The transition from elementary to middle school has been characterized as one of many “normative life crises" that involves both an increased opportunity for psychological growth and a heightened vulnerability to psychological disturbance. Principles from life stress/transition literature and prevention research have been applied to the development of programs designed to help students adapt to the various changes they encounter in the transition from elementary to middle school. In the present study, students evincing a poor academic transition to middle school were identified following the second grading period of the sixth grade, and placed into one of two 16-week treatment conditions. The "full treatment" condition consisted of group support (including training in problem—solving and social skills, goal-setting, self-monitoring, and incentives), parental support, and increased teacher support; the "partial treatment" condition consisted only of teacher support. A group of good academic transition students was included in the study for comparative purposes. Measures of depression, anxiety, stress, and self-esteem were administered to students at pre-treatment, post-treatment, and followup, and behavior problem checklists were completed by teachers at the same points in time. At pre-treatment, important differences were found between treatment and comparison students, most notably along the behavioral dimension. The full treatment group showed a significant improvement in grade-point average (GPA) and depression scores over time, whereas the partial treatment group did not. However, improvement in academic performance was not as marked as predicted for either treatment group. The results of the present study were discussed relative to the findings of other prevention researchers, and directions for future research were considered. / Ph. D.

Thesis (Masters) -- The College of Saint Elizabeth, 2010. / Typescript. Available at The College of Saint Elizabeth - Office of Graduate Programs. "March 2010"

An examination of the characteristics of Texas middle schools has been conducted with the objective of developing a planning tool for middle staffs. This success is measured by the Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS), whose rating scale has three components: campus scores on the Texas Assessment of Basic Skills (TAAS), campus attendance percentages, and campus dropout rates. TAAS scores and attendance rates have been the focus of this study. Two years of data were examined separately for research question. Principal component analysis reduced the number of indicators in both years' data to 20 factors/ Each of these factors received a designated based on the characteristics that the component indicators had in common. A multiple regression analysis was performed on these factors to determine the influence each had on the campus TAAS scores and attendance. The unpredictability of human subjects requires an additional step in this study to achieve valid conclusions. A comparison of the two years' results is made to discover attendance, gifted and talented programs, and teacher gender were the strongest overall positive influences on student achievement. Campus demographics, retention, and ESL/bilingual programs have the strongest association with low student achievement.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Science in Information Technology in Education

Using a multiple-gating procedure, 5 research sites (3 elementary and 2 middle schools) were identified as implementing a Response to Intervention (RTI) framework. This study uses a multiple case study design to describe the RTI implementation in reading at these 5 sites. Findings suggest that the sites studied are utilizing a hybrid model (a combination of standard treatment protocol and problem solving models) for developing and assigning reading interventions. The five sites implemented critical components of RTI (universal screening, progress monitoring, scientifically-based core curriculum, and a multi-tiered system of interventions) similarly, despite differences in campus-level variables. However, no site implemented a process for assessing the fidelity of implementation of the RTI framework. They also followed state and/or district guidelines on the use of RTI data in special education eligibility decisions. / text

This dissertation contributes to the educational literature by providing new research on the achievement gap in the Southwest. For this study, a sequential mixed-methods approach was employed. The quantitative research assessed which factors influenced academic achievement among a 2012 high school graduating class (N=2,238) through analyses using correlation, ANOVA and HLM. Additionally, qualitative themes from 15 in-depth ethnographic teacher interviews and 116 teacher surveys from low income schools were triangulated with the quantitative findings to describe the multiple, interconnected factors that affected student achievement from the teacher's viewpoint. The low income schools in this study were defined as `hardship schools' because they had a high percentage of free and reduced lunch participants, a high minority population, low academic achievement, and frequent turnover in the administrative staff. The findings indicated that a statistically significant academic gap existed between high and low income schools. However, the longitudinal student standardized scores from elementary (5th grade) to high school (10th grade) revealed that the gap did not widen over time between high and low income students. Although students from low income schools lacked social capital and other resources available to their wealthier peers, they were still able to make equivalent academic growth, albeit at a lower performance level. It was argued that a pivotal reason that the gap did not widen was due to a dedicated teacher cadre that chose to work in low income middle schools. These teachers expressed a high level of self efficacy and cultural competency and identified with the students and the surrounding community. Their sense of identification came from one of three sources: similar ethnic background, including Latino culture and language; similar socio-economic upbringing, including poverty and the hardships associated with being an economic underclass; and/or cultural competency, where curiosity and love of diversity is emphasized. This identification helped teachers level the playing field by relating to students and making learning relevant to their environment.

