The purpose of this quantitative retrospective quasi-experimental study was to determine if there was a statistically significant difference between sixth, seventh, and eighth grade special education students receiving multiple instructional strategies and sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students receiving traditional instructional strategies.…

As teachers in Georgia utilize formative assessments to ensure successful performance on the state mandated Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT), it is essential that the data they receive from these assessments are accurate. This study examined the correlation between the computer-assisted instructional program, Classworks, and student…

With the concurrent emphasis on accountability, prevention, and early intervention, curriculum-based measurement of reading (R-CBM) is playing an increasingly important role in the educational process. This study investigated the differences in diagnostic accuracy and utility between commercial norms and local norms when making high-stakes, local…

An innovative DVD of classic nursery rhymes and stories empowered at-risk kindergarten children to control in the home when and how much they listen, promoting better listening, reading, and overall literacy comprehension skills. Coupled with modest teacher training, and limited use in the classroom, the DVD generated dramatic vocabulary growth in…

Georgia law mandates that students who fail the state Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT) twice in grades three, five, and eight be retained, unless a committee is convened including a subject-area teacher, an administrator, and the student's parent or guardian. If the committee unanimously decides the student may be successful in the…

The purpose of this causal comparative study was to examine effect of the K-8 grade span configuration on the academic achievement of 8th-grade students in the State of Georgia, and to determine the viability of the K-8 grade configuration as a strategy for improving the academic achievement of students at the middle grade levels. This study…

The purpose of this correlational study was to determine if variables known upon a group of students' enrollment in kindergarten had a significant relationship with their high-stakes reading assessment results obtained six years later, in the students' fifth grade year. Archival data was gathered from a rural northern Georgia school district.…

Struggling readers in Grades 7-8 at a large, suburban middle school in Georgia have consistently failed to make adequate yearly progress in reading. In recent years, interest in improving the literacy of adolescents has increased due to the growing number of students experiencing reading difficulties on state and national standardized tests. The…

This quantitative study implemented a non-experimental design that was descriptive, ex-post facto, and longitudinal. This study is examining economically disadvantaged students (EDS) with comparison to non-economically disadvantaged students (non-EDS) and their academic performance on Georgia's Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT).…

This quantitative study analyzed data to find a valid and reliable assessment for progress monitoring also having predictive power of a student's future reading performance on a state-mandated standardized reading achievement evaluation. The Response to Intervention (RTI) model was implemented in the language arts classrooms of a rural middle…

The impact of schools and students not meeting academic achievement standards affects the community and the nation's future workforce. This paper examines many of the factors influencing achievement with special attention given to the facts of teacher turnover in the schools. Teacher turnover and the sad state of the academic achievement of…

There has been a recent emphasis on improving the academic performance of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Improving the academic performance of students with EBD is especially important in the current accountability era in which there is much emphasis placed on performance of standardized tests. The purpose of this study…

In 1975, the Georgia Department of Education completed development of criterion-referenced reading tests for grades four and eight. These tests were administered on a statewide basis for the first time in the spring of 1976. Objectives used in the construction of the test were selected on the basis of priorities assigned by 50,000 reading…

Studies that trace change over time are essential to inferring how people change. To add understanding to the change process in school systems in Georgia that demonstrated improved Criterion Referenced Test (CRT) scores for several consecutive years, this study was conducted. Interviews were held with 90 teachers, administrators, and supervisors…