The SAT has long been used to assess students' readiness for college and to create competitiveness in college admissions. However, it has become a topic of controversy as stakeholders and researchers question its necessity, value, and validity especially where it concerns equitable access to post-secondary opportunities for underrepresented…

This phenomenological study aims to understand and establish the influence of student voice, particularly from marginalized students, in the school improvement process to yield positive student experiences for urban, comprehensive ninth- through twelfth-grade high schools in the United States Midwest. The focus of this study will be to compare the…

This study delves into the disparity in academic performance between students of color and their white counterparts, the former performing three to five years behind. To address this issue, a qualitative and interpretive descriptive study was conducted to investigate how schools address learning opportunities for students of color, employing…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of single-gender education on minority students' academic achievement and self-esteem. Over the years, there have been many educational programs initiated to support the academic success of minority students. One such program that has recently gained popularity is the implementation of…

Illinois has distinguished itself as one of the most inequitable states in the nation when it comes to state PK-12 education funding. With the advent of the No Child Left Behind Act, and more recently, the Every Student Succeeds Act, student achievement data has been thrust in front of the public, and conversations regarding equity, quality,…

To maintain its dominance as a leader in STEM, as well as to disrupt persistent economic and social inequalities, the United States must invest in Black and Hispanic students who are among the largest subgroups who have been historically underrepresented in STEM spaces. Research has shown that science self-efficacy facilitates students' interest,…

The United States has a shortage of qualified workers in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields (Zhang & Barnett, 2015). There is a critical shortage of underrepresented students seeking science majors and possible science-based careers. The purpose of the study was to examine the perceptions of underrepresented…

According to the Nation's Report Card (2015), American schools are suffering a double-digit academic gap between minority and non-minority students in reading proficiency scores and graduation rates. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of mediated reading (MR) across the curriculum on the achievement of at-risk low-SES minority…

Postsecondary access and degree completion are increasingly important concerns for individuals and policymakers. This dissertation presents evidence on three distinct strategies for increasing students' level of preparedness for higher education, rates of postsecondary enrollment, and rates of postsecondary degree completion. The first is an…

This study shows that minority students who, based upon a standardized test, have shown a high academic performance capability have a readiness for rigorous courses in high school and can sustain high academic achievement over time when compared to non-minority peers. Therefore, the on-going question for many educators needs to be why doesn't…

There is a need for research in the area of career choice of minority students in the United States. This descriptive study examined the factors that may influence Native American and African American high school students' career choices. These factors include such variables as parental educational level, family composition, and potential grade…

Recent trends indicate a significant decline in the number of students graduating from Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs in the US. The under-representation of students of color, females and low income students in STEM programs has also been documented. Design Based Science (DBS) instruction has been suggested to improve…

The purpose of the quantitative research study was to determine if participation in the Health Sciences and Technology Academy (HSTA) led to significant differences in the math and reading/language arts scores on the West Virginia Educational Standards Test 2 (WESTEST 2), between students who participated in the program compared to students who…

The transition from 8th grade to 9th grade is one that is replete with challenges for students, especially for minority students who live in economically disadvantaged communities. One low-income, high minority comprehensive high school in the western United States implemented five separate strategies to create a freshman transition program to aid…

This study followed a cohort of students from Grade 1 to Grade 11 in one struggling school district that had Reading Recovery (RR) in the Grade 1. The RR program is an intervention given only to students in the Grade 1 who are reading below grade level on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Assessment. The researched district had a high poverty, high…