Characteristics of High Reading Achievement Among African-American Students in Similar Schools

Characteristics of High Reading Achievement Among African-American Students in Similar Schools

Author: Lafaye V. Bland

Publisher:

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 89

ISBN-13:

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This study examined teachers' and students perceptions' of factors that influence high reading achievement among African American students. Two elementary schools from southeastern Pennsylvania in the same school district participated in the study. The study analyzed the responses of two elementary reading teachers and thirty-four students. Four instruments were utilized in gathering data for this study: (a) the Teacher Likert Survey and the Teacher Interview provided data about teachers' perception of factors that influence reading achievement, (b) the Student Questionnaire provided data about the students' perception of the factors that influence reading achievement, and (c) Classroom Observation provided data that compared the teaching strategies and methods of each teacher that influenced students to achieve in reading. Responses to the instruments indicated that self-concept, home environment, teacher/student relationship, and teacher expectation and motivation represented the factors that influence the achievement of students in reading. The data revealed that if students possess a high level of self-esteem, then they would have similar perceptions concerning their schoolwork. Although some research has indicated that the socio-economic status of a student is a strong predictor of student achievement, this study revealed that in spite of the economic status of a student certain factors such as the student's self-concept, his or her home environment, and the teacher's instructional strategies are also key factors in predicting student achievement.


The Academic Achievement of African-American Students in Orange County Public High Schools

The Academic Achievement of African-American Students in Orange County Public High Schools

Author: Athena A. Adams

Publisher:

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 121

ISBN-13:

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The study was conducted to determine the disparity between the academic achievement of African American students and the academic achievement of white American students in the state of Florida, and more specifically, in five high schools in Orange County Public Schools. The term "African American" included all students who self-identified as that race upon enrollment into an Orange County public school. The study included male and female African American students from different socio-economic levels. The term "differences in academic achievement" is most commonly referred to as "achievement gap." Additionally, this study sought to determine the relationship, if any, in the achievement of African American students' academic achievement in five high schools in Orange County Public Schools, Orlando, Florida. In addition, the purpose was to identify differences in achievement level based upon the school attended, gender, socio-economic levels, class size, and qualifications of the teachers. The methods and procedures used to determine if there was an achievement gap between African-American and white American high school students was to review: (a) gain in African-American students on the reading portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, from the 2003-2004 administration to the 2004-2005 administration in five Orange County public high schools, (b) difference between African-American students' 2004-2005 reading portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test percentage at proficient (level 3 and above) and white American students in five public high schools in Orange, (c) the relationship between African-American students' 2004-2005 reading portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test percent at proficient (level 3 and above) and the school poverty rate in all public high schools in Orange County, (d) the characteristics of schools making gains in reading. There were four conclusions based on the review of literature, as well as the data collected from the five high schools. Under the provision and penalties attached to the No Child Left Behind legislation, there was a noticeable gap in achievement between African-American students and their white American counterparts in each of the examined schools over a two year time period. In schools with a greater percentage of white students, African-American students, overall, performed at a higher level. The achievement gap was narrower and the percent at proficient and above was higher for all students in schools where white students represented a greater percentage of the students. In schools with a lower percentage of students on free and/or reduced lunch, the percent of students reading at proficient or above was higher and the achievement gap was less between African-American students and their white counterparts. Furthermore, the data indicated that as the percent of students on free and reduced lunch at a given school increases, the rate of those reading at proficient and above for African-American students was lower. In schools with a wide array of diversity, students overall have higher achievement scores. Based on the data in the study, the school with the highest rate of student proficient and above, was the school with the greatest diversity population of students.


Young, Gifted, and Black

Young, Gifted, and Black

Author: Theresa Perry

Publisher: Beacon Press

Published: 2004-02-02

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13: 9780807031056

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“An important and powerful book” that radically reframes the debates swirling around the academic achievement of African-American students (Boston Review) “The solutions offered by each essay are creative, inspirational, and good old common sense." —Los Angeles Times In 3 separate but allied essays, African-American scholars Theresa Perry, Claude Steele, and Asa Hilliard examine the alleged ‘achievement gap’ between Black and white students. Each author addresses how the unique social and cultural position Black students occupy—in a society which often devalues and stereotypes African-American identity—fundamentally shapes students’ experience of school and sets up unique obstacles. Young, Gifted and Black provides an understanding of how these forces work, opening the door to practical, powerful methods for promoting high achievement at all levels. In the first piece, Theresa Perry argues that the dilemmas African-American students face are rooted in the experience of race and ethnicity in America, making the task of achievement distinctive and difficult. Claude Steele follows up with stunningly clear empirical psychological evidence that when Black students believe they are being judged as members of a stereotyped group—rather than as individuals—they do worse on tests. Finally, Asa Hilliard argues against a variety of false theories and misguided views of African-American achievement, sharing examples of real schools, programs, and teachers around the country that allow African-American students to achieve at high levels. Now more than ever, Young, Gifted and Black is an eye-opening work that has the power to not only change how we talk and think about African-American student achievement but how we view the African-American experience as a whole.


