School Competency Testing Reforms and Student Achievement: Exploring a National Perspective

1990 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda F. Winfield

This study investigates the relationship between school-level minimum competency testing (MCT) programs and student reading proficiency as measured by the 1983–1984 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Comparisons of student-level proficiency out-comes within race/ethnic groups (White, Black, and Hispanic) were made after adjusting for individual and school-level variables for the 4th-, 8th-, and 11th- grade NAEP samples. In general, results indicated a higher level of proficiency among students in Grades 8 and 11 attending schools with MCT programs compared with their counterparts in schools without such programs. No advantage of attending such schools was identified for students in Grade 4.

2020 ◽  
Vol 102 (3) ◽  
pp. 42-45
Author(s):  
Kristin E. Harbour ◽  
Evthokia Stephanie Saclarides

To support continuous professional development model in the teaching and learning of mathematics, many districts and schools have begun hiring elementary mathematics coaches and/or specialists (MCSs). However, limited large-scale empirical research exists that determines how the use of MCSs affect student learning and achievement. Kristin E. Harbour and Evthokia Stephanie Saclarides begin to fill in this gap by using data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress to explore the relationship between the presence and responsibilities of elementary MCSs and 4th-grade student achievement in mathematics. Based on their findings, they share practical implications for districts and administrators to consider.


2011 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Robert Charles Knoeppel ◽  
Curtis A. Brewer

Using Kentucky as a case study, the research described in this paper examines efforts to provide equality of educational opportunity.  Standards based educational reform has produced myriad data on student achievement that are used by educators, policy analysts, legislators, and researchers to discern progress.  This research makes use of multiple sources of data(CATS index, reading proficiency, math proficiency) in an attempt to more thoroughly consider progress in attempts to ameliorate gaps in student achievement that have been found to exist as related to local wealth.  Findings from the study show mixed results.  Although local wealth has decreased as a predictor of student achievement in reading, it is still a significant predictor of achievement in math.  Gaps are closing more rapidly at the elementary school level which suggests the need to study the process of education at the secondary level.  Lastly, student demographics, especially students qualifying for free and reduced lunch continue to be a significant predictor of student achievement.  We conclude that changes to state accountability systems that move the unit of analysis from the school to the student level offer the best opportunity to utilize emerging research methodologies that will enable practitioners and analysts to better analyze educational process.


2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 762-780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yusuf Ikbal Oldac ◽  
Yasar Kondakci

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between student achievement and a set of school-level variables, including distributed leadership, academic optimism, teacher collaboration and enabling school structure. The study was designed as correlational research. A Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) analysis was conducted with a data set collected from 23,053 students and 426 teachers from 40 randomly selected public schools in Turkey. The data were collected using previously developed scales and student achievement data from the Ministry of National Education. HLM results revealed that two dimensions of academic optimism – namely collective efficacy and trust in clients – and hindering bureaucracy significantly predicted between-school differences in student achievement. The tested HLM model explained 60% of the variation in student achievement across schools. The results revealed that student achievement is shaped by school-level variables that are tied to the structural and functional characteristics of schools in Turkey. However, these school characteristics are rooted in the societal structures and cultural characteristics of the country. Hence, it is concluded that a reinterpretation of common school-level variables used to predict student achievement in the contexts of different countries is necessary.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 513-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth Gershenson ◽  
Erdal Tekin

Community traumatic events such as mass shootings, terrorist attacks, and natural disasters have the potential to disrupt student learning. For example, these events can reduce instructional time by causing teacher and student absences, school closures, and disturbances to classroom and home routines. This paper uses a quasi-experimental research design to identify the effects of the 2002 “Beltway Sniper” attacks on student achievement in Virginia's public elementary schools. To identify the causal impact of these events, the empirical analysis uses a difference-in-differences strategy that exploits geographic variation in schools’ proximity to the attacks. The main results indicate that the attacks significantly reduced school-level proficiency rates in schools within five miles of an attack. Evidence of a causal effect is most robust for math proficiency rates in the third and fifth grades, and third-grade reading proficiency, suggesting that the shootings caused a decline in school proficiency rates of about 2 to 5 percent. Particularly concerning from an equity standpoint, these effects appear to be entirely driven by achievement declines in schools that serve higher proportions of racial minority and socioeconomically disadvantaged students. Finally, results from supplementary analyses suggest these deleterious effects faded out in subsequent years.


