<p> This study sought to explore the school experiences of high-scoring and low-scoring SAT test takers in order to understand how their school experiences shaped their achievement on the SAT. Given the persistent SAT achievement gap between African Americans and Whites, the researcher approached this investigation from a Critical Race Theory theoretical perspective in order to determine how race and racism may have influenced the school experiences of the participants. Using a phenomenological methodology and a constructivist epistemology, in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with African American students who scored high on the SAT Writing subtest (those whose Writing subtest score was one standard deviation or more above the total group mean Writing score in the year in which the test was taken) and African American students who have scored low (those Writing subtest score was one standard deviation or more below the total group mean Writing score in the year in which the test was taken). The investigation was guided by the central question, <i> What are the implications of the school experiences of African American students on their performance on the SAT?</i> The following sub-questions also guided the research: 1) How do high and low-scoring African American SAT test takers describe their high school experiences? 2) How do high and low-scoring African American SAT test takers make meaning of their high school experiences? 3) In what ways do the experiences of high and low-scoring African American SAT test takers converge and diverge? </p><p> The findings suggest that for both low-scoring and high-scoring African Americans, their academic program, teachers&rsquo; expectations and school culture and climate were salient in their school experiences and impacted their performance on the SAT. It was observed that the high school experiences of the two groups differed significantly. The high-scoring group attended schools where the school culture was consistently focused on academic achievement and preparing students for college. The low-scoring group attended schools where the culture was at times focused on managing student behavior or preparing students for state standardized tests. Learning was more focused on completing assignments or learning particular skills in order to achieve short-term goals. </p>

<p> The study was conducted to determine whether Edmodo, an interactive digital platform that enables students and teachers to interact collaboratively, has an impact on student achievement. Teachers at an urban southeast middle school were given the opportunity to receive training in Edmodo and after doing so, agreed to participate in this study. A total of 207 seventh-grade students exposed to Edmodo were compared to 120 students who were not. An aptitude treatment interaction design applied through least squares regression was used to examine the joint impact of demographics (i.e., gender, ethnicity, English language learner status, special education status, and age relative to grade), initial ability, and exposure to Edmodo on students&rsquo; Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores in reading. The results of this study failed to identify a significant first or second order effect of Edmodo on students&rsquo; reading achievement. Among the demographic factors examined, only English language learner status was found to have a significant impact on student achievement. The impact of Edmodo may depend on the quality and quantity of its usage, as captured through a share score. Future studies should consider using causal modeling to explore that relationship. Efforts should be made to continue using the platform in order to realize the benefits associated with it. Future efforts should focus on gaining a deeper understanding of the way collaboration affects student achievement.</p>

<p> Before the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (1975), most efforts to educate students with disabilities happened in isolation. Within the last 40 years, a growing number of districts and individual schools have experimented with inclusive models in hopes of successfully educating students with and without disabilities in the same classrooms; however, general education students still hold negative attitudes toward students with disabilities. The contact hypothesis of intergroup contact theory postulates that prejudicial attitudes toward out-groups can be alleviated if the following conditions are present in and around contact situations: equal status, cooperation, common goals, and institutional support. The purpose of this dissertation was to create and validate the Intergroup Relations Classroom Environment Scale (IRCES), a teacher self-report survey instrument that, within K-12 classrooms, measures the four aforementioned conditions along with two additional conditions that theorists have added to the original list. Data collected from an extensive review of the literature, focus groups with experienced K-12 teachers and administrators, and interviews with social and cognitive psychologists were used to generate scale items; exploratory factor analyses were conducted to test the hypothesized six-factor model and reduce the number of items; and, the IRCES subscales were correlated with other classroom and school environment scales to assess convergent and discriminant validity. Analyses resulted in a 43-item, multidimensional scale that theoretically and practically matches the six optimal contact conditions. The IRCES provides researchers, administrators, and teachers with further knowledge of how to create and maintain a safe learning environment for all students.</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to analyze the factors influencing middle school grading reform. The study involved all stakeholders in one middle school community. Participants were surveyed to determine which standards-based grading practices were most welcomed among middle school students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Additionally, students&rsquo; perceived motivation levels when evaluated using standards-based grading practices were quantified and the necessary support needs of middle school teachers were identified as they attempted school-wide grading reform. Many are calling for school leaders to evaluate unreliable traditional grading methods and reform grading to a standards-based approach (Guskey, Swan, &amp; Jung, 2011; Wormeli, 2013). For this reason, the survey items used in the study were based on the positive and negative outcomes of standards-based grading found in current research. The sample groups for the study included 137 middle school students, 148 parents, 25 teachers, and three administrators. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the results of Likert-style survey items and open-ended questions. Findings indicated the most accepted grading changes among all stakeholders included allowing students multiple attempts to show the learning of a concept and providing for awareness and understanding of learning objectives. The teacher survey results revealed necessary support needs when attempting grading reform include the following: making grading decisions together as a faculty, communicating grading changes with parents, and allowing for time to implement grading changes correctly.</p>

