Thesis (Ed. D.)--West Virginia University, 2009. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 186 p. : ill. (some col.). Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 169-177).

'Pipeline shrinkage', the steady attrition of women in the ICT industry despite their academic achievement, has been of great concern not only in the United Kingdom but also internationally for almost a quarter of a century. This study reviewed literature and prior research from both national and international perspectives, with a particular research focus on the experiences of students in three British secondary schools. The situation may have been exacerbated in British schools as government strategies have increasingly focussed on male students' apparent 'underachievement' relative to female students. One aspect of focus has been the resurrection of interest in single-sex classes in state schools. The comparatively strong academic achievement of female students has led to little focussed research on why they fail to capitalise on their ICT ability and study the subject beyond school level. Their behavioural intentions have not been the focus of the research. This study tested the fit of The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TpB) as a theoretical framework to examine how behavioural, normative and control beliefs differed, both between male and female students in mixed and single gender schools and female students taught in mixed or single sex classroom contexts. Samples of 150 students were questioned from which 120 were useable; 40 from each of the three participating schools. In two cases 25 students were Key Stage 4 students and 15 were A-Level students. A series of semi-structured interviews were undertaken with a further sample of 30 Key Stage 4 ICT students. Results showed data fitted the TpB model and explained female students' lack of intention to study ICT beyond their current level as beliefs were found to be related to that intention. Recommendations were provided for changes in practice based on attitudinal responses to behavioural beliefs, learning styles and teaching strategies.

Diss. Stockholm : Handelshögsk., 2004.

With just a click of a button, individuals from across the world can communicate and share information with ease and efficiency through the internet. Employing similar technology, schools are implementing student information systems with a parent portal component to provide parents, students, teachers and guidance counselors with anytime, real-time avenues of communication regarding attendance, grades and standardized test scores in an effort to increase parental involvement and student achievement. Schools must collect and review data to make sound decisions to guide practice (Mann & Shakeshaft, 2003). Therefore, utilization of parent portals should be evaluated along with the strategies employed to increase parental use. This study is an investigation of the perceptions of high school teachers and guidance counselors on the impact of a parent portal on parental involvement and strategies used to increase parental use. Through descriptive and inferential analyses of survey data, key findings were revealed. Overall, guidance counselors perceived the impact of the parent portal to be positive and indicated more strategies were used in their schools differing from the teachers' perception. However, both indicated a need to partner with the community to improve parental use of the parent portal.  Publishing an annual user guide on the parent portal for all stakeholders (teachers, guidance counselors, administrators, students, parents and the community) was one major implication. Centralizing information distributed regarding the parent portal will strengthen the overall intent of the program and the division's goal of providing opportunities for all to actively engage in student achievement (Longfellow, 2004). / Ed. D.

Increasing technology intervention in rural schools is still a herculean task, especially with the lack of adequate infrastructures and limited resources. The purpose of this quantitative, causal comparative study was to determine the impact of technology interventions on student achievement in rural Nigerian schools. The study explored the differences in student achievement in mathematics and English between technology and nontechnology schools and established a relationship between teachers' level of technology implementation and student achievement. The convenience sample comprised 2,369 examination scores in mathematics and English of Senior Secondary Level 2 (SS2) students and purposive sampling of 34 teachers who participated in an online survey. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), the level of technology implementation (LoTi) framework, and Pearson's correlation coefficient test. The results showed significant differences in student achievement between technology and nontechnology schools. However, the LoTi framework results indicated a low level of technology implementation in classroom instruction and no significant relationship between teachers' technology integration and student performance. Thus, the mere presence of technology seems to have more impact on student grades than the ways in which teachers use it. This study is resource material for stakeholders in education to ascertain the technology that worked best, teachers' professional development, and other infrastructures, prior to the deployment of technology interventions. The results could be useful for increasing teachers' technology integration and improving student performance, thereby leading to positive social change.

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