This study investigated teachers’ management of learner problems in the context of an impoverished school community. The rationale for the study took into consideration the constant demands placed on learners and teachers by poverty-related issues. By illuminating the factors that affect teachers’ work performance in the context of an impoverished school community, it is hoped that all education stakeholders would be motivated to support, assist and guide teachers to overcome the current challenges with regard to poverty in schools, thus enhancing their work performance as well as that of their impoverished learners. The study employed a qualitative research design. Through a process of purposive sampling, five teachers from a primary school from the Phoenix Ward of the Pinetown District in KwaZulu-Natal were selected. The data were generated by means of semistructured interviews. The data gathered were coded and organized into themes, categories and sub-categories. Content analysis was used to analyze the data. The findings suggest that the consequences of poverty at school level are numerous and become even more complex when there is a lack of parental support at community level. Furthermore, they reveal that poverty impacts negatively on learners’ academic performance. Factors associated with poor work performance by learners included abuse, parental apathy, the environment, and a lack of resources, to name but a few. Praise and recognition, as well as democratic leadership styles on the part of teachers have a positive influence on learners’ work performance. Flexibility, care and visible intervention by teachers and the school have been found to have a positive impact on learners’ attitude towards school. The study concludes with a number of recommendations to address and manage the problems experienced by learners in impoverished contexts. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which tri-weekly evidence-based vocabulary lessons implemented throughout the regular school day would increase kindergarten students’ expressive and receptive vocabulary development, thus decreasing the vocabulary gap exhibited between low-income children and their more advantaged peers upon entering kindergarten. The participants in this study were kindergarten students at an elementary school in the Midwest. The students in the control group received their normal vocabulary instruction from the district’s adopted reading series. The experimental group students received instruction from the evidence-based direct instruction vocabulary lessons found in Judy Montgomery’s The Bridge of Vocabulary. Data was collected before and after the intervention took place using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Fourth Edition and the Expressive Vocabulary Test, Second Edition, and was analyzed using an ANOVA to compare growth. Analysis showed that students who received the vocabulary intervention made significantly greater growth in both expressive and receptive vocabulary development than students who received vocabulary instruction from the adopted reading series. More specifically, the students from poverty who received the intervention made significantly greater vocabulary development than the students from poverty who did not receive the intervention. / Department of Elementary Education

The transition into Kindergarten is a critical time for children's development--children's patterns of academic development and engagement with school often start in Kindergarten and persist throughout their academic careers. This is a developmental period that is marked by many changes in children's lives, and therefore it is not a surprise that many children struggle during this transition. These struggles are more common for children who are living in poverty, and although there have been national initiatives to address opportunity gaps in access to early education, investigations into the effectiveness of these programs in promoting children's Kindergarten development have shown mixed results. It is therefore essential to identify the types of early education experiences that are effective in supporting children in having a smooth Kindergarten transition. This dissertation presents and evaluates six theoretical frameworks that can be used to understand the Kindergarten transition. The school readiness approach to the Kindergarten transition focuses on the ways in which children's Kindergarten-entry skills can lead to their own development during Kindergarten. The Pre-K launch model examines the role of high-quality Pre-K in boosting children's school readiness, and subsequently their development during Kindergarten. The classroom quality perspective describes the supportive qualities of Kindergarten classrooms that may aid in children's development across this transition. The continuity perspective shows that support for continuous high-quality instruction between Pre-K and Kindergarten systems may promote children's growth. The buffer/compensation model proposes that children with higher-quality Pre-K experiences are more resilient to the effects of lower-quality Kindergarten. Finally, the consistency model suggests that alignment of quality between Pre-K and Kindergarten may be beneficial for children regardless of whether that alignment represents high quality instructional practices. Each of these perspectives provides valuable insight into the Kindergarten transition; however, these theoretical perspectives have not been studied simultaneously to determine the extent to which all may play a role in children's development during the Kindergarten transition, particularly the development of children who are living in poverty. The current study used data from the National Center for Early Development and Learning's Multi-State Pre-kindergarten Study (NCEDL) to chart children's experiences in their Pre-K and Kindergarten classes to determine whether there are qualities of children's experiences before and throughout the Kindergarten transition that support their development during Kindergarten, and evaluated the extent to which these patterns support these major theoretical perspectives. The study found that children's Kindergarten-entry skills were the best predictors of their end-of-Kindergarten outcomes, showing support for the school readiness perspective. In the domain of instructional support, children's concurrent classroom experiences predicted their academic outcomes during a given year, showing support for the classroom quality framework. In the domain of emotional support, statistical effects of Kindergarten emotional support on children's outcomes were seen only under conditions in which Pre-K emotional support had also been high, showing conditional support for the continuity model. Consistency of children's emotional support, when controlling for quality, was negatively related to their social and emotional development, indicating that consistent emotional support alone is not beneficial without taking into account the quality of that emotional support. Associations between Pre-K quality and children's Kindergarten development were not translated through boosts in school readiness, indicating that while Pre-K experiences do matter for children's development during the Kindergarten transition, that relationship is not best described through a launch model. And finally, any benefits of higher quality emotional and instructional interactions during both Pre-K and Kindergarten were largely concentrated in the group of children who were not living in poverty, while higher Pre-K quality was at times related to lower Kindergarten outcomes for children who were living in poverty. Implications for future research and policy are discussed.

Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2012

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of the school board/superintendent relationship on academic achievement in one Texas school district that serves high-poverty, majority-minority students. Previous studies identified successful school systems with school boards and superintendents who functioned as a true leadership team. However, previous research focused on school board/superintendent relationship and politics, not student achievement. This case study examined the dynamics of the school board/superintendent relationship and how the dynamics of that relationship influenced the academic achievement of its high-poverty students who were also the majority-minority. The methodology was an intrinsic and qualitative case study which used the constructive perspective and the researcher as the primary instrument for gathering data (Stake, 1988; Patton, 2002). Qualitative data was collected using a loosely structured focus group, individual interviews, and an examination of district documents and records. The research suggests that the dynamics of the school board/superintendent relationship tend to be centered on politics and political power. Politics and political power are impacted by the changing majority/minority composition of the school board, which may lead to instability in the superintendent’s relationship with the board. The research also corroborates previous studies in which effective communication, trust, collaboration, support, and a constant focus on student achievement are the essential building blocks of an effective school board/superintendent relationship. Further, the research supports many other studies which found that the campus principal’s focus on was the catalyst for improved student achievement. Even though educators believe and support the notion that collaborative leadership between the school board and the superintendent is key to the attainment of high academic achievement, this study found there was no apparent effect of the school board/superintendent relationship on the academic achievement of its students. This research has practical implications which may be useful to superintendents and school boards as they face the daily challenges and responsibilities of managing and improving academic achievement. / text

A case study approach was employed to investigate the expectations families in poverty had for their children's early childhood education program. Questions explored included the purpose of early childhood education, the needs of young children, the association of early childhood education to formal schooling, and families' aspirations for their children. Four women whose children or grandchildren were enrolled in an urban early childhood program and considered at risk because of poverty participated. Qualitative methods were used including analysis of interviews and families' photographs of representations of childhood, as well as the researcher's participant observations at the early childhood program. Results indicated that the women had mainstream aspirations for the children, including going to college. Analysis revealed that the women were insightful in regard to the development of children, to appropriate ways of learning for young children, and to the needs of young children. It was also apparent that the women understood the need for and desired a shared role between families and teachers in their children's development. The participants expect early childhood programs to not only prepare young children for school but to prepare them to successfully negotiate social interactions with both children and adults. The need for young children to be outside of the home was an unexpected theme of this research. The results also indicated that the women felt that childhood was a special time of life, free from anxiety, but a time to also form a secure base from which they could take risks in the world. The present study addresses myths that families in poverty do not understand the needs of young children, are not concerned with their futures, and have low expectations for their children. This study has implications for the preparation of teachers. Preservice teachers need opportunities for personal reflection regarding their assumptions about families. The development of initiatives that would allow low income families to reveal their expectations for their children's early childhood education is also implied. / Department of Elementary Education

