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Student Discipline Problems and the Transition From Elementary to Middle School

Theriot, M. T., Dupper, D. R. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 01:16:32 PST

The transition from elementary to middle school is difficult for many students. However, the association between such transitions and changes in the types and frequencies of student discipline problems has not been adequately investigated. Using data from two school years, infractions and dispositions for all 5th-grade students (N = 4,196) from one school district are followed from the final year of elementary school through the first year of middle school. Results show a substantial increase in reported student discipline problems and the use of inschool suspension in middle school. This increase is most dramatic for subjectively defined infractions like "class disturbance" and "failure to follow rules" compared to more concrete, objective infractions. Implications for educators and school administrators are discussed.

Examining the Socio-Cultural Dimension of Schooling in a Racially Integrated School

Huidor, O., Cooper, R. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:08:41 PDT

This article examines the experiences of 20 students of color who voluntarily attend a racially integrated school. The study draws from the Socio-Cultural dimension of schooling as a framework to understand how the students of color fared on a social, cultural, and environmental level within a predominantly White school. Through a questionnaire, African American and Latina/o students discussed the conditions and perceptions of their local schools, their experiences at the new school site, and the value of navigating the educational opportunities offered by participating in a voluntary integration program. Furthermore, based on the findings that emerged from this study, recommendations with implications for policy are discussed.

Educators' Perspectives on Culturally Relevant Programs for Academic Success: The American Excellence Association

DeCuir-Gunby, J. T., Taliaferro, J. D., Greenfield, D. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:08:41 PDT

This study examines educators’ perspectives of the American Excellence Association (AEA). Using interviews with 16 educators (teachers, counselors, and principals) from 10 high schools, we explored their perceptions regarding AEA’s impact on student participants as well as the potential for this type of culturally relevant programming for closing the achievement gap in their respective schools. Results of the analysis suggest that the educators perceive that the AEA fosters an achievement culture and provides participants with a genuine sense of ownership, creating a feeling of belonging and cultural competence, and helping develop critical consciousness through community service. Recommendations are made regarding the use of AEA as a model initiative for transforming the educational experiences of students of color.

Measuring Multi-Ethnic Desegregation

Straus, R. M. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:08:41 PDT

This article proposes a new method for measuring school desegregation in multiracial districts, and uses the new method to measure the desegregation effects of magnet schools in Los Angeles. Rather than measuring desegregation between only two groups at a time, I compute the index of interracial exposure for Blacks, Whites, Latinos, and Asians. Each of these figures is then combined to form a composite desegregation score. I find that magnet schools in Los Angeles are less segregated than nonmagnet schools, but that Whites and Asians are the most segregated groups and have become more segregated over time.

New Orleans's Unique School Reform Effort and Its Potential Implications for Special Education

Morse, T. E. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:08:40 PDT

Four years following the decimation of the New Orleans Public Schools by Hurricane Katrina the city has been described as the center of a unique urban public school reform effort. This effort is a combination of events that transpired just before the storm and those that have occurred as a result of it. In particular some claim that the emerging public school configuration seeks to be one that is comprised entirely of charter schools, thereby allowing public schools in New Orleans to become a "system of schools" as opposed to a traditional school system. While a fundamental operating principle of charter schools is increased student academic achievement in exchange for school autonomy and innovative practices, an additional responsibility of the charter schools in New Orleans is identical to that of their counterpart traditional public schools: the provision of special education services in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act. Accordingly, this article presents an overview of the seminal reform events that have occurred to date and discusses the potential implications of this reform effort with respect to the provision of special education services.

Are the "Best" Teachers in the "Neediest" Schools? An Urban Intradistrict Equity Inquiry

De Luca, B. M., Takano, K., Hinshaw, S. A., Raisch, C. D. — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:35:51 PDT

The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between distribution of teacher resources and student need. The effort was to determine if the "best" teachers are teaching the "neediest" students in the elementary schools in the "Big 8" urban school districts in Ohio as equity principles would mandate. Using Pearson correlation analysis, we investigated the relationship between average teacher salary (used to measure teacher quality) and percent of disadvantaged students as well as level of student achievement (both measures of student need) for all public elementary schools in each of the eight districts. In general, the findings show that as the percent of disadvantaged students increased, average teacher salary decreased for the statistically significant relationships. Furthermore, as student achievement increased, average teacher salary increased. Both sets of findings suggest that the "best" teachers are not teaching the "neediest" students.

Full-Day, Half-Day, and No Preschool: Effects on Urban Children's First Grade Reading Achievement

Valenti, J. E., Tracey, D. H. — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 23:48:24 PDT

1. This study examined the relationships between students’ attendance at full-day, half-day, or no preschool and first grade reading achievement. 214 urban, low SES public first grade students of mixed ethnicities were studied. Using the students’ Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA2) scores (Beaver, 2006), results indicated that by the middle of first grade students who completed one year of full-day preschool significantly outperformed students who did not attend preschool. Students who completed one year of full-day preschool also outperformed students who completed half-day preschool, although not to a significant degree. Additionally, students who completed half-day preschool outperformed students who did not attend preschool, although not to a significant degree. The results further showed that significant differences between the groups were not apparent at the start of first grade, demonstrating that preschool attendance may not show immediate, positive benefits.

Social Capital and Educational Organizing in Low Income, Minority, and New Immigrant Communities: Can the University Strengthen Community Organizations?

Krasner, M. A., Pierre-Louis, F. — Tue, 05 May 2009 23:06:40 PDT

A college-based program that combines training, direct support, and technical assistance was found to produce significant gains in bonding and bridging social capital and key political attributes among low-income, minority, and immigrant groups organizing to enhance their power to influence public school politics and policies in New York City.

Creating and Sustaining Successful Mixed-Income Communities: Conceptualizing the Role of Schools

Joseph, M., Feldman, J. — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 11:25:08 PST

This article examines the theory and evidence behind the increased policy and scholarly interest in the role that schools might play in promoting neighborhood revitalization, focuses on the extent to which schools might be a key component in the growing efforts across the country to address urban poverty by creating and sustaining mixed-income neighborhoods, identifies five channels through which investment in high-quality public schools might help facilitate the types of neighborhood- and individual-level outcomes sought through mixed-income development, explores the theoretical arguments behind these pathways, and draws on research to assess the potential value of each. The article concludes that schools can play unique roles as amenities, local resources, and forums for interaction and collective action, but leveraging that potential value for the benefit of everyone, including those in poverty, will require impeding real estate market forces and surmounting differences in parental school expectations and engagement associated with socioeconomic status.