The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the demographic characteristics of middle school students on their mathematics performance on the STAAR examination. More specifically, this study examined the effect of the variables gender, ethnicity, and at-risk status, separate and collectively, on the four mathematics components…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of selected demographic factors on the academic achievement of high school students. More specifically, this study was concerned with the effects of the variables gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) scores in Mathematics,…

Research suggests teacher cultural competency (TCC) is one of the keys to combating current systemic inequities in our educational landscape especially when considering the influences of teacher experience, socioeconomic factors (measured through the percentage of students receiving free lunch), and the composition of student demographics,…

The purpose of this correlational quantitative study was to conduct an exploratory empirical investigation examining the relationship between student hope (Snyder et al., 1991) and student collective trust in teachers (STT) (Forsyth et al., 2011) at a large urban public freshman academy in the student trust in teachers that implemented social and…

Nonmusical factors affect the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association (VBODA) concert performances and subsequent assessment results; namely, school size, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. A comparison of ratings given by individual trained evaluators demonstrates interrater reliability. A comparison of final ratings given at…

This study examined differences in grade school students' BMI percentiles before and after the "Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act" of 2012 and factors that may have influenced those differences. Using publically available data from the Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Education, a comparative analysis of BMI percentiles, ethnicity,…

The objective of this retrospective study was to determine if second grade Stanford 10 (SAT10) reading and/or language scale scores were predictive of AIMS reading outcomes in third grade, thereby providing a means to identify third grade students at risk of retention in accordance with Arizona's (MOWR) legislation. Early identification of…

Improving instruction, improving student education and improving the performance of standardized assessment requires attention to many aspects within the school environment. The purpose of the study was to explore the student-teacher ratio and in school/out of school suspensions in southeast Missouri school districts. The study also examined…

Background and Objective: Research has repeatedly found that students who have not developed sufficient reading skills by the third grade have lower rates of high school graduation and post high school outcomes. A growing body of literature has examined how the use of curriculum-based measurements (CBMs) can be used to identify these struggling…

Middle school students who struggle in reading are likely to also experience difficulty in their other subjects in school. A variety of reading intervention programs exist for schools to utilize to increase reading comprehension. The Scholastic READ 180 program is used as part of this study. This small, focused study of 160 students examined the…

This study was conducted to determine if a growing, urban school district was adequately addressing the academic, social-emotional and behavioral needs of students identified as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act. McKinney-Vento eligible students were compared to non-homeless virtual twins. Each twin was created through averaging three…

This study was conducted to determine if a growing, urban school district was adequately addressing the academic, social-emotional and behavioral needs of students identified as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act. McKinney-Vento eligible students were compared to non-homeless virtual twins. Each twin was created through averaging three…

This study was conducted to determine if a growing, urban school district was adequately addressing the academic, social-emotional and behavioral needs of students identified as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act. McKinney-Vento eligible students were compared to non-homeless virtual twins. Each twin was created through averaging three…

This descriptive study provides a snapshot of the correlations between a child's learning experiences a year before entering kindergarten and the reading/literacy skills a child has entering kindergarten. Early literacy assessment scores were used to evaluate the effectiveness of four categories of learning experiences prior to entering…

This causal-comparative study examined the effects of the collaborative leadership style provided by professional learning communities (PLCs) on the students' Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) mean Value-Added achievement scores in language arts and mathematics. The study used twenty-nine selected middle schools in eight different…