Class and Schools

Class and Schools

Author: Richard Rothstein

Publisher: Teachers College Press

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 210

ISBN-13: 9780807745564

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Contemporary public policy assumes that the achievement gap between black and white students could be closed if only schools would do a better job. According to Richard Rothstein, "Closing the gaps between lower-class and middle-class children requires social and economic reform as well as school improvement. Unfortunately, the trend is to shift most of the burden to schools, as if they alone can eradicate poverty and inequality." In this book, Rothstein points the way toward social and economic reforms that would give all children a more equal chance to succeed in school. This book features: a summary of numerous studies linking school achievement to health care quality, nutrition, childrearing styles, housing stability, parental economic security, and more ; aA look at erroneous and misleading data that underlie commonplace claims that some schools "beat the demographic odds and therefore any school can close the achievement gap if only it adopted proper practices." ; and an analysis of how the over-emphasis of standardized tests in federal law obscures the true achievement gap and makes narrowing it more difficult.


Reading Engagement

Reading Engagement

Author: John T. Guthrie

Publisher:

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 264

ISBN-13:

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Drawing on the professional literature of many fields, this book provides an interpretation of the available research on motivation and describes instructional approaches in classroom contexts. The book aims to help teacher educators, researchers, and graduate students understand the research literature in motivation and use in their efforts to enhance children's literacy development. After an introduction, "Reading Engagement: A Rationale for Theory and Teaching" (John T. Guthrie and Allan Wigfield), chapters in the book are: (1) "Children's Motivations for Reading and Reading Engagement" (Allan Wigfield); (2) Developing Self-Efficacious Readers and Writers: The Role of Social and Self-Regulatory Processes" (Dale H. Schunk and Barry J. Zimmerman); (3) "Motivation, Volition, and Collaborative Innovation in Classroom Literacy" (Lyn Corno and Judi Randi); (4) "The Pull of the Text and the Process of Involvement in Reading" (Diane Lemonnier Schallert and JoyLynn Hailey Reed); (5) "Teacher Perceptions of Student Motivation and Their Relation to Literacy Learning" (Anne P. Sweet); (6) "The Role of Responsive Teaching in Focusing Reader Intention and Developing Reader Motivation" (Robert B. Ruddell and Norman J. Unrau); (7) "Characteristics of Classrooms That Promote Motivations and Strategies for Learning" (John T. Guthrie and Ann Dacey McCann); (8) "Integrating Science and Literacy Experiences to Motivate Student Learning" (Roger Bruning and Barbara M. Schweiger); (9) "Ownership, Literacy Achievement, and Students of Diverse Cultural Backgrounds" (Kathryn H. Au); (10) "Starting Right: Strategies for Engaging Young Literacy Learners" (Julianne C. Turner); (11) "Incentives and Intrinsic Motivation to Read" (Linda B. Gambrell and Barbara Ann Marinak); and (12) "School Change and Literacy Engagement: Preparing Teaching and Learning Environments" (Carol Minnick Santa). (RS)


Knowledge to Support the Teaching of Reading

Knowledge to Support the Teaching of Reading

Author: Catherine Snow

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2007-08-17

Total Pages: 342

ISBN-13: 0787996335

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Basic reading proficiency is key to success in all content areas, but attending to students’ literacy development remains a challenge for many teachers, especially after the primary grades. Knowledge to Support the Teaching of Reading presents recommendations for the essential knowledge about the development, acquisition, and teaching of language and literacy skills that teachers need to master and use. This important book is one result of an initiative of the National Academy of Education's Committee on Teacher Education, whose members have been charged with the task of creating a core knowledge base for teacher education.


The Condition of Education, 2020

The Condition of Education, 2020

Author: Education Department

Publisher:

Published: 2021-04-30

Total Pages: 346

ISBN-13: 9781636710129

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The Condition of Education 2020 summarizes important developments and trends in education using the latest available data. The report presentsnumerous indicators on the status and condition of education. The indicators represent a consensus of professional judgment on the most significant national measures of the condition and progress of education for which accurate data are available. The Condition of Education includes an "At a Glance" section, which allows readers to quickly make comparisons across indicators, and a "Highlights" section, which captures key findings from each indicator. In addition, The Condition of Education contains a Reader's Guide, a Glossary, and a Guide to Sources that provide additional background information. Each indicator provides links to the source data tables used to produce the analyses.


