Background: School safety and quality affect student learning and success. This study examined the effects of a comprehensive elementary school-wide social-emotional and character education program, Positive Action, on teacher, parent, and student perceptions of school safety and quality utilizing a matched-pair, cluster-randomized, controlled…

Students in science and engineering (S&E) are preparing for careers in fields where international partnerships are increasingly important to advancing knowledge and discoveries. It has been over a decade since the National Science Board (NSB) highlighted the importance of international collaboration and called for increased government…

The purpose of this study is to understand the relationship between quality social support networks developed through high quality afterschool programming and achievement amongst middle school and high school aged youth. This study seeks to develop a deeper understanding of how quality after-school programs influence a youth's developmental…

A school-family-community partnership to improve student achievement was examined at a comprehensive high school located in a low income urban community in Long Island City, New York. In this causal comparative analyses study, the researcher examines the effect of a school-family-community partnership on the educational outcomes of economically…

This applied dissertation was designed to evaluate improving the reading performance of fifth-grade students through an afterschool reading program to determine whether it was effective in teaching Native American and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). This study compared the reading performance of fifth-grade students who struggle…

Although several school districts in a southern US state use a three-tiered Response to Intervention (RtI) model to supplemental core reading instruction and positively impact student achievement, the model appears to have had nominal impact. The theoretical foundation for this study is anchored in a constructivist approach to education. Three…

In 2002/03, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools initiated a broad program of accelerating entry into algebra coursework. The proportion of moderately-performing students taking 8th grade algebra increased from less than half to nearly 90%, then reverted to baseline levels, in the span of just six age cohorts. We use this policy-induced variation to…

Exploiting a statewide cutoff point on the placement examination used to assign students to remedial courses in Tennessee, this study employs a regression discontinuity research design to provide causal estimates of the effects on student outcomes of recently redesigned remedial courses at three Tennessee colleges. Moreover, using data on student…

Improving the success of academically underprepared students who are in need of developmental (or remedial) education is a key challenge facing community colleges today. Many of these students enter college with little awareness of these institutions' expectations or a clear model for how to make effective decisions about their academic careers.…

In 2010, the declining birth rate among teenagers in the United States reached an historic low, and since 1991, the rate has declined 44 percent. Though this trend is promising, 372,252 teens nevertheless became mothers in 2010. That same year, 41 percent of all births were to unmarried women. Moreover, in 2010, 15 percent of the U.S. population…

Disadvantages faced by Hispanic children in the U.S., compared to non-Hispanic Whites, have been widely reported. Economic differences account for some of the gaps, but the social isolation of Hispanic families also serves as a barrier to children's success. Whereas Hispanic families tend to have strong kinship networks, their social ties often do…

The School Site Visits study is part of the fifth series of annual reports produced by the School Choice Demonstration Project (SCDP). It describes some of the major challenges experienced and common practices demonstrated by thirteen (13) K-12 schools participating in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP). During the 2010-11 school year,…

As the only federal funding stream that provides dedicated funds for afterschool programs across the country, the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) initiative plays an important role in supporting the innovation that takes place in afterschool programs. Social innovation has been defined as "a novel solution to a social…

As part of the evaluation of the Strategic School Funding for Results (SSFR) project, American Institutes for Research (AIR) conducted surveys of principals, teachers, and members of School Site Councils (SSCs) to gather information on the attitudes and perspectives regarding the implementation of key components of the SSFR model in Twin Rivers…

Educators are increasingly concerned about the low level of mathematics performance of U.S. students on the TIMSS and other international assessments of mathematics (National Mathematics Advisory Panel, 2008) as well as their insufficient preparation for mathematics standards, such as the Common Core State Standards. Students from low-income and…