In Texas, fifth grade students are required to pass both the reading and math sections of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, or TAKS test, in order to be promoted to the next grade level. The purpose of this study is to describe parents' perceptions of the influence of the high-stakes TAKS test on the family lives of at-risk fifth grade…

Serious Games are digital games with an educational, informative, or persuasive goal beyond mere entertainment (Abt, 2002). They are promising because they often contain features that appear to be useful for learning (Squire, 2004), eliciting behavioral or attitudinal change (Yee, 2007) or encouraging new perspective taking, empathy, and new ways…

This dissertation investigates how five Korean ESL (English as a Second Language) students in U.S. secondary schools develop academic writing while they navigate U.S. academic expectations and cultural norms. This qualitative study describes the experiences with academic writing practices and identity reconstruction as well as the relationship…

This research project served two main purposes. The first was to uncover the perceptions of district administrators from Quality award-winning school districts in regard to the use of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award program as a management framework. This was accomplished by using the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium's…

This research study focused on the relationship between student outcomes (indicated by Advanced Placement enrollment, Advanced Placement course grades, Advanced Placement exam scores, Advanced Placement exam passing rate) and student demographic factors as well as student support programs (such as AVID, an AP Incentive Program, and a summer AP…

This study evaluated the influence of general and mathematics-specific classroom instructional quality on the mathematical development of a sample of Head Start preschool children. It also examined whether children's age, pre-test mathematical knowledge, and English language learner status influenced the quality of their curricular…

Increasing diversity in the United States has impacted the goals of education to focus greater attention on issues of race, culture, and equity. In school mathematics data indicate that African American, Latino, and Native American students continue to trail their White and Asian American peers on most measures of achievement and persistence and…

The purpose of the study was to identify factors that affect students' persistence in completion of the GED. Exploration of characteristics of participants that do/do not persist and obtain their GED assists the high school dropout, potential GED recipient, GED program staff, and society as a whole. More information was needed in order to…

This study examined the relationship between high school student achievement, per pupil expenditure, school district enrollment, selected student demographics (economically disadvantaged, racial and ethnic groupings {African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, Native American/Alaskan, and White}, limited English proficiency, and students…

Introduced by Jonathan Bowlby in the early 1960s, attachment theory seeks to explain an individual's depth of bonding with others throughout one's life. Attachment styles can affect family life, life interactions, career choices, friendships, relationships, marriage, and parenting (Turner, 2005). Attachment theory is composed of four different…

Few mental health resources focus on Asian American students in higher education. The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the effectiveness of "Culture and Coping: Asian American Approaches," a culturally-tailored, cognitive-behavioral psychoeducational course. The course was based on a curriculum which was created to give Asian and…

A persistent and pervasive disparity in academic achievement exists between ethnic minority and English Learner students and their White and Asian peers. This qualitative single-case study of a high-poverty, high-performing middle school focused on the cultural norms, practices, and programs that were perceived to be contributing to narrowing the…