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A renewed focus to produce college and career ready graduates capable of thriving in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and other career and technical education professions has made access to advanced mathematics and science courses for all students a priority in K-12 education. Previous research on achievement has indicated that Black and Latino students are underrepresented in advanced mathematics and science courses and are lagging behind their peers in academic performance. Some researchers have suggested that these disparities in participation and achievement result from unequal access to educational opportunities. This purpose of this study was to examine student access to advanced mathematics and sciences courses in Virginia public high schools as an indicator of college and career readiness. This study employed secondary data analysis of school level data from the Virginia Department of Education. Regression analyses, simple and multiple, were used to examine access to advanced mathematics (Algebra II and higher) and advanced science (Chemistry and higher) course offerings by school characteristics, including school size, economically disadvantaged percentage, the percentage of minority students, and urbanicity locale. The results of this study indicated that student access to advanced mathematics and science course offerings, excluding and including AP mathematics and science courses, as in indicator of college and career readiness, differed based upon school size, economically disadvantaged percentage, and urbanicity locale. These findings, consistent with national statistics and other research, suggested that students who attend public high schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia do not have equal access to advanced mathematics and science course offerings, including AP mathematics and science courses, when school size, economically disadvantaged, and urbanicity locales are considered. Other findings related to access based on the percentage of minority students were inconsistent with prior research, as there was no significant difference in the number of advanced mathematics and science course offerings, excluding and including AP mathematics and science courses, based on the percentage of Black and Latino students enrolled in Virginia public high schools. / Ed. D.

Thesis advisor: Laura M. O'Dwyer / As the nature of work continues to evolve and diversify in the 21st century, issues related to the attainment of high-quality work are paramount. Initially defined by the International Labour Organisation [ILO], Decent Work exists as a standard for the expected quality of work to which all should have access in modern society. Central to the definition of Decent Work is the guarantee that “women and men enjoy working experiences that are safe, allow adequate free time and rest, take into account family and social values, provide for adequate compensation in case of lost or reduced income, and permit access to adequate healthcare” (ILO, n.d.). While issues of work quality are relevant to all members of the workforce, young adults are at heightened risk of not securing work that is Decent, if they are able to secure work at all. Using nationally representative data from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 [ELS:02], this study investigates Decent Work attainment among young adults through the lens of their experiences as high school students ten years prior. The Psychology of Working Theory (Duffy et al., 2016) guides this investigation, explicitly accounting for both individual (student-level) and contextual (school-level) characteristics in the prediction of future Decent Work attainment and overall employment status. Results from a series of multilevel analyses indicate that most of the variability in Decent Work attainment and employment status exists at the individual level, as opposed to the high school level. Structurally, this suggests that schools are not the primary drivers of students’ contextual influences when it comes to their work outcomes. Furthermore, the collection of school- and student-level predictors found to be significantly associated with the various facets of Decent Work and employment status varies widely from model to model. This suggests that the Psychology of Working Theory is far from a one-size-fits-all theory, and that the predictors of work attainment are highly complex. Implications for education policy and future research are discussed in Chapter 5. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Research, Measurement and Evaluation.

Thesis advisor: Laura M. O'Dwyer / As the nature of work continues to evolve and diversify in the 21st century, issues related to the attainment of high-quality work are paramount. Initially defined by the International Labour Organisation [ILO], Decent Work exists as a standard for the expected quality of work to which all should have access in modern society. Central to the definition of Decent Work is the guarantee that “women and men enjoy working experiences that are safe, allow adequate free time and rest, take into account family and social values, provide for adequate compensation in case of lost or reduced income, and permit access to adequate healthcare” (ILO, n.d.). While issues of work quality are relevant to all members of the workforce, young adults are at heightened risk of not securing work that is Decent, if they are able to secure work at all. Using nationally representative data from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 [ELS:02], this study investigates Decent Work attainment among young adults through the lens of their experiences as high school students ten years prior. The Psychology of Working Theory (Duffy et al., 2016) guides this investigation, explicitly accounting for both individual (student-level) and contextual (school-level) characteristics in the prediction of future Decent Work attainment and overall employment status. Results from a series of multilevel analyses indicate that most of the variability in Decent Work attainment and employment status exists at the individual level, as opposed to the high school level. Structurally, this suggests that schools are not the primary drivers of students’ contextual influences when it comes to their work outcomes. Furthermore, the collection of school- and student-level predictors found to be significantly associated with the various facets of Decent Work and employment status varies widely from model to model. This suggests that the Psychology of Working Theory is far from a one-size-fits-all theory, and that the predictors of work attainment are highly complex. Implications for education policy and future research are discussed in Chapter 5. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Research, Measurement and Evaluation.

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Nearly two-thirds of undergraduate college students within the United States fail to graduate within six years because they are unprepared for postsecondary education. Thus, many states have embarked on policy reform movements centered on college and career readiness for all high school graduates. This study focused on Kentucky’s efforts to implement four key initiatives—accelerated learning, secondary interventions, college and career readiness advising, and persistence to graduation—resulting from sweeping reform policies enacted in 2009 by the Kentucky General Assembly. The study considers policy implementation from an organizational perspective and explores the structural characteristics associated with effective policy implementation at the school level.