This study described and analyzed the development and implementation of an advisory program at one urban middle school. Development of the advisory program began during the 1997-98 school year. The implementation of the program was examined during the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 school years. This school site was chosen because of the in-depth research and planning of the program beyond the typical amount performed by many schools, and the wide-scale staff participation utilized in the program's development. In order to follow the processes of development and implementation, several models of change, innovation, and organizational analysis were used to provide focus for analysis of events that occurred during the three years of the program examined in this study. Data was collected in multiple manners. A complete review of school documents concerning the advisory program was performed, and over 50 percent of the faculty were interviewed through individual and team interviews. The findings of this study include various elements concerning the development and implementation of the advisory program. Data was collected and analyzed in three main categories including a) driving and resisting factors for beginning and implementing the program, b) processes used to plan, maintain and develop the program, and c) the periods in which the program became stable. Additional considerations were examined including the evaluation of the program, future possibilities for implementation, and staff roles in the program. Recommendations of the study include: limiting the focus of the advisory program; maintaining consistent goals; starting with a limited program; securing high staff participation; providing extensive time for planning; maintaining a high level of monitoring by administration and staff leaders; providing in-depth training; and, insuring that open lines of communication exist.

School systems nationwide confront declines in the number of principal applicants while facing increasing student accountability concerns. The idiosyncrasies of adolescent development and the social nature of the educational environment reflect the declines in applicants and impact student accountability. Using a three-tiered case study, the present research inquiry identified perspectives of superintendents, middle school principals, and middle school teachers regarding Baldrige-based practices in the four Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award-winning school districts in the United States. This study's data illuminated how a non-prescriptive framework such as the Baldrige National Quality Program (BNQP) combined with Baldrige Education Criteria for Performance Excellence (BECPE) assessment instrument, were utilized by the superintendents and middle school principals in the award-winning schools to address the issues of both instructional leadership and student achievement. Perspectives from targeted superintendents, middle school (grades 6-8) principals, and middle school teachers regarding Baldrige-based practices as they relate to instructional leadership in middle level education were investigated. Research participants from Chugach School District in Anchorage, Alaska; Pearl River School District in Pearl River, New York; Community Consolidated School District 15 in Palatine, Illinois; and Jenks Public Schools in Jenks, Oklahoma discussed the adoption, implementation, and maintenance of the Baldrige National Quality Program, combined with the ongoing utilization of BECPE, in their middle schools. Respondents disclosed instructional leadership beliefs and practices utilized within their school and/or district. Utilizing information from the three interview protocols created for superintendents, middle school principals, and middle school teachers in the targeted districts, an analysis of themes emerged from the transcribed interviews and interview correspondences, providing insight about the gaps in research literature pertaining to the application of Baldrige-based practices in middle level education. These gaps substantiated the need for continued research that examines the role of instructional leadership in creating Baldrige environments in the middle school arena. Overall, the qualitative results of this exploratory study promoted understanding and informed efforts to build instructional leadership in other middle level educational institutions across the nation.

This thesis intends to demonstrate how capital infrastructure investments can be targeted objectively, using the "Safe Routes to School" (SRTS) program for context. SRTS impacts physical activity, a determinant of childhood obesity by encouraging children’s regular active transportation use. This thesis supports the widespread implementation of SRTS and has developed the "Shelling Model" to objectively identify schools for programming. Accordingly, the "Shelling Model" aims to objectively identify physical and socio-economic environment variables impacting HISD-E middle school neighborhoods’ walkability. The "Shelling Model" is a first step in creating a walkability index for which pedestrian orientation levels can be identified and schools targeted. This model facilitates the identification of variables, providing insight into neighborhood walkability levels. Revealed by statistically significant variables, in combination with Walkscore and Catchment regression models’ respective 45.5 and 13.6 Adjusted R-Square values, the "Shelling" archetype proves a useful tool for investigating the walkability of HISD-E middle school neighborhoods.

The extant literature on school leadership is bifurcated around the question: Are leaders important, or, is leadership important? Many who think leaders are important, do so because they believe the school’s tone, values, and aspirations start with “a” leader, the principal. However, there are those who believe leadership is not really about a single leader, but about a collective practice among people who work together, with a focus on accomplishing a shared goal. While leadership teams have been studied in a variety of contexts, little research is available on the cumulative effect of a school team’s ability to think collectively to raise student performance. Noteworthy however, is that this study makes the assumption that the sum total of individual agility as measure by instruments designed to assess individual agility equates to an accurate measure of team agility. This study was designed to better understand the relationship between a school leadership team’s cognitive and behavioral agility, school climate, and student achievement in a population of middle schools in Broward County, Florida. Theoretically, the study provides a model in support of the collective leadership approach in moving schools toward improved student achievement. A non-experimental, quantitative research design was utilized and The Strategic Thinking Questionnaire (STQ) and Strategic Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ) were used to assess cognitive and behavioral agility, respectively. Climate data, analyzed as a mediator, was extracted from the schools’ Annual Customer Survey. Student achievement was measured as overall school performance on standardized assessments as part of the State of Florida school accountability system. The STQ and SLQ were administered by way of a survey and descriptive statistics, correlation and mediation analysis were used to analyze data. The research did not point to any statistically significant correlations between school leadership teams’ cognitive and behavior agility as they relate to predicting student achievement; even with school climate acting as a mediator. This may be due in part to the assumption that agility data captured is an accurate reflection of team functioning. The study provides opportunities for additional research on the efficacy of leadership teams in K-12 education. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2018. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection