Purpose: The overarching purpose of this journal-ready dissertation was to determine the extent to which Grade 4 Black students differed in their reading performance on the Texas state-mandated assessment by their gender and by their economic status. Specifically addressed was the degree to which differences were presented in their ability to…

This quantitative study is primarily intended to examine whether district level performance results from Grade 8 ELA state assessments can help to predict future passing rates on AP exams. The participants for the study are all 218 K-12 school districts in New Jersey, all of which generated results across score levels and passing rates for PARCC…

The United States lags behind other countries in science education outcomes, even though STEM fields contribute to our economic growth and output. The challenge of improving science education and reducing achievement disparities has been especially pervasive in diverse urban centers such as New York City. In that vein, New York City has embarked…

In 2023, immigrants and their United States born offspring accounted for approximately 90.8 million individuals (27%) of the civilian noninstitutionalized U.S. population (Batalova, 2024). Compared to 2010, this is a rise of about 14.7 million (20%). As the global population becomes more diverse, speech-language pathologists (SLPs) face the…

This study examined the lived experiences of New York City educators who are teaching and learning in a high-stakes testing environment to improve students' learning outcomes. The research questions were: (1) What are New York City elementary school educators' experiences teaching in a high-stakes testing environment? (2) What are New York City…

In an ethnographic study of one high school mathematics department made up of four African American teachers, I explored their co-construction of knowledge about teaching mathematics for social justice. This began with an in-depth study of each teacher's professional identity, their emotional connections to teaching in their local African American…

The United States history survey course is a standard high school history class in the state of New York. The academic goal is for students to understand key people and developments that molded the United States into its modern identity as a progressive, democratic nation-state. This research examined one manifestation of this course in New York…

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 the present study was to compare the classification accuracy of a previous year's end-of-year state assessment, a computer-adaptive diagnostic assessment (i-Ready), and the combination of the previous year's end-of-year state assessment with the following year's "i-Ready" performance to predict the rate of students passing…

Technology-based learning tools provide new opportunities to engage students in learning academic content. This study focuses on one such tool, Play Lu Interactive Technology (PLIT), and analyzes how students' math achievement on standardized test scores differs between students who have used PLIT and students who have not. PLIT is designed to…

Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) oriented schools are being formed to provide 21st century learning opportunities for students. After going through an exhaustive evaluation period schools are being recognized as STEM schools. The number of these schools is increasing every year. Education agencies provide professional development…

Since zero-tolerance policies were put into effect, suspension rates have risen dramatically in the United States (Ayers et al., 2001). This fact is unsettling because research shows that suspension has a negative impact on both academic achievement and poor life outcomes (Rausch & Skiba, 2005). The goal of this quantitative study was to…

This quantitative study examined the achievement gap in mathematics through the analysis of standardized test scores from a suburban school district in Saint Louis County. The problem this study addressed is that students of color in Missouri continue to score well below their peers on mathematics assessments (Bohrnstedt et al., 2015; Kotok, 2017;…

School finance formulas vary from state to state, impacting school district educational outcomes. Rural school districts are especially affected due to inherent challenges in producing high student achievement scores. This study examined whether variables including socioeconomic status and per-pupil local tax level impacted student achievement…

This study looks at a group of Hispanic English Learners from a region in deep South Texas that is situated along the U.S.-Mexico border, and how their sense of belonging, acculturation, and their perception of the teacher-student relationship impacts academic achievement on the STAAR End-of-Course state assessments for English I and English II.…