More than ever before, educators and researchers are keeping a keen eye on student college- and career-readiness. The widely adopted Common Core State Standards were written with the explicit goal of helping students to be college- or career-ready by the time they graduate from high school. However, many students experience setbacks, such as course failure, within their educational career placing them at risk for not reaching this goal. Because the ACT can predict student success in college, states often use benchmark scores from the exam to measure student college- and career-readiness. A student who fails to learn fundamental concepts in either Algebra I or Geometry will not score as well on the ACT and is not likely to meet benchmark scores for college- and career-readiness. It is important, then, for schools to provide credit recovery opportunities to students who do not pass these classes so they can master the content and earn a passing grade. This research study examines different credit recovery options offered at one high school to students who failed Algebra I and/or Geometry. These options included re-taking the class, summer school, an online course, and a more unique mastery based program. Because students were nested within teachers, hierarchical linear modeling was used to determine associations between credit recovery options and the ACT mathematics score which is used to determine college- and career-readiness. Also considered were the effects of gender, race, socioeconomic status, and previous achievement indicated by PLAN mathematics scores. For Algebra I, no variables were found to be statistically significant as fixed effects, and only re-taking the class, PLAN mathematics scores, and identification as White were found to be statistically significant as random effects. For Geometry, identification as being African American was the only variable found to be statistically significant as a fixed effect, and re-taking the course and participation in summer school were both found to be statistically significant as random effects.

<div> <p>Employability skills such as communication, leadership, and critical thinking are in high demand from employers and colleges alike (Crawford, Lang, Fink, Dalton, & Fielitz, 2011; Easterly, Warner, Lamm, & Telg, 2017). In a competitive employment environment, applicants must strive to achieve academic success and proficiency in their field of interest. They also need to possess a command over employability skills that are broadly applicable to all aspects of business (Boahin & Hofman, 2013). A descriptive census of 2018-2019 high school senior members of the National FFA Organization was conducted to provide an updated and focused look into the National FFA student membership. Its goal was to assess the level of employability skills and academic success retained through high school and participation, within the organization, that takes into account the evolution of employability skills desired by the 21^st Century job market. Exploring, defining, and understanding the current National FFA student membership’s achievements and interests in career pathways is important in ensuring the optimal educational experience for today’s youth. The study took place over nine weeks in the fall of 2018 with 2,087 respondents completing the online survey. Informed consent and parental consent were collected completely online. Respondents self-reported their Youth Leadership Life Skills, Critical Thinking Dispositions, Communication Competence, High School GPAs, Standardized Test Scores, FFA Involvement/Enrollment, and their interests in AFNR Career Pathways. Results of the study indicated that respondents self-perceived high employability skill levels and above average academic success compared to National Average Standardized Test Scores. These results could be translated into College and Career Readiness of the study respondents. Significant relationships were found between employability skill levels, academic success, and respondent’s level of FFA Involvement. Recommendations for future research include replicating this study within the next 10 years and using a standardized scale to collect self-reported high school GPAs. It would also be beneficial to review USDE high school transcript studies to uncover why “class scheduling problems” were reported as the most common reason for gaps in FFA enrollment.</p> </div> <br>

This study investigated teacher perceptions of preparedness for implementing the English Language Arts Common Core State Standards/Mississippi College and Career Readiness Standards (ELA CCSS/MCCRS) that require the use of technology. Participants included 101 ELA teachers in Mississippi from varying backgrounds and school sizes who responded to a survey via email. The survey was comprised of questions written in order to expand on professional development opportunities teachers have had available to them, technology that teachers have access to in their schools/districts, levels of self-efficacy teachers have with technology use, value assigned to technology in the classroom, and support that teachers have within their school/district for issues related to technology. Descriptive statistics, plots, and regression models are included to highlight factors that have an effect on the amount of technology teachers are or are not using in conjunction with the ELA CCSS/MCCRS. The findings revealed that teachers in Mississippi believe that the integration of technology into the ELA Standards is important, but they are not all equipped with the technology nor support needed in order to meet the standards in the way that they are written. The results also showed that although teachers do assign a high level of value to technology use in the classroom, this was not enough of an influence to inform the amount of technology implemented into their classrooms. The same was true for self-efficacy. Value and self-efficacy related to technology are integral for implementation, but if teachers are not supplied with the applicable technologies or appropriate professional development and support in order to utilize classroom technology, then they are not enough to affect implementation. Many areas such as availability and use of technology, teacher value and self-efficacy for technology, issues with professional development, educational policy, and additional research were informed by the results revealed in this study.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if a relationship existed between the quality of school-community partnerships and the average score of each ACT subtest for rural Tennessee high school students. Specifically, the researcher examined the following school-community partnerships: business partnerships, university partnerships, service learning partnerships, school-linked service integration, and faith-based partnerships (Sanders, 2006). Administrators from 62 rural Tennessee high schools rated the partnerships present in their schools using the Improving Community Partnership Quality rating scale developed by Sanders (2006). Each of these ratings was compared to the participating school’s mean score for each ACT benchmark to determine whether these partnerships could be linked to success on the ACT. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated for each partnership type and each ACT subtest. The results revealed that a statistically significant relationship did not exist between school-community partnerships and ACT subtest scores.