Throughout the United States, state governments are allocating millions of dollars to support Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK) programs. Recent research has indicated that students that participate in VPK demonstrate higher academic achievement scores across a number of subject areas. Moreover, VPK participants are more likely to enter primary school on grade level, which in turn leads to a reduction in grade retention. Studies have indicated that although all students that participate in VPK programs benefit from such programs, minority students and students that come from low-socioeconomic backgrounds benefit at an even higher level. The intent of this study was to determine to what extent, if any, a VPK program within a large, suburban school district impacted the academic achievement and kindergarten preparedness of participants in comparison to students that did not participate in the VPK program offered by the district. To measure the impact, student scores on the 2006-2007 Florida Kindergarten Readiness Screener (FLKRS) were compared through the use of an independent samples t-test. The same students had their 3rd grade Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) Reading and Mathematics scored compared as well. Two groups were compared against one another. The control group was a group of students that did not participate in the VPK offered by the school district. The treatment group was the group of students that participated in the district offered VPK. The results of each of the independent sample t-tests conducted determined that there was not a statistically significant different in either student preparedness or student academic achievement between the VPK participant group and the non-participant group.

The study was conducted to determine if there were any statistically significant differences in student achievement as measured by the 10th-grade Reading and Mathematics Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) at the school level between the configurations of high schools, controlling for the percentage of minority population and SES. A total of 259 large public high schools within Florida were used in the study; 149 traditional schools and 110 large schools using small learning communities. Because prior researchers have indicated that the number of low SES students and the percentage of minority students can have an effect on student achievement, these covariates were controlled for in this study. There was a significant difference in the FCAT Mathematics scores of students based on school configuration. Those students who attended traditional high schools scored higher than those in the smaller learning communities. There was a similar finding in the FCAT Reading scores, but it was only marginally significant. The interaction between the percentage of the minority population and low SES population was also evaluated, but no significant interaction was found. A qualitative survey was also sent to administrators at schools who were involved in the study. In direct contradiction to the quantitative study results, the vast majority of respondents thought that the use of a small learning community would increase student achievement. With the advent of Common Core in Mathematics and Language Arts, this iv research lends itself to be expanded on a national level to determine if a larger sample size would yield the same or differing results.

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, Public Law 107-110 (U.S. Congress), was passed by Congress in response to perceived failure of the public school system to effectively educate students, particularly disadvantaged students in the United States. The relationship of NCLB school choice to student achievement has not been clearly established. This causal-comparative study examined the following: (a) FCAT mathematics and reading achievement gains of targeted fourth through eighth grade NCLB choice students and a comparison group of eligible non-choosers with matching demographic characteristics; (b) the pre-test academic ability levels of NCLB choice students in fourth grade through eighth grade as compared with the achievement levels of eligible non-choosers, and; (c) differences in the ethnic and socioeconomic characteristics of choice students versus eligible non-choosers in kindergarten through eighth grade, and the impact of those differences on the demographic composition of individual schools. Differences in the achievement gains and in the pre-test achievement levels of NCLB choice students and the comparison groups were not statistically significant. NCLB choice students tended to have different ethnic and socioeconomic characteristics from their non-choosing peers. The effect of NCLB choice on Title I students and schools was discussed, and NCLB choice implementation issues were identified.

This study was conducted to explore the impact of teacher ideology on student performance. A definition of teacher ideology was drawn from the pupil control ideology, PCI, created by Willower, Eidell and Hoy (1967). Research concerned with teacher ideology has suggested that there is a definite difference between the custodial ideology and the humanistic ideology (Gaffney, 1997). In particular, the custodial teacher views rules and regulations as a priority, while the humanistic teacher views the student as the priority. Factors which influenced student achievement, such as socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and behavior in relation to how teacher ideology affects student performance were investigated. More specifically, the researcher investigated whether teacher ideology had any effect on student achievement of the entire student body, on student achievement of economically disadvantaged students, and on student achievement of non-white students. In addition to achievement, the effect of teacher ideology on student behavior was also investigated. A slightly positive relationship was found between teacher ideology as indicated by the PCI score, and the percentage of students making learning gains. This learning gain was evident in mathematics scores for all students, economically disadvantaged students, and non-white students. A learning gain was only evident among non-white students in reading. The results demonstrated the need for professional development on teacher ideology and its effects. This study has also indicated the need for further research into iv the effects of teacher ideology on classroom management and teaching styles. The researcher determined that due to a limited number of responses, further research is needed.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a three-year Professional Learning Community (PLC) staff development initiative that took place in a suburban school district in Connecticut. An operational definition for PLCs was developed. This definition may prove beneficial for future research on PLCs. A comprehensive review of the current literature base was conducted, including the detailed examination of one earlier literature review (Vescio et al., 2008) and six empirical studies which examined the relationship between PLC-like initiatives and student performance. The present study builds upon the relevant literature base, specifically by attempting to determine the relationship between teacher collaboration and two dependent variables: changes in teachers’ instructional practice and student achievement outcomes. In addition, the study considered the relationship between the support provided by administrators to PLCs and student achievement outcomes. Achievement outcomes were measured by performance on Connecticut’s annual standardized assessments. Correlational and multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between the variables. Survey data viii were drawn from a sample of 325 teachers, while student achievement data were drawn from a sample of approximately 2,270 students. A modest, statistically significant relationship was noted between administrative support for PLCs and student performance in both reading and writing. No statistically significant relationships were observed between collaboration and student achievement outcomes. A significant relationship was noted between collaboration and changes in instructional practice as measured by responses on the survey instrument. In addition, the interaction of teacher collaboration and administrative support served as a predictor for student performance in both reading and writing, suggesting that optimal learning occurs when teachers in PLCs collaborate at high levels while simultaneously receiving strong administrative support. The study concludes with a discussion of the implications of the findings for policy, professional practice, and future research on the topic of PLCs.

