The following study utilizes data from the High School and Beyond Study in order to predict mathematics achievement using both student characteristics and school level characteristics. Utilizing Hierarchical Linear Modeling, this study extends the body of literature by exploring how race, socio-economic status, and gender, as well as the percentage of minority students in a school, whether or not the school is Catholic, the proportion of students in the academic track, and the mean socioeconomic status of the school all affect mathematics achievement. Through this methodology, it was possible to see the direct effects of both student level and school level variables on achievement, as well as the cross-level interaction of all of these variables. Findings suggest that there are discrepancies in how different types of students achieve, as well as how those students achieve in varying contexts. Many of the variables were statistically significant in their effect on mathematics achievement. Implications for this research are discussed and considerations for future research are presented.

The problem investigated is the contribution of non-intellectual factors, in particular the level of psychosocial maturity, to the academic achievement of the high school pupil. It has generally been shown that Intelligence and Achievement correlate. (Robbertse 1968; Moerdyk 1973). However, according to Ausubel (1968) this correlation is only moderate and he suggests that this can be attributed to the influence of other variables, such as personality traits, adjustment and interests. Robbertse (1968) has stated that Intelligence alone is not a good predictor of school achievement for all pupils, that personality is an integral part of an individual's psychological make-up and it is, therefore, imperative to look at its contribution to the prediction of achievement. Eysenck (1969) and Cattell (1966) have found low but significant correlations between various personality scales and achievement. Verhage (1977) mentioned that relatively little research has been done in South Africa to determine the relationship between non-academic factors, such as personality characteristics, and academic achievement. Psychosocial maturity as conceived in this thesis is the outcome of the process of personality development with the emphasis on the person as a healthy individual in his interaction with society. A multiple correlation technique is used to relate academic results, intelligence scores and psychosocial maturity in an attempt to improve the prediction of achievement from Intelligence by using maturity scores. Results that are generally supporting of the hypothesis are presented, and factors that emerge and their implications are discussed. The characteristics of the maturity scale as found in a South African sample are also discussed. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, 1977.

This study modifies Cummins' (1997) theoretical framework of minority student achievement and social power relations to account for differences in educational achievement among different identifiable subgroups of the ESL population. This framework provides the conceptual structure for a multidimensional understanding of ESL academic achievement (e.g. Gonzales, 2001) whereby the mediating influence of the broad social power relations between dominant and minority groups, students' individual characteristics, including personal abilities, experiences and socio-demographic backgrounds, interacts with ecologies, including educational structures such as curricula, curricular organization, school populations and the policy environment to influence educational trajectories. This study employs descriptive, bi-variate, and logistic and multiple regression to perform secondary analysis on data describing the academic trajectories of the ESL students (n=7 527) of British Columbia's 1997 grade eight cohort (n=48 265). It compares the results to a native English speaker (NES) baseline. ESL students are disaggregated by ethno-cultural background, English proficiency, gender, age on entry to the BC school system, and socio-economic status. School population effects are also considered. The dependent variables are five and six-year graduation rates, and participation and performance across academic subjects. Results show that identifiable ethno-cultural subgroups of ESL students navigate widely varying academic trajectories. English proficiency and gender differences also affect achievement, more so in already under-achieving ethno-cultural groups. Later ages of entry generally prove advantageous for some groups in mathematics and the sciences but predict diminished outcomes in the humanities for all groups. Socio-economic effects only partially account for differences among ethno-cultural groups. School composition also has minimal effect. Most ethno-cultural groups have higher academic participation rates but lower performance scores than NESs. ESL graduation rates are more stable across socio-economic strata than NES graduation rates. The need to disaggregate data for research and decision-making, and to target support toward under-performing student groups is discussed. While ESL students perform well in aggregate, lower outcomes of identifiable subgroups are masked. The study concludes with a call for more refined data, and for further methodologically advanced research.

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to better understand the relationship between physical activity and academic achievement of girls in grades three to seven participating in a community-based physical activity program. Seventeen of eighteen possible participants were involved in this study. Findings revealed that there was no relationship found between the intensity, duration, and frequency of physical activity and English grades. There was also no relationship between the intensity, duration, and frequency of physical activity and mathematics grades. Parents were found to be the largest influence on girls’ physical activity behaviours. This study contributed to health promotion research by building upon findings from past projects that have found no significant negative relationship to exist between physical activity and academic achievement. Future research may want to focus on providing interventions at the family level to support parents’ and girls’ participation in physical activity.

