A qualitative approach was utilized in this study to examine four transition programs' best educational practices in building transition programs for eighth to ninth grade. An analysis of a retrospective study of the four transition programs provided data to support recommendations for best educational practices to build a transition program for…

This case study focuses on one district's process of continuous improvement in family engagement. The improvement effort addresses the point at which family engagement tends to decline precipitously and students are particularly vulnerable--the transition into high school. In this article we analyze the implementation of a continuous improvement…

The Austin Independent School District (AISD) offered several academic summer programs to students June through August 2021. These programs offered students opportunities to accelerate their learning, recover academic course credits, and support grade level transition. Although AISD offered a variety of summer programs in 2021, this report focuses…

This study used comparative interrupted times series analyses to assess the impact of a continuous improvement-focused family engagement intervention on ninth grade attendance and course passing rates. The intervention, conducted in an urban district, sought to improve middle and high school family engagement practices during the transition to…

This case study focuses on one district's process of continuous improvement in family engagement. The improvement effort addresses the point at which family engagement tends to decline precipitously and students are particularly vulnerable--the transition into high school. In this article we analyze the implementation of a continuous improvement…

Graduating high school seniors who are college and career ready has become a focal point of our nation. The Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program has been preparing college and career ready students who are first generation college-going students, from subgroups traditionally underrepresented in higher education, and from…

The Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program has been preparing students who are first generation. college-going students from subgroups traditionally underrepresented in higher education, and students from lower socioeconomic families for college and careers since 1980. The present study investigated the success of middle school…

Postsecondary access and degree completion are increasingly important concerns for individuals and policymakers. This dissertation presents evidence on three distinct strategies for increasing students' level of preparedness for higher education, rates of postsecondary enrollment, and rates of postsecondary degree completion. The first is an…

This study examined the effectiveness of a group art therapy intervention within a school setting to increase coping skills and decrease disruptive behaviors in a group of 6 eighth-grade students at risk for making a poor transition to high school. The mixed-method AB single-case experiment measured each individual's changes in behavior and coping…

In 2007, spurred by University of Chicago Consortium on Chicago School Research (UChicago CCSR) research reports, leadership at the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) began a new targeted approach to reducing course failure in the ninth grade. The research suggested that the transition between eighth and ninth grade played a critical role in shaping…

This study examines the baseline change profiles of academic performance (math and English) trajectories during the high school transition for the students who went from middle school to high school. Using multidimensional scaling growth profile analysis, we identified a no-change group plus 4 other groups with different change profile types: 1…

During the past decade, there has been an increasing gender achievement gap with male students lagging behind their female counterparts on a number of important indicators of school success. This article examines recommendations and strategies for school counselors working with middle school boys to enhance the learning environment, to promote…

In 1998, Congress authorized the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) program. The purpose of the program is to foster increased knowledge, expectations, and preparation for postsecondary education among low-income students and their families. GEAR UP projects may provide services to students, parents and…

Teachers and community in a small rural Maori-medium school in New Zealand were concerned that their students who were highly literate in Maori experienced difficulties in reading and writing in English on entry to secondary school (where English was the medium of instruction). Consequently, this school and community introduced a 10-week…

The Baltimore City Public School System's (BCPSS) Grade 9 Transition Program was implemented in 2001-02. It is designed to increase student achievement in an era of No Child Left Behind federal legislation by providing additional time and learning opportunities for eighth-grade students who have not met all promotion standards established by the…