The first research question tested possible changes in several measures of student success since the implementation of No Child Left Behind. The second research question analyzed the relationship between K-12 education policy and higher education. The third research question addressed the possibility that state education reforms have had an impact on test scores, graduation rates, and college enrollment. Findings showed that K-12 test scores have improved on the national level since the implementation of No Child Left Behind, but there are several states that have witnessed a decline in test scores since legislation was enacted. There was no relationship between the state reforms and the variables that measured student success. Based on the findings, policy prescriptions were generated for both leaders within education and policymakers.

This analysis of California's Public School Accountability Act (PSAA) and the federal government's No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation reviews the components, implementation timelines, and impact these two accountability policies have had on secondary schools and more specifically secondary schools located in Tulare and Kings Counties of the San Joaquin Valley of California. The study identifies both Immediate Intervention for Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP) schools and similar schools that did not elect to enter the program Non-II/USP schools. Quantitative analysis of Academic Performance Index (API) and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) from 1999 to 2006 is statistically compared. Summary interviews with site administrators from all schools within the study reflect how these two populations II/USP schools and Non-II/USP schools addressed the requirements and met the challenges of the PSAA and NCLB legislation. Conclusions draw into question the state and federal legislations implementation timeline, readiness to support changes needed in the secondary schools starting in 1999, and recognition of communication issues with secondary schools concerning the expectations of the accountability legislation. Finally, issues are outlined concerning the effectiveness of the timeline and funding process associated with the state sanctions of II/USP and SAIT programs.

Title II of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is intended to increase student academic achievement through strategies such as improving teacher quality and increasing the number of "highly qualified teachers" (HQTs) in the classroom. This Federal policy relies on educational research that demonstrates a connection between student achievement and teacher quality. Although NCLB considers each route that teachers may take to meet HQT requirements as equivalent, research demonstrates that some routes may foster higher student achievement than others; those teachers, who met HQT requirements through these routes, are referred to in this study as "research-based HQTs" (RB-HQTs). The quantitative phase of this mixed methodology explores how northern California secondary mathematics teachers in suburban, urban, and rural schools meet "highly qualified teacher" requirements. The subsequent qualitative phase explores the challenges and promising practices in retention and recruitment of RB-HQTs used by those mathematics departments identified as having a "common" or "distinguished" profile of each respective suburban, urban, or rural sub-sample. This study identifies and reports eight strategies used by mathematics departments that have demonstrated success in retention and recruitment of RB-HQTs. The eight identified strategies, when implemented individually or collectively, may increase the proportion of RB-HQTs and improve student academic achievement in each mathematics department across northern California secondary schools, be it suburban, urban, or rural.

Standardization has been part of teaching and learning in the United States since the late 19th century. This technocratic approach has gained more traction in the past two decades beginning with the passage of the landmark No Child Left Behind law in 2001and continuing through the recent standardization movement to restrict content and pedagogical autonomy. These efforts have one thing in common: The knowledge and expertise of teachers are not considered. In contrast, this study positioned teachers as experts. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate how middle school teachers conceptualize themselves as readers, engage in reading for justice, and envision these concepts in their own classrooms as they participate in a young adult (YA) literature book club. This work brings together two often separate scholarly approaches to reading: reading lives (reading as pleasure) and social justice literature (reading as political) to see how teachers inform or reimagine literacy (reading as pedagogical) in their classrooms. This study was grounded on the notion that theory and practice are not separate endeavors. Critical sociocultural theory undergirds this collaborative teacher inquiry group. Teachers take a critical stance as they read YA titles that center social justice issues. Through semi-structured interviews, teachers reflected on their own reading histories and lives as well as their ideas about literacy in their classrooms. This study adds to the existing scholarship on literacy and teacher learning. Methodologically, the researcher utilized a practice (book clubs) that is used academically in school settings and socially among friends. The book club exists in a liminal space between the academic and the social, suggesting it is an alternative space for teacher learning. This study has the potential to contribute to a greater emphasis on the value and importance of teacher-centered learning communities.

The purpose of this research was to examine rural middle school teacher’s perceptions of stressful factors present in their current position. Data was gathered from 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade teachers in the city and county schools located in O County, Mississippi. Two instruments were used for the study. The first survey instrument identified three stress factors (teacher workload, student discipline, and No Child Left Behind) and their relationship with teachers. The second instrument measured the degree to which the three stress factors were appraised as stressful. The data gathered in this study provided an awareness of factors that can increase understanding of teacher stress levels. The discussion of stress emphasized that what is perceived as stressful for one person may not be perceived as stressful for another. Results revealed that these teachers face some difficulties at their schools and in the classroom dealing with their emotional perspective or from the perspective of the children they teach. Furthermore, results indicated that rural schools offer a less stressful learning environment than urban schools. Just knowing some of the common stress factors can assist school systems and administrators in developing interventions to alleviate stress that may at some point lead to burnout.

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