This study aims to identify the relationships between Individualized Education Program (IEP) status and substance use. More than 122,000 eighth-, ninth-, and eleventh-grade students provided survey data in 2013. Analyses tested associations between IEP status and tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use, accounting for emotional distress and…

Numerous research studies (e.g., Anderson, Kutash, & Duchnowski, 2001; Lane, Carter, Pierson, & Glaeser, 2006; Volpe, Dupaul, Jitendra, & Tresco, 2009; Wei, Blackorby, & Schiller, 2011) have shown that students with disabilities generally exhibit lower reading scores than their peers without disabilities. However, questions remain…

The focus of this study was on increasing the knowledge base on students with disabilities at the secondary level. Data were gathered on 559 classified secondary students with disabilities served in four educational options: cotaught classes, resource rooms, alternate day support programs, and no direct supports. Results indicate that there are…

Although only results from mathematics and reading assessments are required to be used when Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) of schools is calculated, some states have elected to include science achievement results either in their AYP calculations or as part of a separate dual accountability system. This study examined 2009 National Assessment for…

Over the last 37 years, the Individualized Education Program (IEP) has been the guiding document that outlines the needs of a student who receives special education services. Washington State utilizes an IEP Review form as the means to determine if an IEP has been properly written and formulated. This information partially fulfills the Federal…

This report measures trends in performance among urban schools receiving federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) awards as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The Council of the Great City Schools aims to document how member districts of the Council of the Great City Schools implemented SIG and specifically what…

The purpose of this study is to investigate teachers' perceptions of the functionality and effectiveness of the response to intervention model. Using a response to intervention (RTI) framework has become a priority for school district as they move to meet federal legislative mandates. Through this study teachers in the southwestern part of the…

This study examined the effects of an intervention in writing with digital interactive books. To improve the writing skills of seventh- and eighth-grade students with a learning disability in reading, we conducted a quasi-experimental study in which the students read interactive digital books (i-books), took notes, wrote summaries, and acted as…

This quantitative method, quasi-experimental design study examined the possible effect of foreign language study in Tennessee middle schools on mathematics achievement. The population was 1,708 historical student test scores of a single cohort spanning 6th through 8th Grades from the same schools within a large urban public school district. NCLB…

During the 79th Texas Legislature, the bill "Advancement of College Readiness in Curriculum" was passed (THECB). As a response to this, high schools and colleges have combined forming an early college high school. The result of this union was a program that condensed the time it took to complete both the high school diploma and up to two…

This article considers the impact of a high-stakes testing and reporting requirement on students using publicly funded vouchers to attend private schools. We describe how such a policy was implemented during the course of a previously authorized multi-year evaluation of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, which provided us with data on voucher…

Children who are homeless or in foster care change schools more often than their non-mobile peers. The impact of school mobility increases their risk of academic failure (Evans, 1996; Ingersoll, Scamman, & Eckerling, 1989; Mao, 1997, Mehana & Reynolds, 2003; Reynolds & Wolf, 1999). Laws enforcing the right of students to remain in…

Spurred by the "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2001, virtually every educational reform program now includes an accountability component that requires sound data collection and reporting (NCLB, 2002, section 101). Drawing from empirically based and theoretical literature in the field, this dissertation examines Adequate Yearly Progress…

Social promotion is defined as the practice of allowing students who failed to meet performance standards and academic requirements the opportunity to pass on to the next grade with their peers. Although the A+ Educational Reform Act abolished the use of the practice, social promotion continues to occur in numerous school districts across one…

Many school districts are using research-based strategies to increase student achievement. The "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2001 was created and implemented to assist all students becoming proficient in reading and mathematics by 2014. One strategy many school districts implemented includes an after-school program. One school district…