Your search found 15 results.

Descriptors:
Grade Repetition; School Holding Power; Evidence; Testing; Elementary School Students; Standardized Tests; Urban Youth; Grouping (Instructional Purposes); School Districts; Comparative Analysis; Academic Achievement; Sampling; Evaluation; Academic Failure; Urban Schools; Achievement Gap; Grade 2; Grade 3; Grade 4; Outcomes of Education; Predictor Variables; Reading Achievement; Regression (Statistics); Prediction; Effect Size; Mathematics Achievement; Statistical Significance

Abstract:
This study contributes a novel perspective on grade retention by empirically examining how classroom composition relates to the standardized-testing performance of grade-retained students in their post-retained years. This evaluation employed a sample of entire cohorts of urban elementary school children in the Philadelphia School District over 6 years of observations. For the approximate 21% of students retained in the sample, the results demonstrate that as retained students are placed in classrooms with higher average and greater standard deviation in peer ability, they tend to achieve lower testing outcomes in their post-retention years compared to their continuously promoted counterparts. Further investigation also shows that these relationships are not solely driven by having low levels of achievement. Implications are discussed. (Contains 6 tables and 4 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Minority Group Students; High School Students; Sexual Orientation; Academic Achievement; Grade Point Average; Religion; Gender Differences; Multiple Regression Analysis

Abstract:
Using nationally representative transcript data, this study is the first to include a discussion of religiosity in the context of sexual-minority students' academic achievement. This study examines the issue in three capacities: first, by comparing school success of sexual-minority youth to a non-sexual-minority reference group; second, by examining multiple facets of religiosity--including personal, parental, and peer factors--and their associations with the schooling success of sexual-minority youth and their heterosexual counterparts; and third, by exploring these issues across the three definitions of sexual-minority youth for both genders. The results indicate that whereas non-sexual-minority females with higher personal, parental, and peer religiosity tend to have higher grade-point averages (GPAs), sexual-minority males' school success is unrelated to the religiosity of their environments. (Contains 3 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Academic Achievement; Reading Achievement; Special Education; Behavior Problems; Elementary Schools; Elementary School Students; Urban Schools; Neighborhoods; Institutional Environment; Student Behavior; Educational Quality; School Activities; School Personnel; School Districts; Elementary School Teachers; Classrooms; Predictor Variables; Mathematics Achievement; Scores; Attendance Patterns; Principals; Budgets; Discipline; School Nurses; Small Schools

Abstract:
Background/Context: This article addresses which school-level factors contribute to school quality. Previous research has focused on assessing the effects of school-level variables on student-level quality (e.g., achievement). However, the field has been limited in not evaluating the effects of school-level factors directly on measured school-level quality. This present study takes this next step. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of the Study: The purpose of this study is to determine which school-level factors across three categories--schoolwide programs, school-level personnel, and institutional environment--are significant predictors of school quality. Population/Participants/Subjects: Two data sets from the School District of Philadelphia are employed. The first data set is longitudinal and comprises elementary school student data linked to teachers, classrooms, and neighborhoods. The second data set, linked to the first by way of school and year data, is longitudinal and comprises school-level variables for all elementary schools within the district over 3 years. Research Design: This investigation first derives four quantifiable measures of school quality based on the student- and classroom-level data set. These measures are based on student reading achievement scores, math achievement scores, yearly attendance, and behavior grades. In the main analyses, this study separately tests each measure of quality in an empirical model that relates school-level inputs to school-level outputs. Each model does so while holding constant student, teacher, classroom, and neighborhood covariates as well as principal and school budget data. Findings: Looking across all four measures of school quality, the study finds school quality to be higher in schools with music and language programs, more disciplinary resources per student with a behavior problem and more special education resources per special education student, having a school nurse, being a smaller sized campus, and being K-5 (versus K-8). Although there is some consistency in the predictors of school quality, this research also indicates that differentiating between all four measures of quality is critical: School-level factors provide distinct outcomes depending on the measure of school quality itself. Conclusions: By identifying those school-level factors that directly relate school quality to its programs, personnel, and environment, this study has differentiated between the particular institutional resources of urban elementary schools that can potentially influence schooling experiences, above and beyond student or classroom factors. As such, this study can be used to more effectively identify those significant institutional challenges faced by urban schools, how these challenges are actualized, and, moreover, the types and levels of resources necessary to enhance school quality. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
State Programs; State Departments of Education; Decision Making; Data; Information Utilization; Educational Policy; Educational Practices; Local Issues; Educational Finance; Politics of Education; Human Resources