<p> Assessing student learning has been part of education since the beginning of formalized schooling. Developments at the national, state, and local level have led to grading reforms over the past quarter century. The purpose of this study was to explore students&rsquo; and teachers&rsquo; perceptions of standards-based grading to determine if there was a significant difference on standardized tests scores between students graded using standards-based grading and students graded using traditional grading. Teachers and students from one Missouri high school were interviewed to determine their perceptions about standards-based grading. A stratified sample was utilized to select interviewees. Artifacts from the district were analyzed to determine the process in the implementation of standards-based grading. Quantitative data were obtained from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to compare the Missouri Assessment Performance (MAP) Index scores and means on end-of-course exams from the participating high school with Missouri students. A <i>t</i>-test was utilized to determine the difference between the two means. The data revealed teachers&rsquo; perceptions of standards-based grading were varied, with only two teachers who preferred standards-based grading. Student perceptions were more positive than those of teachers, with 50% of students who were interviewed preferring standards-based grading. Quantitative data revealed no statistically significant difference between the means on end-of-course exams of students assessed with standards-based grading and students assessed with traditional grading in five of the eight subject areas studied.</p>

<p> Since the introduction of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), districts across the country implemented computerized benchmark, or interim assessments, into their curriculum as a means to monitor and improve student achievement. Often, a change in curriculum entails a demand of educators&rsquo; time, whether through professional development or lesson planning, and therefore affects teachers&rsquo; attitudes. The purpose of this study was to determine what, if any, relationship there was among middle school teachers&rsquo; attitudes, monthly computerized benchmark assessments, and student scores on the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP). Educators of the communication arts and mathematics content areas from one middle school were administered a survey and questionnaire to address two questions: 1) What are teachers&rsquo; attitudes regarding the use of the Tungsten Learning System in the areas of reading and mathematics, and 2) How, if at all, do teachers change their behaviors in regards to the monthly reports of the Tungsten Learning System? Both assessment tools addressed categories of Training or Comfort Level, Use of Tungsten Feedback, Teachers&rsquo; Perceptions of Tungsten, Accountability, and Student Preparation and Motivation. To observe if there was a difference in student achievement, as measured by the MAP, test scores of students from two middle schools of the same district, since the implementation of the Tungsten Learning System, were analyzed using ANOVA. In conclusion, the study found there was a difference in student achievement in mathematics MAP scores. Also, based on the survey and questionnaire responses, teachers did not believe Tungsten Learning System was a good predictor of student achievement. However, overall they favored computerized benchmark assessments if not administered monthly, aligned with the curriculum, provided student feedback and effective re-teaching tools, and they felt they were adequately trained. Teachers did believe their attitudes had more of an effect on their students&rsquo; attitudes than on students&rsquo; achievement.</p>

<p> Growth modeling in education has focused on student characteristics in multilevel growth accountability models and has rarely included financial variables. In this dissertation, relations of several demographic and financial characteristics of Oregon school districts to the reading and mathematics growth of students receiving special education services in Grades 3-8 were explored after accounting for student level demographic characteristics. Previous research indicated that three variables were potentially related to student growth: district level aggregated student demographics, district geography (e.g., location in a remote area), and district funding. Three sources of data were used to investigate these relationships: institutional data reported by the Oregon Department of Education, the Common Core of Data gathered by the National Center for Education Statistics, and Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test data collected as part of the National Center on Assessment and Accountability in Special Education. </p><p> Multi-level models of student growth across Grades 3-8 were constructed for reading and mathematics, with time (level-1) nested within students (level-2) and districts (level-3). Results demonstrated that although student-level demographic factors account for the majority of meaningful differences in student growth, both district demographic characteristics and financial investment in students were related to growth for students who received special education services.</p>

