For years, colleges have used placement exams to determine whether to deem incoming students "college ready" or assign them to developmental education. But emerging information reveals the tests have little correlation to students' future success, casting doubt on their use even as the high stakes for students of taking remedial courses…

The aim of this thesis is to investigate and present the status of student synthesis with color coded formula writing for grade level six through twelve, and to make recommendations for educators to teach writing structure through a color coded formula system in order to increase classroom engagement and lower students' affect. The thesis first…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether age differences affect students' academic achievement, and whether age differences affect students in low-income areas differently than those in mixed or higher-income areas. Student achievement data for grades 3, 7, and 11 in language arts and math were obtained from a variety of schools located…

This study examines the ways single Black mothers contribute to the educational success of their 11th-grade sons, despite the fact that their sons are enrolled in "failing schools." Data from five interviews and one focus group reveal common characteristics of how single-Black mothers help their sons beat the odds.

The California Department of Education (CDE) has long asserted that success Algebra I by Grade 8 is the goal for all California public school students. In fact, the state's accountability system penalizes schools that do not require all of their students to take the Algebra I end-of-course examination by Grade 8 (CDE, 2009). In this dissertation,…

Exergames (active video games that require kinesthetic movement) played in proximity to other players or against a gaming machine have been linked to positive increases in cognitive functioning. This study tested to see if remote exergame play over the Internet had an impact similar to exergames that are played in proximity. The study shows that…

Every educator's quest is to help students learn in the environment that will allow them to obtain and retain the information presented to them. In the new age of technology, more students are able to choose the environment in which they learn. This study is a quantitative comparative study of the academic performance between online and…

This paper examines the Algebra II course and California Star Test (CST) proficiency levels in the San Francisco Bay Area and in the State of California. CST proficiency levels are examined by grade level for the State and nine counties of the San Francisco Bay Area region. Algebra II is shown to be one of the more complicated courses in the CSU…

A high school education, which includes access to advanced math courses, has a positive effect on students. Math classes taken in high school show a relationship to higher salaries and college graduation rates. However, the high-stakes accountability system in California, redesigned in 2003 to meet the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act…

Resilience and other positive psychological constructs are gaining attention among school psychologists. Theoretically, external assets (e.g., support from caring adults, participation in meaningful activities) help to meet youths' basic developmental needs, which, in turn, promote the growth of internal assets (e.g., ability to problem solve,…

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether students who enter high school in ninth grade and score proficient or advanced on their CST in English Language Arts remain proficient or advanced 2 years later in 11th grade. The effects of NCLB will be considered as a contributing factor to the difference in student scores. This study was…

The purpose of this study was to discover what teaching strategies were utilized by Special Day Class (SDC) teachers to prepare their 9-12 grade students to pass a course in Algebra 1 and the mathematics section of the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE). This study used a mixed methodology involving a quantitative survey and qualitative…

The California history and social science standards-based reform has been touted as the "gold standard" for state history curricula. But the standards, framework, and tests that constitute this reform provide inconsistent and contradictory criteria for teaching and assessing history and social science. An examination of the political…

In recent years, a concatenation of fears, pressures, and agendas has produced a new round of testing in the form of high school exit examinations. There has not, however, been an accompanying rush to see whether the exams do any good. No state has attempted to validate its test against external criteria: given the hyperbole surrounding the tests…

In this article, the authors explore variation in the meanings of racial identity for African American students in a predominantly African American urban high school. They view racial identity as both related to membership in a racial group and as fluid and reconstructed in the local school setting. They draw on both survey data and observational…