Ethnic Matching

Ethnic Matching

Author: Donald Easton-Brooks

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2019-03-13

Total Pages: 155

ISBN-13: 1475839677

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Ethnic Matching: Academic Success of Students of Color is an in-depth exploration on the impact of ethnic matching in education, the paring of students of color with teachers of the same race. Research shows that this method has a positive and long-term impact on the academic experience of students of color. This book explores what makes this phenomenon relevant in today’s classrooms. Through interviewing quality teachers of color, this book sheds a light on the impact these teachers make on the academic experience of students of color. This approach is meant to provide all teachers valuable insight into techniques for engaging with diverse learners. Also, from these conversations, the book shows how the intentionality of culturally responsive practice can enhance the academic experience of students of color. Topics such as the challenges of recruiting and retaining quality teachers of color, as well as the valuable work being done on the local, state, and national level to promote diversifying the field of education as a way to provide equitable education for all students is also explored in this book.


Young, Gifted, and Black

Young, Gifted, and Black

Author: Theresa Perry

Publisher: Beacon Press

Published: 2012-09-11

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13: 0807095346

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“An important and powerful book” that radically reframes the debates swirling around the academic achievement of African-American students (Boston Review) “The solutions offered by each essay are creative, inspirational, and good old common sense." —Los Angeles Times In 3 separate but allied essays, African-American scholars Theresa Perry, Claude Steele, and Asa Hilliard examine the alleged ‘achievement gap’ between Black and white students. Each author addresses how the unique social and cultural position Black students occupy—in a society which often devalues and stereotypes African-American identity—fundamentally shapes students’ experience of school and sets up unique obstacles. Young, Gifted and Black provides an understanding of how these forces work, opening the door to practical, powerful methods for promoting high achievement at all levels. In the first piece, Theresa Perry argues that the dilemmas African-American students face are rooted in the experience of race and ethnicity in America, making the task of achievement distinctive and difficult. Claude Steele follows up with stunningly clear empirical psychological evidence that when Black students believe they are being judged as members of a stereotyped group—rather than as individuals—they do worse on tests. Finally, Asa Hilliard argues against a variety of false theories and misguided views of African-American achievement, sharing examples of real schools, programs, and teachers around the country that allow African-American students to achieve at high levels. Now more than ever, Young, Gifted and Black is an eye-opening work that has the power to not only change how we talk and think about African-American student achievement but how we view the African-American experience as a whole.


The Black-White Test Score Gap

The Black-White Test Score Gap

Author: Christopher Jencks

Publisher: Brookings Institution Press

Published: 2011-01-01

Total Pages: 546

ISBN-13: 9780815746119

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" The test score gap between blacks and whites—on vocabulary, reading, and math tests, as well as on tests that claim to measure scholastic aptitude and intelligence--is large enough to have far-reaching social and economic consequences. In their introduction to this book, Christopher Jencks and Meredith Phillips argue that eliminating the disparity would dramatically reduce economic and educational inequality between blacks and whites. Indeed, they think that closing the gap would do more to promote racial equality than any other strategy now under serious discussion. The book offers a comprehensive look at the factors that contribute to the test score gap and discusses options for substantially reducing it. Although significant attempts have been made over the past three decades to shrink the test score gap, including increased funding for predominantly black schools, desegregation of southern schools, and programs to alleviate poverty, the median black American still scores below 75 percent of American whites on most standardized tests. The book brings together recent evidence on some of the most controversial and puzzling aspects of the test score debate, including the role of test bias, heredity, and family background. It also looks at how and why the gap has changed over the past generation, reviews the educational, psychological, and cultural explanations for the gap, and analyzes its educational and economic consequences. The authors demonstrate that traditional explanations account for only a small part of the black-white test score gap. They argue that this is partly because traditional explanations have put too much emphasis on racial disparities in economic resources, both in homes and in schools, and on demographic factors like family structure. They say that successful theories will put more emphasis on psychological and cultural factors, such as the way black and white parents teach their children to deal with things they do not know or understand, and the way black and white children respond to the same classroom experiences. Finally, they call for large-scale experiments to determine the effects of schools' racial mix, class size, ability grouping, and other policies. In addition to the editors, the contributors include Claude Steele, Ronald Ferguson, William G. Bowen, Philip Cook, and William Julius Wilson. "