This dissertation presents an applied research study focused on improving ACT mathematics scores in a rural Mississippi independent school. The study is designed to evaluate the effectiveness of increased mathematics instructional time and curriculum mapping on improving the percentage of students meeting the College Readiness Benchmark scores on…

The effect of the New Tech Network (NTN) design on students' academic achievement and workforce skills was tested in several schools in the southeastern United States. Results are provided for a sample of four treatment and four matched and equivalent control schools. Results suggest that the NTN treatment in schools implementing with fidelity…

This study adds to the currently limited evidence base on the efficacy of interventions targeting non-college-ready high school students by examining the impact of Kentucky's Targeted Interventions (TI) program. We focus on interventions that students received under TI in the senior year of high school based on their 11th grade ACT test scores.…

We developed a two-semester series of intensive (six-contact hours per week) behavioral research methods courses with an integrated statistics curriculum. Our approach includes the use of team-based learning, authentic projects, and Excel and SPSS. We assessed the effectiveness of our approach by examining our students' content area scores on the…

This study gathered, analyzed, and compared perspectives of students who were honors-eligible but never began the program, students who began in honors and discontinued their enrollment, and those who were persisting in honors. Broadly speaking (and not surprisingly), the responses of students persisting in honors reflected the most positive…

The vast majority of high school students aspire to some kind of postsecondary education, yet far too many of them enter college without the basic content knowledge, skills, or habits of mind they need to succeed. Andrea Venezia and Laura Jaeger look at the state of college readiness among high school students, the effectiveness of programs in…

While developing strategies to meet the needs of underprepared students, public colleges and universities across the nation are being faced with directives, often stemming from public viewpoint, state legislatures, and/or state governing bodies of higher education systems, to modify existing university programs in an effort to decrease the cost of…

Two studies examined the effects of using ACT's Educational Plainning and Assessment System (EPAS) and benefits of using the EXPLORE and PLAN programs for students and schools in terms of achievement gains, educational planning, and educational preparation at grades 10, 11, and 12. Two data sets were used. The first consisted of 156,928 students…

Presented are the summary, conclusions, and recommendations after two years of the Experimental Freshman Year Program for underachieving high school graduates at Southern Illinois University. Findings are presented under four headings--(1) subjects' occupation or whereabouts in the year following their participation in the program, (2) retention…