<p> The purpose of this Executive Position Paper project was to develop resources for improving Individual Educational Program (IEP) mathematics learning goals for conceptual understanding of fractions for middle school special education students. The investigation surveyed how IEP mathematics learning goals are currently determined and proposed a new approach. It demonstrated how the approach would work through a pilot project in which two tools were developed: (1) a list of learning goals for goal writers to use as a reference when writing mathematics learning goals for middle school special needs students and (2) an assessment linked to the goals that would determine whether or not a student has achieved the goals. A description is given of the process that combines knowledge from research literature and information from instructional practice and that continually refines the products.</p><p> For this pilot project the learning goals were focused on order and equivalence of fractions. The goals were identified through a review of educational literature and examination of several sources related to practice for teaching fractions. Assessment items were then developed for the goals. Four experts reviewed the learning goals and assessments for content and clarity and the assessments for validity. Based on their feedback, edits were made to both the learning goals and the assessment items. Four middle school teachers field tested the assessment with their students. Analysis of student work confirmed that the assessment revealed detailed information on individual students' strengths and weaknesses in conceptual understanding of order and equivalence of fractions and that appropriate learning goals could be selected as a result of the assessment. </p><p> Final recommendations include expanding the project to additional math content and other grades and developing instructional lessons and resources linked to the learning goals that teachers could use to help students achieve the learning goals. Additionally, it is recommended that a system of continual improvement be incorporated into the process of further development.</p>

<p> The local school district in the current study was struggling to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) targets in reading because secondary students were scoring below the basic level in reading and their content area teachers had little or no training in reading deficiencies. What had been speculated, yet never tested, was the utility of teacher training in research-based reading programs and interventions on increasing reading achievement scores. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine issues hampering RTI implementation. This case study focused on analyzing the perceptions of secondary RTI teachers within an urban school district in Texas. The theoretical framework was based on cognitive and social constructivist theory. The research question investigated the best approach to improve teachers' knowledge and implementation of the RTI framework to increase students' reading achievement. Interview data were collected from 3 RTI teachers who had more than 3 years of teaching experience. Data were analyzed through lean coding by using provisional codes to reduce codes to 3 major themes. Reports from the 3 teachers suggested that they all encountered many challenges in implementing RTI; additionally they all conveyed that they needed more support from administrators, access to prescribed resources, and consistent guidelines in program implementation. A white paper was developed to inform the local district on RTI implementation challenges and provide recommendations for improvement. This study impacts social change by providing administrators and educators with information that could improve implementation practices and result in better understanding of RTI.</p>

<p> When applied to mathematics education, manipulatives help students to visualize mathematical concepts and apply them to everyday situations. Interest in mathematics instruction has increased dramatically over the past two decades with the introduction of virtual manipulatives, as opposed to the concrete manipulatives that have been employed for centuries. This quasi-experimental study proposed to explain the relationship between concrete and virtual manipulatives when used in a seventh-grade mathematics classroom. Using students' mathematics composite scores on standardized and teacher-created assessments, it compared the effectiveness of using concrete manipulatives alone versus using a combination of concrete and virtual manipulatives. The foundational theory of the study is that when students can visualize a mathematical concept in action, a deeper level of understanding occurs. </p><p> The results of this mixed methods study consisting of 44 seventh-grade students (22 in each group) indicated that coupling concrete manipulatives with virtual manipulatives led to a measureable change in mathematics composite scores. One recommendation is that mathematics educators incorporate both concrete manipulatives and virtual manipulatives into their mathematics curriculum. As the results of this year-long study indicated, the combination of these two types of manipulatives enabled the students in this group to accomplish a measureable change in tested mathematical ability. Educators need to offer their students lessons that are authentic and interesting in order to hold students' attention as they attempt to grasp the concepts. The different options also provide students with the needed differentiated instruction to suit their varied learning styles.</p>

<p> The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the impact a robotics curriculum might have on the experiences and perceptions of middle school girls in two California classrooms. The research found that middle school girls in two different California classrooms felt that their experiences with robotics were personalized experiences that were positive and rewarding. Additionally, the girls felt that robotics was a curriculum that they could relate to real-life, and it was a curriculum that was relevant to their lives. The research found that girls had perceptions about STEM fields that remained sex-biased, and they perceived that certain occupations were more geared toward woman than men and vice versa. Both teachers provided learning environments that were free from sexist constructs.</p>

<p> This doctoral project is a pilot study to assess the effectiveness of a church discipleship co-op designed to convey a biblical worldview to middle and high school students enrolled in charter homeschooling in Southern California. Research by the Nehemiah Institute indicated that 90% of Christian families in the United States send their children to forms of education that are not likely to produce a biblical worldview. Research by The Barna Group, LifeWay Research, and The National Study of Youth and Religion indicated that the vast majority of church-attending children transition into adulthood without a biblical worldview and disengage from church and Christianity as adults. Research by America's Research Group, Probe Ministries, and the Nehemiah Institute indicated that educational experiences in middle and high school determine the worldview of most children raised in Christian homes.</p><p> To address this problem some Christian families and churches are turning to public charter schools, as the fastest growing form of education in California and many other states. However, constitutional and state law restrictions forbid charter schools from presenting a biblical worldview in classes or curricula. The participants in this project combined church and family resources to provide supplemental educational experiences to convey a biblical worldview to middle and high school students while they received a public school education by enrolling in charter homeschool.</p>