The purpose of this study was to examine special education populations, special education reading achievement, and regular education reading achievement in relation to the implementation of the Reading First three-tiered model as a response to Intervention platform. The population for this study focused on rural schools with Grades K-3 in attendance. Schools participated in the reading first grant period of the 2003-2009 school years. Forty-seven Texas Reading First schools were compared to 47 campuses having similar populations, socioeconomic makeups, and grade structures. This study utilized quantitative research measures to evaluate the level of special education populations on Reading First campuses using a response to intervention model. Quantitative measures were also used to evaluate those same campuses achievement rates of both special education and regular education students on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills reading tests. The study's outcome data showed little to no statistic significance for the three research questions. However, the inferential statistics showed a decrease in the special education population of the Reading First schools. Inferential statistics also indicated both the special education and the regular education students showed growth on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills reading tests. The use of a response to intervention program can be effective in the reduction of special education students identified on school campuses. Response to intervention programs can boost achievement levels of students receiving special education services. Students not enrolled in special education can benefit from effective response to intervention services.

In this era of educational accountability, achieving and maintaining high levels of student academic performance is the goal of every school. State accountability models serve as the measure to determine if school districts are successfully educating students, and the responsibility of student academic success rests on the principal of each school. Effective leadership is a necessary component of successful schools, especially in rural school districts. The focus of this research was to explore teachers' perceptions of the leadership behaviors and practices of their principals and determine if relationships existed between the leadership behaviors and the schools' accountability ratings. A survey research design was utilized in this study of eight schools across three rural school districts in central Mississippi. The researcher utilized The Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale to survey 121 teacher participants regarding their perceptions of principals' leadership behaviors or practices. The study revealed no statistically significant relationships existed between principals' leadership behaviors and school accountability ratings. However, the findings support existing literature on the indirect influence of principal leadership on student achievement.

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a statistically significant difference between the MCT scores (reading, math, and language arts) of two groups of students (those taught by a NBCT and those who were not), and if there was a difference, how those differences can be explained based on selected teacher demographic data (endorsement area of certification, sex, age, race, highest degree received, years of experience, and National Board Certification status). Teachers? National Board Certification (NBC) status and age were identified as variables that contribute to the difference in the reading, language arts, and math Mississippi Curriculum Test (MCT) scores. Students who were taught by National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) are more likely to have higher reading and language arts standardized test scores than students who were taught by non-NBCTs. While researchers have also concluded that teachers? years of experience, endorsement area (s), and highest degree received play a vital role in the differences found in students? achievement, this study did not confirm those findings. The results of this study, however, indicated that teachers whose ages ranged from 41-50 tend to have higher reading, language arts, and math MCT scores. The majority of teachers in this age group were NBCTs.

The purpose of this study was to determine if method of instruction, standards-based or traditional, had an impact on student mathematics achievement. More specifically, this study sought to determine if students taught using the JBHM Achievement Connections® standards-based method of instruction would show higher academic gain than students taught using a traditional method of instruction through the use of Mathematics: Applications and Connections, Course 2® in seventh-grade. The research design was a quasi-experimental design, with 65 students participating. Group A received a traditional method of instruction through the use of Mathematics: Applications and Connections, Course 2 and Group B received a standards-based method of instruction through the use of JBHM Achievement Connections. The test instrument administered for the pretest and posttest was the PLATO eduTest®. An analysis of the pretest and posttest scores was conducted. T-tests were run to examine the differences between pretest and posttest cores and gender, based on the method of instruction. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was computed to examine differences in performance based on class period representation. A paired t-test was computed to examine differences between the pretest and posttest scores after students were exposed to a method of instruction. After the data was collected and analyzed, the findings showed that there were no statistical differences in student achievement between students taught using JBHM Achievement Connections standards-based method of instruction (Group A) and those students taught using Mathematics: Applications and Connections, Course 2 traditional method of instruction (Group B) as measured by the PLATO eduTest scores. Students taught using the JBHM Achievement Connections standards-based method of instruction and the Mathematics: Applications and Connections, Course 2 traditional method of instruction both showed increased mathematics outcomes. However, the students taught using JBHM Achievement Connections standards-based method of instruction had a higher mean score and a greater degree of gain between pretest and posttest scores than the students taught using the Mathematics: Applications and Connections, Course 2 traditional method of instruction.

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