2006 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon L. Nichols ◽  
Gene V Glass ◽  
David C. Berliner

This study examined the relationship between high-stakes testing pressure and student achievement across 25 states. Standardized portfolios were created for each study state. Each portfolio contained a range of documents that told the “story” of accountability implementation and impact in that state. Using the “law of comparative judgments,” over 300 graduate-level education students reviewed one pair of portfolios and made independent evaluations as to which of the two states’ portfolios reflected a greater degree of accountability pressure. Participants’ judgments yielded a matrix that was converted into a single rating system that arranged all 25 states on a continuum of accountability “pressure” from high to low. Using this accountability pressure rating we conducted a series of regression and correlation analyses. We found no relationship between earlier pressure and later cohort achievement for math at the fourth- and eighth-grade levels on the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests. Further, no relationship was found between testing pressure and reading achievement on the National Assessment of Education Progress tests at any grade level or for any ethnic student subgroup. Data do suggest, however, that a case could be made for a causal relationship between high-stakes testing pressure and subsequent achievement on the national assessment tests—but only for fourth grade, non-cohort achievement and for some ethnic subgroups. Implications and directions for future studies are discussed.


2010 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob M Marszalek ◽  
Arthur L Odom ◽  
Steven M. LaNasa ◽  
Susan A. Adler

Recent studies of the relationship between teacher preparation pathways and student achievement have resulted in similar statistics but contradictory conclusions. These studies as a group have several limits: they sometimes focus on student-level indicators when many policy decisions are made with indicators at the school-level or above, are limited to specific urban locations or grade levels, or neglect the potential influence of building type, as defined as the grade-levels serviced. Using statewide data from the 2004-2005 school year, we examined the relationships between school-level indicators of student achievement on nationally-normed tests and proportions of alternatively certified teachers, while controlling for building type and other relevant covariates. Our findings indicate that the relationship between teacher preparation and student achievement at the school level depends on whether the building mixes multiple grade levels (e.g., elementary and middle). The implications of Missouri's policy change for research and school improvement are discussed with respect to the current high-stakes testing environment.  