Abstract:
This report documents how four state education agencies are supporting local data-driven decisionmaking through their policies, practices, and programs for creating data systems, improving data access and use, and building district and school capacity to use data. Responding to District of Columbia Office of State Superintendent of Education and Pennsylvania Department of Education requests, this report describes how Arkansas, Florida, Texas, and Virginia are supporting local data-driven decisionmaking. Statewide policies, practices, and programs for creating data systems, improving access to data, and building district and school capacity to use the data are documented. [For the full report, see ED526134.] Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Data; Decision Making; Educational Policy; Educational Practices; State Departments of Education; Educational Finance; Politics of Education; Human Resources; Information Utilization; Local Issues; State Programs

Abstract:
This report documents how four state education agencies are supporting local data-driven decisionmaking through their policies, practices, and programs for creating data systems, improving data access and use, and building district and school capacity to use data. Specifically, this report, responding to District of Columbia Office of State Superintendent of Education and Pennsylvania Department of Education requests, describes how Arkansas, Florida, Texas, and Virginia are supporting local data-driven decisionmaking. Two questions guide this study: (1) What policies or practices in Arkansas, Florida, Texas, and Virginia support local use of data for education purposes; and (2) How do Arkansas, Florida, Texas, and Virginia support local use of data in selected state education agency-administered programs? This study found that the four states have implemented a range of policies and practices in all three categories of the study's analytical framework: (1) Creating, expanding, and linking data systems. The four states have created and built state repositories and are expanding the types of data collected and warehoused to better equip districts and schools to rigorously assess whether students, schools, and districts are meeting state college readiness requirements and career readiness expectations. (2) Ensuring data access and use. The four states have implemented policies and practices to help local educators and administrators access, understand, and use data effectively. In doing so, they are making data and analyses timely, readily available, and easy to understand for parents, educators, and policymakers. (3) Building district and school capacity to use data. The four states have focused on strengthening local human resource capability, mainly through partnerships and professional development. By building local capacity to access and analyze data stored in state longitudinal data systems, the states intend to help local policymakers and practitioners use data inform key policy questions on performance and improvement. In addition to state policies, the study also identified five state programs supporting district and school use of data (one in Florida, two in Texas, and two in Virginia). Appended are: (1) Summaries of studies with strong findings on state education agency support for local data-driven decisionmaking; and (2) Study methods. (Contains 3 boxes, 2 figures, 3 tables, and 7 notes.) [For the Summary Report, see ED526135] Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Academic Achievement; Student Records; Achievement Tests; Standardized Tests; Neighborhoods; Peer Influence; Mathematics Achievement; Reading Achievement; Urban Schools; Elementary Schools; Elementary School Students; Cohort Analysis; Longitudinal Studies; Test Results; Attendance; Context Effect

Abstract:
Background/Context: This article addresses the classroom contextual effects of absences on student achievement. Previous research on peer effects has predominantly focused on peer socioeconomic status or classroom academic ability and its effects on classmates. However, the field has been limited by not discerning the individual-level academic effects of being in classrooms with absent peers. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of the Study: The purpose of this study is to determine the peer effects of absent students in urban elementary school classrooms. Population/Participants/Subjects: The data set is longitudinal and comprises entire populations of five elementary school cohorts within the School District of Philadelphia, for a total of 33,420 student observations. Individual student records were linked to teacher and classroom data and to census block neighborhood information. Research Design: To examine the educational effects of absent peers, this study employed an empirical specification of the education production function. The dependent variables were Stanford Achievement Test Ninth Edition (SAT9) reading and math scores. Findings: Models differentiated between unexcused and total absence measures and indicated that the peer effect of absences was driven by negative effects associated with classroom rates of unexcused absences rather with rates of total absences. These findings were obtained after controlling for student, neighborhood, teacher, and classroom characteristics. Conclusions/Recommendations: Not only are absences detrimental to the absentee, but they also have a pervasive effect on the achievement of other students in the classroom. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Urban Schools; Siblings; Standardized Tests; Academic Achievement; Family Environment; Attendance Patterns; Family Influence; Longitudinal Studies; Statistical Significance; Correlation; Elementary School Students; Racial Differences; Gender Differences; At Risk Students; Socioeconomic Status

