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…

This study was relational, non-experimental, explanatory, and cross-sectional in nature, using quantitative methods to explain the influence of student, staff, and school independent variables on 6th, 7th , and 8th grade student achievement in both Language Arts and Mathematics on the 2011 NJ ASK. The variable of interest was the length of the…

According to the U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics, students in the United States routinely perform poorly on international assessments. This study was focused specifically on the problem of the decrease in the number of middle school students meeting the requirements for one state's standardized tests for…

Vocational and Technical Education (VTE) at the secondary-school level has undergone transformation, especially in the last 25 to 30 years brought about by the implementation of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1984. Earlier, the VTE education focus was to prepare students for entry-level jobs that did not require a…

The purpose of the current study was to identify the extent to which learning styles influence the educational process as well as the outcome of elementary-age students in terms of academic achievement. This study examined potential relationships between the degree of match (as determined by comparing learning style preferences of students with…

The alignment of instruction with the content of standards and assessments is the key mediating variable separating the policy of standards-based reform (SBR) from the outcome of improved student achievement. Few studies have investigated SBR's effects on instructional alignment, and most have serious methodological limitations. This research uses…

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between school decline and changes in school demographics. Using a population of 981 (N = 981) elementary schools, the authors identified samples of declining schools: Relational Decline (n = 510), Absolute Decline (n = 217), and Crossing the Line (n = 165). Latent growth models assessed…

The purpose of this study was to examine the policy implications allowing administrators to exempt a student from required arts instruction if the student obtained unsatisfactory scores on the high-stake state mandated tests in English and mathematics. This study examined English language arts and math test scores for 37,222 eighth grade students…

The purpose of this study was to examine the policy implications allowing administrators to exempt a student from required arts instruction if the student obtained unsatisfactory scores on the high-stake state mandated tests in English and mathematics. This study examined English language arts and math test scores for 37,222 eighth grade students…

In order to examine effective behaviors and efficacy, this study examined the relationships between the self-reflection of effective practices by principals and teachers, as assessed by self-efficacy scales, and student achievement, as evaluated by the state assessment program. Other studies determined that effective behaviors preceded and…

This study explored possible predictors of failure to pass state proficiencies in English/Language Arts and Mathematics by more than 6,000 Indiana students in 2000-2002. Data explored included early test results, school attendance, grade point averages, gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Predictors included early poor achievement,…

This study contributes to the field by identifying a broad range of traditional and newer middle grade policies and practices, and determining in California which of these differentiate higher- from lower-performing schools serving similar student populations, with performance measured by the state's standards-based tests. Based on a sample of 303…

In the 2008-09 school year researchers from EdSource and Stanford University conducted a large-scale study of 303 middle grades schools in California. The team surveyed 303 principals, 3,752 English Language Arts (ELA) and math teachers in grades 6-8, and 157 superintendents of the districts and charter management organizations that oversee the…