2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cholida Khusnul Chotimah

ABSTRAKHasil belajar (prestasi belajar) merupakan perubahan perilaku yang diperoleh seseorang setelah mengalami aktivitas belajar. Perolehan aspek-aspek perubahan perilaku tersebut tergantung pada apa yang dipelajari oleh seseorang. Berhasil atau tidaknya seseorang untuk belajar disebabkan beberapa faktor yang mempengaruhi dalam pencapaian hasil belajar (prestasi belajar) yaitu berasal dari dalam diri orang yang belajar dan ada pula yang dari luar dirinya. Banyak faktor yang mempengaruhinya, diantaranya adalah motivasi dan minat. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui hubungan motivasi dan minat masuk Program Studi D  III Kebidanan dengan prestasi belajar mahasiswa  STIKES Insan Cendekia Husada Bojonegoro. Jenis penelitian ini adalah analitik korelasi. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan cross sectional. Populasi dalam penelitian ini adalah semua mahasiswa Program Studi D III Kebidanan STIKES Insan Cendekia Husada Bojonegoro sebanyak 39 mahasiswa dengan  teknik total sampling dengan jumlah sampel 39. Penelitian ini menggunakan instrumen berupa kuesioner. Analisis hubungan variabel dilakukan dengan menggunakan Yates Correction. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa ada hubungan antara motivasi masuk Program Studi D III Kebidanan dengan prestasi belajar mahasiswa           (ρ =0,027) dan ada hubungan antara minat masuk Program Studi D III Kebidanan dengan prestasi belajar mahasiswa (ρ =0,044). Saran untuk Program Studi D III Kebidanan STIKES Insan Cendekia Husada Bojonegoro agar meningkatkan prestasi belajar mahasiswa Prodi D III kebidanan STIKES Insan Cendekia Husada Bojonegoro dengan cara dosen atau pembimbing akademik menciptakan kondisi pembelajaran yang menarik, sarana prasarana yang menunjang, hubungan antara dosen dan mahasiswa yang baik, sehingga mahasiswa terdorong untuk butuh dan terus belajar dan melakukan pemantauan dan pendekatan lebih dalam terhadap mahasiswa tentang tujuan mereka untuk masuk di Program Studi D III Kebidanan. Kata Kunci : Motivasi, minat, prestasi belajar  ABSTRACT      Results of learning (learning achievement) is obtained by a person's behavior changes after experiencing learning activities. Acquisition aspects of the behavior change depending on what is learned by someone. Success or failure of someone to learn due to several factors that affect the achievement of learning outcomes (learning achievement) that comes from within the person who studied and some are from outside himself. Many factors influence it, such as motivation and interest. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of motivation and interest in D III Midwifery Studies Program with student achievement STIKES Insan Scholar Husada Bojonegoro. This type of research is analytic correlation. This study used cross sectional approach. The population in this study were all students of the D III Midwifery STIKES Insan Husada Bojonegoro Scholar at least 39 students with a total sampling with a sample of 39. This study used a questionnaire instrument. Variable correlation analysis done using Yates Correction. Results of this study indicate that there is a relationship between motivation incoming D III Midwifery Studies Program with student achievement (ρ = 0.027) and there is a correlation between interest in D III Midwifery Studies Program with student achievement (ρ = 0.044). Suggestions for Study Program D III Midwifery STIKES Insan Scholar Husada Bojonegoro in order to increase student achievement Prodi DIII midwifery personnel STIKES Scholar Husada Bojonegoro by way of a professor or academic supervisor creates an attractive learning conditions, infrastructure that support, the relationship between faculty and students good , so that students are encouraged to take and continue to learn and perform monitoring and deeper approach to the students about their goals for entry in the D III Midwifery Studies Program. Key Words : Motivation, interests, academic achievement


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8184
Author(s):  
Chia-Ming Chang ◽  
Huey-Hong Hsieh ◽  
Yu-Hui Chou ◽  
Hsiu-Chin Huang

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between a principal’s transformational leadership and creative teaching behavior of physical education teachers at junior and senior high schools in Taiwan (at the individual level) and the cross-level effect on creative teaching behaviors of physical education teachers in an innovative school climate (at the school level) and the moderator effect of an innovative school climate on the relationship between a principal’s transformational leadership and creative teaching behaviors of physical education teachers. A total of 800 questionnaires were distributed to physical education teachers at 59 junior and senior high schools and 477 valid surveys were collected for data analysis. Using hierarchical linear modeling, we found that at the individual level, a principal’s transformational leadership has a positive impact on creative teaching behaviors of physical education teachers, and at the school level, an innovative school climate has a positive impact on creative teaching behaviors (at the person level) of physical education teachers. An innovative school climate at the school level has no moderating effects on the relationship between a principal’s transformational leadership and creative teaching behaviors of physical education teachers. This study provides implications and applications for cross-level studies, and builds the foundation for future multilevel research.


Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 68
Author(s):  
Stéphanie Bellocchi ◽  
Virginie Leclercq

Many studies have investigated the visual magnocellular system functioning in dyslexia. However, very little is known on the relationship between the visual magnocellular system functioning and reading abilities in typical developing readers. In this study, we aimed at studying this relationship and more specifically the moderation effect of educational stage on this link. We thus tested 82 French typical developing readers (40 beginning readers—Grade 1 and 42 advanced readers—Grade 5) with reading tests and a coherent dot motion task measuring the visual magnocellular functioning. Results indicate positive correlations between visual magnocellular functioning and reading for beginning readers but not for advanced readers. Moreover, moderation analyses confirm that reading proficiency moderates the relationship between magnocellular system functioning and reading outcomes. We concluded that the relationship between visual magnocellular pathway functioning and reading abilities in typical developing readers could depend on reading proficiency.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document