The focus of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the Student Success Skills group counseling (SSSGC) intervention with grade 9 students identified as at risk to dropout. This study analyzed two years of non-identifiable student data (N = 167) collected by school counselors at one high school in south Florida. An analysis of covariance…

Standardized assessment is the government measurement of academic success in Texas. Currently, students in Grades 3-11 participate in the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) as a measure of their comprehension of the state standards. In high school, students are required to pass the high school STAAR End of Course test in…

This research study attempted to determine if specific variables were related to student performance on the Algebra I subject-area test. This study also sought to determine in which of grades 8, 9, or 10 students performed better on the Algebra I Subject Area Test. This study also investigated the different criteria that are used to schedule…

This report looks at student growth in Arkansas school districts disaggregated by district poverty and by the district's value-added performance relative to other districts. We estimated district value-added performance statistics by subject and grade level (8 and 11-12) for longitudinal student cohorts, using statistical models that adjusted for…

This study explored the relationship between the reading ability and science achievement of students in grades 5, 8, and 9. Reading ability was assessed with four measures: word recognition, vocabulary, syntactic knowledge, and comprehension (23% of all passages were on science topics). Science achievement was assessed with state…

The trend and demand for virtual education has grown nationwide. With an increase in students choosing this type of education, inevitably the demand for schools of this type of educational instruction has increased in number. The purpose of this study is to determine the extent of the relationship between virtual school size and student…

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between virtual school size and student achievement in virtual schools in a southwestern state. Enrollment size and the following areas were studied in an attempt to determine student achievement: STAAR English Language Arts/Reading, STAAR Math, STAAR Science, and STAAR Social Studies…

The purpose of this study was to identify the principal behaviors that would define an instructional leader as being a data-driven school administrator and to assess current school administrators' levels of being data-driven. This research attempted to examine the relationship between the degree to which a principal was data-driven and the…

Using historical test data from the standardized testing program (LEAP, iLEAP) in the state of Louisiana, this sequential mixed methods study utilized hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) and a logistic regression method to test alternate measures of school performance (student achievement model, growth model, and transition to 9th grade) applied to…

This paper examines the Algebra II course and California Star Test (CST) proficiency levels in the San Francisco Bay Area and in the State of California. CST proficiency levels are examined by grade level for the State and nine counties of the San Francisco Bay Area region. Algebra II is shown to be one of the more complicated courses in the CSU…

Parental involvement is viewed as critical to the development of effective schools and student achievement. The relationship between parental involvement and achievement test scores at a rural high school in Florida was not known. This high school has not met the state standards as determined by the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test (FCAT)…

The explicit teaching of reading comprehension strategies has been proposed as a means to better prepare secondary school-aged students for today's information-dense, fast-paced, fast-changing global society, and to improve the academic performance of struggling adolescent readers. This proposition of a direct and positive impact of reading…

This report is a follow-up to "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades" (Williams, Kirst, Haertel, et al., 2010). That study specified a comprehensive set of actionable practices that differentiated higher academic achievement among 303 middle grades schools in California. In doing so, the study provided a compelling and coherent account of…

Florida law requires that students achieve a passing score on the Grade 10 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) to qualify for a standard high school diploma (Section 1008.22(3)(c)5, Florida Statutes). Students who were administered the Grade 10 FCAT for the first time during the 2002 administrations or later must earn a developmental…

Results of Nevada students in grades 3, 6, 9, and 11 on tests of the Nevada Proficiency Examination Program are presented for the 1987-88 school year. Examinations prescribed for grades 3 and 6 in mathematics, reading, and language are the appropriate Stanford Achievement Tests. Tests mandated for grade 9 are the Science Research Associates'…