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Thesis/Dissertation Information
- Degree Disciplines:
- Education
Notes
- Abstract:
- In Florida, schools are assigned letter grades under the A+ Plan for Education. Historically, the schools with failing grades have been ones that have a high-poverty student population. Contradicting that trend, this study examined the characteristics of successful elementary schools that had high-poverty populations. Selected schools had 90% or greater student populations currently living in poverty, as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Success is defined as having a school letter grade of an A or B in 2009-2010 and having maintained an A or B for four out of the five immediate prior years. This was a sequential explanatory design study, using a mixed methods approach. The purpose of this multiple case study was to determine what characteristics contributed to the success of the high-poverty schools, and addressed the following questions: What characteristics contribute to the success, as measured by state letter grades, of high performing, high-poverty elementary schools in Palm Beach County? To what extent does the high-performing schools’ documentation show an alignment with the Seven Correlates of Effective Schools? What factors do teachers and principals in high performing schools identify as contributing to the success of their schools? To what extent do the perceptions of principals, teachers, students, and parents in high-performing schools align with the Seven Correlates of Effective Schools? The first phase of the study was a document analysis of the participating schools, including schools’ School Improvement Plans and School Effectiveness Questionnaires, determining the extent to which the school’s documentation aligned with the Seven Correlates of Effective Schools. The second phase included interviews with school principals and teacher focus groups that further explained the results from the earlier, quantitative analysis. The two data sets were then mixed to inform final interpretations. The data indicated that the participating schools identified four characteristics as being the most important in contributing to their schools’ success: An effective instructional leader, an emphasis on professional development, a family environment among the faculty/staff, and low teacher mobility.
- Thesis:
- Thesis (Ph.D.)--Barry University, 2012.
- Bibliography:
- Includes bibliographical references (leaves 144-148).
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Barry University
- Holding Location:
- Barry University Archives and Special Collections
- Rights Management:
- Copyright Kelli M. Roads. Permission granted to Barry University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
- Resource Identifier:
- LB2822.83.F6 R63 2012_RoadsKelli ( BU-Local )
- Classification:
- LB2822.83.F6 R63 2012 ( lcc )
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