<p> For all that is revealed in the research literature identifying and describing traits and behaviors exhibited by principals who make a positive difference in student learning, many schools are still failing. With all we know, how does this continue to happen? The goal of this study was to develop theory to expand and enrich the existing research by defining and describing what three successful principals&mdash;a middle school and two junior high schools&mdash;did to turn their failing schools around and positively influence the levels of student achievement in their respective schools. </p><p> The significant contribution this study adds to the field of educational research is its identification of five themes or categories of leadership implemented by the principal in each of the schools studied that were credited by the participants as causes for their schools' successful turnarounds. These five categories&mdash;expectations and accountability, leadership, responding to student needs, climate and culture, and instruction&mdash;and their indicators were consistently identified by the participants in all schools as reasons why their schools were successful in improving student performance levels and each school's achievement status. Clearly, the five categories were interrelated and interdependent upon each other and thus, equally critical to the success the schools experienced.</p>

<p> This quantitative study was designed to be an analysis of the relationship between school climate and student achievement through the creation of an index of climate-factors (SES, discipline, attendance, and school size) for which publicly available data existed. The index that was formed served as a proxy measure of climate; it was analyzed through both a hierarchical clustering method and a multiple regression.</p><p> The data used for the study was drawn from a sample of 335 middle schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and student achievement was measured using pass percentage rates for each school on the Virginia SOL tests in each of the four tested content areas. Through analysis of the data generated through both the cluster analysis and the multiple regression process, a clearer picture of the relationship between school climate and student achievement was revealed. Five clusters of schools emerged from the cluster analysis, ranging from highly negative to highly positive in terms of climate. Findings indicated that for each of the four core content areas, there was a significant difference in the mean achievement of each cluster; these findings supported the general hypothesis of the study that as climate becomes more positive student achievement rises. Further, the multiple regression analysis supported the findings of the cluster analysis. With regard to the variables used as climate factors, both the cluster analysis and the multiple regression analysis showed that school size had the least impact on achievement whereas SES had the greatest impact. In both analyses, the climate factors reflected a more significant relationship to student achievement when examined collectively.</p>

<p> This study examined the multilevel factors that influence mathematics and English performance on the Primary Leaving Examinations (PLEs) among primary seven pupils (i.e., equivalent to the United States [U.S.] 7^th graders) in Uganda. Existing student state test data from the Wakiso District were obtained. In addition, a newly created Teacher Quality Measure (TQM) was used to collect teacher data from the same district. Pupil data from primary seven (7^th grade) and the TQM data were analyzed via Rasch Analysis, Analysis of Covariance, and Hierarchical Linear Modeling to investigate the following two main objectives: (1) Developing a behavioral frequency measure of teacher quality for Ugandan teachers, (2) Examining the relationship between pupil-, teacher-, and school-level factors on pupil achievement on the PLEs in Uganda.</p><p> Specific to the first objective, it was found that a psychometrically sound measure of teacher quality can be developed. The results rendered a 38-question measure focusing on four domains: (1) Teacher Planning and Preparation, (2) Classroom Environment, (3) Teacher Instruction, and (4) Teacher Professionalism. </p><p> The second objective found that there are no significant differences between boys and girls on English achievement controlling for prior ability in English. However, there were significant differences between the sexes on mathematics achievement, with boys having higher scores. Additionally, the results showed that there is a significant relationship between student SES (i.e., boarding and day schools) and student achievement, with higher SES students (i.e., boarding schools) having higher achievement. It was also found that teacher TQM scores were a significant predictor of student PLE mathematics and English test scores, with higher teacher quality rendering higher student mathematics and English scores. There was also a significant difference between school types (i.e., urban and rural) on student achievement in mathematics, with rural schools (i.e., lower SES schools) having higher means compared to urban schools. </p><p> Future research should continue to define the network of relationships between pupil-, teacher-, and school-level factors and pupil achievement, and maintain the measure revision and validation process of the TQM. Assessment is becoming commonplace in the classroom in Uganda, and the need to examine the influence of the teacher on pupil achievement is in high demand. Results from this study can provide insight into the disparities involving sex, student SES, and school SES that influence pupil achievement in Uganda. The findings also support administrative demands for more efficient ways to monitor teacher quality, and in turn, meet educational standards and increase student achievement. </p>

<p>The need for accurate information about the achievement of students whose military parents are deployed to a war zone or whose military parents are eligible although not currently deployed to a war zone is important in order to ensure that we are providing for the educational wellbeing of these children as their parents defend our nations freedoms. The purpose of this posttest-only comparative efficacy study was to determine the achievement outcomes of sixth-grade students with a military parent deployed to a war zone (<i>n</i> = 10) or sixth-grade students with a military parent not deployed to a war zone (<i>n</i> = 10) compared to same school students whose parents have no military affiliation (<i>n</i> = 10). The study&rsquo;s dependent measures were Academic achievement as measured by end of sixth-grade (1) Nebraska State Accountability Assessment Test-Math, (2) Nebraska State Accountability Assessment Test-Reading, (3) Measure of Academic Performance-Math, (4) Measure of Academic Performance-Reading, (5) Research School District&rsquo;s Descriptive Writing Assessment for (a) Ideas and Content, (b) Organization, (c) Voice, (d) Word Choice, (e) Sentence Fluency, and (f) Conventions, and (6) Research School District&rsquo;s Essential Objectives for (a) Language, (b) Math, (c) Science, (d) Social Studies, (e) Health, (f) Physical Education, and (g) Music. The overall pattern of end of sixth-grade statistical equipoise between group comparisons indicated that the goal of educational wellbeing for these students of military families, and control group students alike, was being met and was reflected in measured proficient and advanced level performance requiring students&rsquo; day-to-day engagement at school and support at home. </p>

Thesis PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.