Special education placement is a debate among parents, educators, and policymakers. The Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is a federal law that provides a guiding principle to assist the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team with guidance when considering placement for a student with an exceptionality. Student placement decisions affect…

Multiple studies of recent decades have established close relationships between spatial skills and STEM achievement. Interventions have been effective in providing evidence of malleability of spatial skills and positive impact, yet the inclusion of spatial skills in curricula and policy lags. To date, only limited research has examined the impact…

This study examines the impact of an online math learning program on third through fifth grade math achievement in Louisiana. Employing Zearn Math usage metrics and administrative data from the Louisiana Department of Education, the results indicate that grade levels that programmatically used Zearn Math scored, on average, about .03 standard…

The focus of this study was to look at how the seating layout effects participation and assessment performance overall as a class. The participants were 23 fourth grade students at a Louisiana elementary school. Three layouts were tested: small groups, horseshoe, and pairs. This study included three, two-week rounds of research. The collection…

The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to use Gagne's cumulative learning theory to compare math curricula choice to Louisiana Education Assessment Program (LEAP) math achievement for third, fourth, and fifth grade students in public schools within the state of Louisiana. The independent variable of interest, math curricula choice, was…

This dissertation is a mixed-methods study designed to examine relationships among the following constructs: teacher self-efficacy, teacher-student relationships, trust, student engagement, and student social capital. A conceptual framework was created in reference to the literature relating to each primary construct. Furthermore, six research…

Student reading achievement continues to be a national concern (National Education Association, 2002; National Reading Panel, 2000) and educators are evaluated by student achievement (Louisiana Department of Education, 2018). Improving student achievement or student outcomes in schools is the major focus for policy makers today (e.g., Heck…

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of a community cinema's media literacy workshop on the writing products of fourth and fifth grade students at a non-public elementary school in Louisiana. Because of the importance of writing skills in academia, professions, and interpersonal communication, and because of the documented lack of…

Standardized assessments are focused on integrating knowledge from multiple sources and developing composed written responses. This requires the students to be able to read and comprehend on grade level, within the various subject areas (reading, math, science, and social studies), which are skills students with disabilities struggle to do. The…

ELA Guidebooks is an English language arts curriculum for core instruction. Made by teachers for teachers, the ELA Guidebooks units ensure all students can read, understand, and express their understanding of complex, grade-level texts, ensuring their readiness for college or a career. Each text collection has a shared idea and contains authentic…

We used time-varying effect modelling of two very large samples of fourth-grade students (N[subscript reading] = 148,240, N[subscript mathematics] = 152,220) to investigate associations between adoption and over-time implementation of a de facto cap on special education service receipt and over-time likelihoods of disability identification from…

We conducted conceptual replications for an online-administered general outcome measure known as critical content monitoring in science. Totally, 547 Grades 4 to 6 students from a rural Louisiana school district participated. Research questions addressed criterion validity, diagnostic accuracy, growth, and social validity concerns. Criterion…

America spends $115,000 per-pupil on education, one of the highest in the world. Even with high funding being provided for the educational budget, standardized state assessment scores are not reflecting the aim for higher quality of education that NCLB is trying to accomplish. Teachers use an assortment of assessments to gauge student's mastery…

This study examined the viability of the Sentence Verification Technique (SVT; Royer, Hastings, & Hook, 1979) assessment tool as a curriculum-based measure of science content learning. Its perceived compatibility with statewide accountability test expectations made SVT a candidate for use in content-focused response to intervention frameworks.…

Dyslexia is a neurologically-based, lifelong condition that affects a person's ability to process language, which in turn can make reading and writing more difficult. Between 10 and 20 percent of all people are dyslexic. Providing appropriate reading instruction and intervention for young children by second grade could reduce the percentage of…