Background, Purpose, & Research Questions: High school exit exams are meant to standardize quality and ensure that students graduate with basic knowledge and skills. However, policies that expand exit exams are associated with increased dropout rates, particularly among non-white students (e.g. Papay, Murnane, and Willet, 2010; Reardon and…

With the high enrollment number of Chinese international students in U.S. universities, there has been an increase in the amount of research on the difficulties and challenges these students face in their American-university life. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the key processes and procedures of the pathway program from…

The expansion and universalization of educational opportunities in many parts of the world raised expectations that education inequality could be alleviated. Contrary to expectations, however, empirical evidence on educational inequality has been revealed. This is because qualitative differentiation of education programs at a certain level of…

Year after year, English language learners are increasing at the Kenmakabi School District, mainly because of Hispanic and Haitian families who have settled in the township. Unfortunately, as this population continues to increase, so is the reading gap between them and their monolingual counterparts. Consequently, approximately seven years ago,…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to evaluate the effectiveness of transitional preparatory programs from the perspective of parents and teachers in North Carolina. The following three research questions guided this research inquiry: Based on parent and teacher perspectives, how did the high school transitional program facilitate success…

This dissertation examines the implementation of peer-based career seminars as an intervention to analyze career counseling services in the community college setting and delineate potential benefits for students. Highlights include identifying barriers to access, discussing a student-centered approach to service utilization, and implementing…

This paper focuses on exploring the transition South African learners make from Grade 7 to Grade 8, with an emphasis on the experiences of all the role players in two school cultures during this transition phase. This qualitative exploratory research project was placed in a constructivist research paradigm. The data were analysed in an exploratory…

Through this research I explored the challenges faced by first-generation and low-income students during their transition to higher education, focusing on the role of pre-college programs like TRIO. The study aims to identify barriers to college accessibility and success for these underrepresented students and assess the effectiveness of TRIO…

The aim of this study was to explore perceptions of mental health services from the perspectives of adolescents with no prior service experience. Thirty students in the Transition Year (fourth year) of secondary school participated in this study: 22 females and 8 males, aged 15 to 16. There was equal distribution across rural and urban settings.…

Purpose: This study was a pilot of a brief psychological capital (PsyCap) intervention with a sample of transition age youth with disabilities (N = 24) in a school setting. Substantial evidence supports the relationship between PsyCap and employment outcomes. Transition age youth with disabilities are an important target for pre-employment…

We conducted a qualitative analysis of written transcripts from nine teacher-led middle and high school IEP meetings for students with learning disabilities to determine common themes regarding student roles during these meetings and the meeting process itself. We found two overall meta-themes (e.g., instant vision and out of focus), seven themes…

Many collegiate student athletes dream of professional careers in athletics for their entire lives. However, it is estimated that only 2% of college athletes will have the opportunity to continue their sports career after graduating college (NCAA, 2018). An extensive review of existing literature revealed a lack of support for student athletes as…

The transition out of university can be a challenging time for undergraduate students, especially those with mental health conditions (MHC). Student mental health is a global concern, and metrics indicate lower employment rates for graduates with MHC. Little is known about the expectations and experiences of these students regarding this…

For young people, the end of secondary school represents a critical transition point. This article aims at understanding how schools support a particular group of disadvantaged students to transition into education, training, or employment. Drawing on a life-course perspective and with refugee-background African students as an empirical focus,…

In 2005, Saudi high schools began providing transition services for students with intellectual disability. However, recent studies have found that these services need improvement. Therefore, this study explored current transition services to help identify challenges that weaken these services and to recommend improvements for them. Eleven teachers…