The purpose of this dissertation was to understand how Black middle school students interpret the relationship with their mathematics teachers. This study is situated within research exploring the nuances of the Black-White achievement gap. National assessment data provide that more than 80% of eighth-grade Black students enter high school working…

Tracking in education is a process that started in the early 1900s. What started as a tool to help migrant students, evolved into a discrete form of segregation. Tracking normally negatively affects marginalized students. It often separates students by socioeconomic status and race. Black and Hispanic students normally make up a small percentage…

Since at least 2001, an emphasis has been placed on the use of evidence-based practices in schools to close achievement gaps. Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) emerged during this time as a framework of evidence-based practices adopted by nearly all U.S. states including Georgia. When implemented with fidelity, MTSS has the potential to close…

This study investigated the impact the Achieve3000 program had on reading growth and reading proficiency of 1,531 sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students from four Title 1 middle schools in Florida who were enrolled in remedial reading classes. Archival data from the Florida Standards Assessment English language arts provided pre-and-post data…

English learners (ELs) are a growing demographic in schools nationwide. ELs are expected to demonstrate proficiency in core subjects like their non-EL counterparts. However, an achievement gap exists. To address the achievement disparity for ELs, schools seek certified ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) teachers to provide the support…

A literacy gap is a difference between a person's ability to read for understanding and meaning-making and their anticipated ability to read for their grade level. A larger proportion of males are at least one or more years below grade level in reading ability compared to their female peers. This reading difference is called the gender literacy…

Despite the promise of equal education opportunities for all students in the nation, the achievement/opportunity gap between English language learners (ELLs) and their non-ELLs peers persists. Time, effort, and resources of all kids have been invested in educational reforms to improve these students' outcomes without success (Darling-Hammond,…

This study measured the effectiveness of Readable English, a reading fluency and comprehension program, on underperforming sixth, seventh, and eighth grade rural, American English-speaking students over the course of one school year. Students were randomly assigned to either the intervention condition (n = 167) or the typical practice condition (n…

The current study evaluates effects of teaching factors and extended day programs regarding both average achievement and socioeconomic achievement gaps. Analyses are based on data from the National Educational Panel Study in Germany. The sample comprises 1523 students in 120 classes in 71 secondary schools. The investigation period covers fifth…

Due in part to the challenges associated with learning a new language, English language learners (ELLs) typically begin school with lower achievement than their non-ELL peers, and those achievement gaps often close slowly if at all. A separate body of research shows that achievement is associated with social-emotional learning constructs like…

This research examined how self-efficacy, collective efficacy, and professional development compared between core content and special education middle school teachers working with middle school students in reading comprehension and fluency. Accordingly, no statistically significant difference in teacher self-efficacy between core content and…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine the extent to which instructional leaders providing principal feedback to teachers with five or more years of teaching experience influence student high value-added growth in urban Ohio middle schools, specifically in regard to their Black students. It examined statistical information between…

The individual problem-solving (IPS) and collaborative problem-solving (CPS) have received a lot of attention, yet little research has been conducted to investigate whether CPS and IPS are equally effective in improving students' understanding of physics concepts, problem-solving abilities, and minimizing achievement gaps. Therefore, the present…

Research over the last two decades has shown middle school EBs are at risk for academic failure due to compounded systematic challenges that prevented them from acquiring reading proficiency level required to succeed in academic setting (Bowman-Perrott et al., 2010; Deussen et al., 2017; Sheng et al., 2011; Slama, 2012). EBs face shortages of…

Data reporting in the Australian education system produces deficit-based comparisons of academic achievement between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. Since 2009, data from the National Assessment Program -- Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) have been used by the Australian government to allow it to report on 'Closing the Gap' policy. These…