Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Committee Chair

Sydney Brown

Abstract

For middle school students taking Algebra 1 as a high school credit, having sufficient instructional time to understand and explore the course content is crucial. While the focus of the literature review helps lend understanding to the study, there has been limited information concerning assessment scores in middle school math classes and the length of class time. This study investigated the differences in the End-of-Course Examination Program (EOCEP) test scores of middle school students in Algebra 1 as influenced by schedules used in South Carolina public middle schools for each individual year in a 5-year span of the 2010-2015 academic years. Framing this study were previous investigations done by Lewis, Dugan, Winokur, and Cobb (2005); Farmer (2005); and Howard (2010). Using a nonexperimental quantitative research methodology with a factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA) to determine significance, this study analyzed the relationship between two types of schedules, block and traditional period. The interactive effects of demographic covariables of ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), special services, and gender on EOCEP scores were examined through an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), followed by a Bonferroni Post Hoc. Mean scores for each year demonstrated higher levels for block scheduling during the 2010-1011 and 2011-2012 school years. Traditional period scheduled students scored a higher mean during the 2013-2015 school years. Test results displayed significance between schedule type and Algebra 1 EOC test scores for the 2010-2011 and 2014-2015 academic years. Test results involving demographics found no significance for the 2010-2015 school years for gender. SES and special services were found to be significant in each academic year. Ethnicity was found to be significant in 2011-2012 and 2014-2015. Recommendations include considering SES and special services when determining schedule structure for middle school Algebra 1 courses. Ethnicity should be examined in closer detail before considering as a scheduling influence. Gender should not be considered as a factor when making schedule-option decisions.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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