In order for America to retain its superior position in a global economy it is imperative that all students receive educational opportunities that will prepare them for the future. Currently, African-American economically disadvantaged students in the United States perform lower on standardized tests than their grade and age-level peers. Educators must find ways to improve the performance of students in this group in order to maximize future opportunities. Through a mixed-methodology approach, the current study finds three school factors that may positively impact the performance of African-American economically disadvantaged students: high expectations, student-teacher relationships and teacher effectiveness. Quantitative and qualitative analysis provides perspectives from principals primarily from a large urban school district on the impact of these factors on student performance.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of staff development on the nomination and identification of culturally diverse and/or economically disadvantaged students for gifted programs. Teachers kindergarten through fifth grade from ten districts (N = 100) received 30 hours of staff development in gifted education. The experimental group (n = 50) received a specialized version of the training. The control group (n = 50) received the standard training provided by the Education Service Center. Teachers in the experimental group completed three Stages of Concern questionnaires at the beginning and end of the training and in the fall. Two Levels of Use interviews were also conducted, one in the fall and one in the spring. Innovation configurations were developed utilizing interview results. A repeated measures analysis of variance was conducted to determine differences in concerns of teachers over time. The results revealed growth, however, not of a significant level. A paired-samples t-test was conducted to determine differences in levels of use of the instructional strategies presented in the training. Again, results revealed growth in classroom application of strategies; however, the amount of growth was not significant. A paired-samples t-test was conducted on the components of the innovation configurations. Differentiated instruction was not significantly different, however, grouping strategies and student products showed significant growth in classroom application. Student nomination and identification data were analyzed across six ethnicities: White not economically disadvantaged, White economically disadvantaged, Hispanic not economically disadvantaged, Hispanic economically disadvantaged, African American not economically disadvantaged, and African American economically disadvantaged. Chi-square analyses determined statistical significance in nominations of Hispanic economically disadvantaged and African American not economically disadvantaged. Significant differences in placement of students occurred in White economically disadvantaged and Hispanic economically disadvantaged groups. No Hispanic not economically disadvantaged students met placement criteria.

Improving the STEM readiness of students from historically underserved groups is a moral and economic imperative requiring greater attention and effort than has been shown to date. The current literature suggests a high school science sequence beginning with physics and centered on developing conceptual understanding, using inquiry labs and modeling to allow students to explore new ideas, and addressing and correcting student misconceptions can increase student interest in and preparation for STEM careers. The purpose of this study was to determine if the science college readiness of historically underserved students can be improved by implementing an inquiry-based high school science sequence comprised of coursework in physics, chemistry, and biology for every student. The study used a retrospective cohort observational design to address the primary research question: are there differences between historically underserved students completing a Physics First science sequence and their peers completing a traditional science sequence in 1) science college-readiness test scores, 2) rates of science college-and-career readiness, and 3) interest in STEM? Small positive effects were found for all three outcomes for historically underserved students in the Physics First sequence.

The purpose of this research was to ascertain the characteristics of dropouts, their rationale for reentry, and what constituted effective practices within a Texas alternative education program (AEP). While, a number of studies have been conducted to explain why students drop out of school, more research was needed in the area of students that reenter to complete their studies (Fernandez, Paulsen & Hiranko-Nakanishi, 1996; Krashen, 1998; NCES, 1981; Pirog & Magee, 1997; Ramsey, 1988; Rumberger, 1995; Warren, 1996; White & Kaufman, 1997). The study utilized qualitative methodology with a case-study approach by utilizing small groups within the context of an organization (Miles and Huberman, 1994). The study site was purposely selected (Kuzel, 1992; Morse, 1989) using low-socio-economic criteria, ethnic representation, an AEIS rating of Commended, and a high graduation rate. Site participant selection included comprehensive sampling (Goetz and LeCompte, 1984) of the AEP personnel and random sampling of the student participants and their respective parents. The primary data was collected using a modified three-interview method (Dolbeare and Schuman, 1982) with corroborating document review and focus groups. Findings indicated that research participants could identify seventeen different characteristics for returning high school students. Some of the characteristics describing these students also reflect their motivation or rationale for returning back to complete their high school studies. The study revealed four major practices within the AEP that supported the program and its students towards their mission of graduating. These were: hiring the right personnel, monitoring academic progress, providing student support services, and maintaining a safe school climate. A resultant theme indicated that there was a need to promote a positive image of the value of the AEP. Since only ten participants and five students were included in the study, the findings can only be tentatively generalized. Finally, suggestions are made for AEP programs to be designed to entice students not only to return back to school, but to remain until their goal to graduate is realized. / text