The unfortunate disparity in achievement among minority and low income students is well-documented. Multiple social, structural, and psychological variables have been presented to try to explain the achievement gap. Researchers have also considered an individual’s racial-ethnic identity (REI) as an important variable that contributes to achievement outcomes. Oyserman and colleagues developed a model of REI that emphasizes three key factors of one’s racial-ethnic identity that have a direct impact on achievement. Further, her model posits that the interaction between two key REI variables, feelings of connectedness to one’s REI group (connectedness) and the perception that one’s racial-ethnic group values achievement (embedded achievement), contributes to positive achievement outcomes. Although research has suggested that REI significantly impacts achievement, the specific processes by which this occurs are less known. Considering the social-cognitive literature, it is plausible that different psychological and motivational beliefs mediate the relationship between REI and achievement-related outcomes. This dissertation study examines the mediating effect of sense of school belonging and perceived sense of school engagement on the relationship between REI (embedded achievement and connectedness) and academic achievement of minority middle school students longitudinally through the use of structural equation modeling. Results indicate that embedded achievement significantly predicts academic achievement. Furthermore, sense of belonging to school mediates this relationship for all racial and gender groups. Results also revealed that embedded achievement significantly predicted student perceived engagement for Hispanic students. Strategies to promote sense of belonging and embedded achievement at the personal, structural, community, peer, and family levels are discussed.

No description available.

The concept of racially-desegregated state schooling in South Africa was officially implemented in 1991. This change to racially-mixed schooling was not without problems. There are, to date, few known studies on this theme in South Africa although there are many overseas studies. The focus of the present study is on the implications of racially-desegregated schooling for the disadvantaged African population. The study examines African secondary school pupils' and their teachers' perceptions of their performance in the context of racially-desegregated schools. It also aims to study these perceptions in the context of striving for 'equality of opportunity' in the light of current educational refonns in South Africa. This study is located in the sociology of education framework, using a symbolic interactionist approach of analysis. Six schools in the suburb of Phoenix in Durban, originally designed for the Indian population, were used. A sample of 150 pupils belonging to both the middle and working class groups in the senior and junior phases of schooling was calculated. A sample of 68 teachers who teach pupils in the sample was also chosen. Questionnaires were administered to and interviews were conducted with both teachers and pupils. Objective data was also collected in the form of pupils' examination results over a period of a year. The Chi-square test of significance was used to establish if there were differences in performances of pupils within the social groups and within the phases of schooling. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1999.

No description available.

Rothbaum, Weisz, and Snyder's (1982) dual-process model of control proposed that in addition to attempts to change one's environment (primary control, PC) or psychologically adjust to one's circumstances (secondary control, SC), the higher-order capacity to alternate between these processes in congruence with performance (optimization) served to foster development in achievement settings. The present five-phase longitudinal study conducted over an academic year explored how college students (n = 568) shift between PC and SC over time in response to actual performance feedback, as well as the differential effectiveness of congruent emphasis shifts for development based on the perceived ability to shift in a strategic manner. Dependent measures included academic achievement (course test scores), motivation (achievement orientation, perceived success and value, expectations), emotions (enjoyment, anxiety, boredom), health status (global health, illness symptoms), and overall adjustment (perceived stress, self-esteem, depression). Hypotheses were evaluated using phase-specific and cross-lagged structural equation models assessing moderation effects for perceived congruence ability. Results showed that students shift toward PC after success and toward SC following failure, and suggest an elaborated theoretical model of how PC and SC contribute to beliefs and behaviour involving strategic and congruent emphasis shifts. These findings also demonstrate that some individuals better recognize when this behaviour is most effective for their performance and well-being and strategically make congruent emphasis shifts to improve their subsequent development. In sum, this study highlights the benefits of one's ability to make strategic emphasis shifts between PC and SC in an academic achievement setting, and provides empirical support for this effective yet relatively unexplored facet of Rothbaum et al.'s model.

Perceived control (Rothbaum, Weisz, & Snyder, 1982) and achievement goals (Dweck & Leggett, 1988) are two widely studied motivational constructs that influence students’ emotions and achievement. The central focus of this dissertation was to explore the associations between achievement goals and perceived control in three studies. Each study used a separate cohort of first-year college students taken from the Motivation and Academic Achievement (MAACH) Project (1992-2005, N = 10,053). Study 1 (n = 752) was descriptive and tested the associations between goals, control, and attributions. The results demonstrated that primary control was very clearly defined by the controllability dimension of attributions; however, the other variables were less clear. The purpose of Study 2 (n = 360) was to test for reciprocal relationships between goals and control by using a two-wave four-variable cross-lag panel model. The best predictor of each Time 2 variable was its corresponding Time 1 counterpart. Additionally, the results showed that Time 1 mastery goals positively predicted Time 2 primary and secondary control, but no other relationships emerged. Study 3 (n = 251) extended the relationships between goals and control to predict students’ emotions and achievement. The direct and indirect effects implied by the following longitudinal model were tested: goals → control → emotions → achievement (Pekrun, 2006). Mastery goals positively predicted primary and secondary control, whereas performance goals positively predicted primary control only. Primary control was the main mediator between goals and negative emotions. Additionally, primary control had a positive direct effect on achievement, and thus mediated the effects of both mastery and performance goals on this outcome. Secondary control had a negative direct effect on achievement and consequently acted as a negative mediator between mastery goals and achievement. For mastery goals, anger, anxiety, and boredom functioned as positive mediators with achievement. These emotions also positively mediated the effects of primary control on achievement. Results of the three studies are discussed in terms of contributions to the separate literatures on achievement goals and perceived control and in terms of implications for students in new and challenging achievement settings.