Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2004. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 288-293). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on March 12, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on March 12, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on March 13, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Florida, 1984. / Description based on print version record. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 241-250).

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2004. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 134-145). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2004. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 134-145). Also available on the Internet.

This study addressed the perceptions of teachers, parents, and students in a suburban middle school about the effects of implementation of the middle school concept on instruction, peer group interaction, teacher attitudes and practices, and school culture. A qualitative approach was used for this study. Interview questions were developed to determine perceptions about effects in the areas identified in the research questions. Interviews were conducted with selected teachers, parents, and students who had exposure to the school before and after planned changes were implemented. Documents were examined for evidence of perceptions in the four areas identified. In addition, an existing data set (a student survey} was examined and the same survey was administered to a more recent group of students to identify possible patterns in student perceptions.

This chapter introduces a project-based learning lesson that integrates science, English language arts (ELA), and math through a study related to energy sources. Throughout the lesson, students are engaged in a real-world problem of determining the impact of a population on energy resources and discovering ways to build greener, more energy-efficient schools for students of the future. Within this chapter, the authors present a proposed project timeline that teachers can use for implementation within their own classrooms, including an entry event to engage students in the mission of the project. A connection between science, ELA, and math practices is addressed in order to provide students with an opportunity to understand the correlation between all three subject areas. Suggested teaching and learning tasks focused on the driving question of the project and related to all three subject areas are presented along with suggestions for a culminating product and assessment of student learning.

With the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act, schools and school districts have come under increased pressure to demonstrate student proficiency and success at the elementary, middle and high school levels. Each state is required to use standardized test data as evidence of student proficiency. The data is collected by each state and reported to the federal government to demonstrate progress. In Florida, the exam used to record proficiency is the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). At all three levels, the FCAT is administered annually and the results are used to create school grades ranging from A-F. Florida high schools fall in the lowest 10% in the nation for graduation rates, graduating less than 60% of high school students. The pressure created by these high stakes tests have led to a growth in Florida secondary schools implementing the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program. AVID seeks to offer a rigorous curriculum with additional support to underserved students. However, some literature demonstrates that schools with AVID improve the success of not only AVID students, but the overall population as well. This is commonly referred to as the "AVIDization" of a school. This study used an independent t-test to compare middle schools in eleven Florida county school districts with AVID to non-AVID schools in the 2007-2008 school year in six main areas; a) FCAT Math scores, b) FCAT Reading scores, C) overall FCAT scores, d) frequency of disciplinary incidences, e) attendance rates, and f) overall FCAT scores with controlled data. In this study, 85 middle schools had AVID and 179 middle schools were non-AVID. In comparing AVID to non-AVID students in the six areas, the t-test demonstrated that schools with the AVID program did not outperform non-AVID schools in the three FCAT tested areas. Also, the data shows that AVID schools were more likely to have higher reported rates of disciplinary incidences then non-AVID schools.