Abstract:
There is evidence suggesting that missing school negatively relates to academic achievement. However, it is a difficult task to derive unbiased empirical estimates of absences in their influence on performance. One particular challenge arises from the unobserved heterogeneity in the family environment, which may relate to both absence behavior and school performance. This article provides the first analysis aimed at reducing the family-specific omitted variable bias pertaining to measures of absences in their influence on standardized testing achievement. It does so by employing a model of family fixed effects on a longitudinal sample of siblings within the same household in a large urban school district over six years of observations. The results indicate a stronger, statistically significant negative relationship between absences and achievement than what would have been suggested otherwise. Implications are discussed. (Contains 7 notes and 7 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Traditional Schools; Charter Schools; School Choice; School Personnel; Public Education; Principals; Parents; Administrator Attitudes; Parent Attitudes; Teacher Attitudes; Teacher Surveys; Governance; Context Effect; Teacher Effectiveness; Faculty Mobility; Teachers; Parent Participation; School Policy; Models; Institutional Autonomy; Accountability; Academic Achievement; School Effectiveness

Abstract:
Hurricane Katrina set the stage for a transformation of public education in New Orleans, replacing the city's existing school system with a decentralized choice-based system of both charter and district-run schools. Using principal, teacher, and parent surveys administered three years after Katrina, this study examined schools' governance and operations, educational contexts, educator quality and mobility, and parental choice and involvement. The authors note that questions still remain about the variation in schools' policies and practices in the wake of the reform and about parents' experiences in an environment of school choice. Appended are: (1) Statistical Models Used in the Analyses; (2) 2009 RAND Survey of New Orleans Principals; (3) 2009 RAND Survey of New Orleans Teachers; and (4) 2009 RAND Survey of New Orleans Parents. Individual chapters contain footnotes. (Contains 8 figures and 45 tables.) [This work was prepared for the Scott S. Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives at Tulane University.] Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
School Restructuring; Elementary Secondary Education; Federal Legislation; Educational Change; Research Reports; Position Papers; Literature Reviews; Government Role; State Federal Aid; Responsibility; Educational Improvement; Educational Policy; Political Influences; Federal Programs; State Programs; Change Strategies; Educational Legislation; Program Effectiveness

Abstract:
U.S. educators and policymakers are concerned about the poor performance of the public schools, particularly schools that serve students from low-income families. Although education is primarily a state function, the federal government also has a longstanding interest in improving education for disadvantaged students, and it targets funding to this group. Federal involvement in states' provision of education has grown since the passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in 1965, and the 2002 reauthorization of ESEA, known as No Child Left Behind, represented a significant increase in federal intervention, particularly in terms of school improvement. ESEA could be reauthorized in 2011, and there is much discussion about the most-effective way to balance federal and state responsibilities for improving schools and how best to frame federal policy to promote this goal. This report reviews the literature on the state and federal roles in education, examines the effectiveness of states' ongoing school-improvement efforts, and considers options for framing future federal guidance and support of state school-reform efforts. Three general conclusions stand out: (1) the federal government has multiple policy alternatives from which to choose, and reauthorized ESEA legislation need not merely replicate approaches from the past; (2) the challenge that educators and policymakers face at present involves "developing" rather than replicating successful strategies to improve low-performing schools; (3) states vary tremendously in terms of their strategies and capacity to improve low-performing schools. Consequently, the optimal federal-state relationship would entail flexibility and incorporate a range of policy levers. Each chapter contains footnotes. A bibliography is included. (Contains 1 table.) [This work was prepared for the Sandler Foundation.] Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Context Effect; Private Financial Support; Urban Education; Educational Finance; Institutional Characteristics; School Location; Neighborhoods

Abstract:
This article contributes new research to the literature on the relationship between institutional-level factors and financial generosity. In the framework of the existing research on how school-level attributes correspond to donor behavior, no study has examined the relationship between the institutional neighborhood context and private giving. The purpose of this article is to examine this relationship. Specifically, this article has assessed the degree to which school urbanicity and other neighborhood contextual factors are related to alumni, corporate and foundation generosity. Controlling for commonly employed institutional predictors, such as school endowment, as well as holding constant the state, year and unique state-year economic environment over the period 1998-2008, the results have pointed toward significant correlations between a university's neighborhood context and private donations. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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