<p> Since the reauthorization of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in 1997 and then later, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act in 2004, students that display behaviors that impede learning require that a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) be conducted for the development of a behavior plan that is focused on Positive Behavior Support (PBS) strategies. The traditional FBA measures and analyzes environmental variables that trigger problem behaviors; however, it does not measure adaptive academic behavior skills that are needed for academic success in the classroom environment. This study&rsquo;s literature review examines the reasons for incorporating a strength-based model for measuring academic behaviors for a more comprehensive analysis of a student&rsquo;s strengths as well as deficits. Adaptive/academic behavior skill measurements are also appropriate for identifying and teaching replacement skills. This study examined an academic behavior tool that helps educators to identify both the student&rsquo;s adaptive academic behavior strengths as well as behavior deficits during the FBA process. In addition, psychometric properties for the statistical relationships between behavior variables were measured for consistency, standardization, and better overall assistance for the classroom educator. </p><p> The findings of this analysis support that the psychometrics properties of the academic behavior assessment tool meets the measurements for a reliable and valid tool. The Alpha Cronbach Reliability test measured .96. The principle components factor analysis with a varimax rotation was measured. The factor analysis identified the connections between the studies demographic variables, and the relationship that existed amongst the 25 survey items of the tool. The eigenvalues greater than 1.0 resulted in a four-factor solution that accounted for 69.81% of the variance. Given that the first factor was six times or more times larger than any other factor, a decision to retain only one factor and retain all 25 items to create a total score. </p><p> Based on the psychometric measurements of this study, this academic behavior assessment tool possibly will help classroom educators address problem behaviors by identifying the appropriate replacement skills needed for the development of the BIP, interventions, and the FBA process. Additional findings suggest that, used as a screening tool, it may identify skill deficits with preschool-aged children, primary students, special education, and the RtI model, to connect both the academic and behavioral components needed to be taught for academic success.</p>

<p> English Language Learners (ELLs) is the fastest growing segment of the public school population. Today&rsquo;s schools face unprecedented challenges in preparing ELLs as they lack instructional supports and fair and valid assessments to support academic learning in classroom settings. This study invokes the principles of design-based research, where both qualitative and quantitative data were triangulated and analyzed to further advance the theory of multimodality and assessment within a sociocultural perspective for linguistically diverse students in two sixth grade classrooms during a unit in photosynthesis. The main research question guiding this study: <i> How do multimodal tasks support science learning in linguistically diverse classrooms?</i> This question leads to three main perspectives, first I examine the two teachers&rsquo; perspectives on the use of multimodal tasks, next the students&rsquo; perspectives on the use of multimodal tasks and finally using a science and language learning rubric, which I created, I examine student learning in the classrooms based on students&rsquo; English learner status and proficiencies in English language arts, science, and vocabulary acquisition and usage. The teachers used some multimodal tasks to communicate ideas and the students created visual diagrams and comic strips to represent their understanding of photosynthesis. Results show the specific scaffolding strategies used by the teachers during the tasks, like analogies, contextualization of vocabulary use, re-representation of ideas through different modes and re-representation of modes in every task were also appropriated by the students. Rubric scoring indicated ELLs had the highest gains in the scores in the visual diagrams, redesignated students had the highest scores in the comic strip and those designated as above proficient in language arts and science had the highest scores in final visual diagram, indicating how ELL status, proficiencies in language arts and science influence the integration of science and language learning. With the advent of Next Generation Science Standards and related assessments, the findings illustrate the importance of aligning the multimodal tasks to learning goals, weaving links amongst the multimodal tasks, modeling the use of representational tasks for ELLs to integrate the understanding of science content and language and assessing students&rsquo; learning over time using visual representational tasks.</p>

<p> In the context of a rapidly changing world, higher order thinking skills are necessary for sustainability of U.S. society. Beginning with the premise that U.S. public schools are charged with the constitutional duty of growing children into informed and educated citizens, prepared to thrive in the world of work <i>and</i> to participate in democratic processes; and, that higher order thinking is a core part of that mission, this study examined children&rsquo;s perspectives on school climate and the environment for the teaching and learning of higher order thinking in twenty five public elementary schools in an urban Connecticut school district. This integrated program of research used an exploratory sequential/concurrent mixed methods design to construct a pair of new psychometric instruments to measure student attitudes toward school climate and the environment for teaching and learning higher order thinking in a public elementary school. The intended uses and interpretations of the scores reported by the Climate4Creativity Elementary (C4C/SPE) and Middle School (C4C/SPM) Student Perspectives measurement instruments, were validated to professional standards. The study concluded that these instruments have utility for public elementary schools, particularly in identifying areas of focus and in the management of strategic and tactical school improvement work as part of a wider program of transformation in a school. Cronbach&rsquo;s Alpha reliability scores in excess of 0.90 were reported for all measures. This study supported the core idea that safer schools with stronger, more caring communities provide individual students with better learning environments, and that general learning and the learning of creativity are intrinsically linked in the minds of students in public elementary schools, even though these students may not always name these components as such. The environment for learning higher order thinking measure tends to deteriorate from the early grades to middle school grades, implying both raised expectations, and an increase in variability in the data due to more and more variety in classroom settings and teacher practices. Examination of reported bullying experience shows bullying victimization to be a powerful, pervasive determinant of school climate and feelings of safety and community in all grades, but, bullying victimization tends not to penetrate into perceptions of the classroom learning environment to the same degree. By exploring school safety, community, and the structure of the learning environment required for the teaching and learning of higher order thinking in a public elementary school, this work begins the creation of a framework to enable school leaders to make significant, transformational, strategic change in their schools.</p>