| dc.contributor.author | Follman, Debra Kay | |
| dc.description.abstract | Education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty, beginning with children in
their earliest years. The greatest challenge facing public education has been the education
of all students to proficiency, with the most difficult aspect of this challenge as teaching the
underachieving children of poverty. The enactment of No Child Left Behind, Public Law
107-110 (NCLB) has brought increased accountability standards for public schools to the
forefront. Narrowing the achievement gap for poor and minority students has become a
concentrated focus. It is necessary that elementary school teachers are knowledgeable of
the instructional strategies, interventions, best practices, and environments to ensure that
students who live in poverty learn and achieve acceptable standards of academic excellence
and school success.
This study investigated the interventions implemented for increased student
achievement in elementary schools in North Dakota with high-poverty enrollments. It was
accomplished by examining the factors associated with lower academic achievement for
children living in poverty. The study also explored the school-based practices that are
perceived to help increase the academic achievement of children living in poverty.
This was a quantitative survey study with a target population of 29 elementary
schools in North Dakota who are considered high-poverty. Survey data from 176
elementary teachers ( 69% response rate) indicated that both rural and urban schools
participated in the study. The data were collected and analyzed to ascertain basic
descriptive statistics, t-test, and ANOV A analysis. The comments from each section of the
survey were qualitatively coded, themed, and reported.
The conclusions were that the elementary schools in North Dakota, serving 40% or
more students living in poverty who made Adequate Yearly Progress as determined by
performance on the North Dakota State Assessment, are using a majority of the best
practices reflected in the research about high high-performing, high-poverty schools. The
data suggest that parenting skills and attendance issues were identified as having an effect
on student achievement most often. The study revealed that there should be a concentrated
effort towards parenting workshops for families living in poverty through the school and
other community organizations.
The study also indicated that the teachers' highest level of agreement for increasing
achievement was having high expectations for all students. Teachers reported that the use
of assessments to monitor progress, to measure progress, and guide instruction were
utilized to a high degree. Classroom management with rules and routines established, rapid
pace of instruction, and a combination of negative and positive reinforcements were also
identified as being used in high-achieving schools serving students living in poverty | en_US |
| dc.publisher | North Dakota State University | en_US |
| dc.rights | NDSU policy 190.6.2 | en_US |
| dc.title | Elementary Teachers' Perceptions of Practices to Increase the Academic Achievement of Economically Disadvantaged Rural Students in High Poverty Schools | en_US |
| dc.type | Dissertation | en_US |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-03-16T17:59:00Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2024-03-16T17:59:00Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2010 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10365/33737 | |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Elementary school teachers -- North Dakota -- Attitudes. | en_US |
| dc.subject.lcsh | School improvement programs -- North Dakota. | en_US |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Academic achievement -- North Dakota. | en_US |
| dc.rights.uri | https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/policy/190.pdf | en_US |
| ndsu.degree | Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) | en_US |
| ndsu.college | Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences | en_US |
| ndsu.department | Education | en_US |
| ndsu.program | Education | en_US |
| ndsu.advisor | Stammen, Ronald | |
