This study focused on the continued mathematical achievement gap between African American and Latino students in an urban elementary school. An illustrative case study design was used to examine the teachers' perception of factors contributing to this gap in mathematical performance, and what instructional math strategies can narrow the achievement gap. Socioconstructivism and culturally relevant pedagogy were the learning theories used to form the conceptual framework in this study. Qualitative data were obtained from 6 individual interviews with 4th grade math educators, classroom observations, and teacher artifacts. Data analysis in this study included data triangulation and coding, as well as identification of common themes as an important analytical approach to enhance the credibility of this study. Methods for minimizing bias and error included peer debriefing and member-checking, which consisted of obtaining feedback from participants to ensure the trustworthiness of findings. The key results of this study indicated that teachers perceived that 4th grade African American students often lacked basic skills and background knowledge for their school grade. Based upon the findings, the outcome was a plan for professional development training to help teachers gain knowledge on how to incorporate cultural relevant pedagogy, through strategies that include differentiating learning instructions and mastery learning into their classrooms, to narrow the mathematical achievement gap between African American and Latino 4th grade students. Implications for positive social change from this study include providing teachers with research-based strategies targeted toward narrowing the mathematical achievement gap between 4th grade African American and Latino students at the local and district site.

In a Northern California elementary school, school personnel were concerned that the math proficiency levels were low for 2011-2014 for low-Social Economic Status, SES, students and math teachers were not using the math professional development strategies provided nor consistently implementing the new math curriculum adopted by the district to support Common Core, CC, state standards. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explore teacher perceptions regarding the math instruction related to students' performance. Vygotsky's social development theory served as the conceptual framework for this study. The study included interview data from 10 elementary teachers purposefully selected from Grades 2 through 5 who were known to meet the selection criteria of being a math teacher with 2 or more years of experience working with low SES students. Data from interviews, and archival documents were analyzed using inductive analyses and were analytically coded. The results of the analysis showed that the teachers wanted quality professional development that would prepare them to effectively teach math to struggling low-SES students. The identified themes were strategies teachers used to support low-SES students, instructional resources, effectiveness of professional development, and additional factors affecting low-SES students. Thus, the resulting project, Guiding Struggling Math Students Toward Success PD, provides math strategies for working with low-SES students and implementing the new math curriculum. This endeavor may contribute to positive social change by reforming PD opportunities to support teachers' practice and use of modifications during math instruction, ultimately increasing student performance in the elementary campus.

The two purposes of this study are first, to provide an evaluation of an after-school basic mathematics program at the Demonstration School for the Deaf Junior Secondary School (DemoDeaf) in Mampong-Akuapim, Ghana. Second, it provides an ecological discussion exploring why DemoDeaf students do not have access to quality education. I designed and piloted the math program in 2005 and 2007 as an action researcher and volunteer with the Non-Government Organization (NGO), Signs of Hope International. The program was developed after finding six students in one JSS class could not count to one-hundred and all other students struggled with addition and/or subtraction. The program has been shown quantitatively and qualitatively to have statistically significant and positive effects on DemoDeaf students. In 2007, the number of students proficient in counting increased from thirty-four to forty-four. An analysis of the addition achievement test results indicate students advanced a total of twenty-nine levels; four students learned to add single-digit numbers together, eleven students learned how to add double-digit numbers together, and fourteen students learned how to add triple-digit numbers together. An analysis of the subtraction achievement tests indicate students advanced a total of nineteen levels; six students learned to subtract single-digit numbers, eight students learned how to subtract double-digit numbers, and five students learned how to subtract with triple-digit numbers. Sample-t-tests showed that the increase of students proficient in counting, addition, or subtraction (except for triple-digit subtraction) was statistically significant at the p-value of < .01 or < .05. The stigma and negative stereotypes embedded in the normative culture in Ghana and the majority/minority relations and power dynamics between hearing and deaf groups influence the socializing institutions of the family and deaf schools. The normative hearing culture influences the language choice parents/guardians give their deaf child and how they treat them. The perspectives and values of hearing educators and administrators influence deaf school design and create a hidden curriculum for deaf students. These separate forces meet in the classroom and not only prevent students from receiving a quality secular education, they also reinforce the low status ascription of deaf students in Ghana.