Morris, John D.

This quantitative, non-experimental study was conducted to investigate the
relationship among the behavioral agility of school leadership teams, school culture, and
school performance. Additionally, the study sought to determine whether the influence of
these variables and/or their relationships are modified by alterable and unalterable
characteristics of the school. The study utilized Pisapia’s (2009) Strategic Leader
Questionnaire (SLQ) to measure school leadership team’s behavioral agility in using five
leadership influence actions (managing, transforming, bridging, bonding, and bartering).
Cameron and Quinn’s (2005) Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) was
used to determine if the school’s dominant organizational culture type (adhocracy, clan,
hierarchy, or market) mediated the behavioral agility of school leadership teams and
school performance.
The study included 65 schools and approximately 1,500 classroom teachers from a very large urban school district located in the Southeast United States. The results
indicate that behavioral agility, unidimensional and multidimensional factors, were
significantly correlated to each organizational culture type, with the exception of the
managing behavior subfactor in clan and adhocracy cultures. Student suspension
moderated the relationship between behavioral agility and school culture. There was no
relationship found between school culture and school performance; however, it was
found that minority percentage negatively correlated market culture and school
performance and student attendance negatively correlated both hierarchy and market
cultures and school performance.

For 306 twelfth grade students, secondary science
achievement by sex, race, and socioeconomic status (SES) was
compared using analysis of variance (ANOVA), and the
relationship of a set of 22 predictor variables to science
achievement was investigated using multiple linear
regression. That the reduced regression model with its primarily
cognitive characteristics exhibited the highest significant
correlation coefficients in predicting science achievement
for low SES, black students is a finding that is at odds with
much of the current literature, as is also the finding that
females outperform males in science achievement. These
anomalies, along with the implications of differences in
science achievement based on sex and race, are discussed.

Every year, thousands of Florida public high school graduates seek to enter
Florida state colleges based on a single standardized placement test. This quantitative
study sought to identify an actuarial model, based on multiple measures, as an alternative
to standardized placement tests. The study, grounded on degree completion theories,
examined high school students from the Miami-Dade metropolitan area and their
performance in one first-year mathematics course in Miami Dade College during the Fall
2014 academic term. The study, using a sample size of 10,186 subjects, examined
multiple predictor variables and one outcome variable to measure predictability of
success in Intermediate Algebra.
The study used descriptive statistics, multiple linear regression, and logistic
regression to develop a multiple measure actuarial model. A quantitative analysis of
archived student records was used in this study. The analysis revealed that the actuarial model, using gender, ethnicity, age, academic objective, academic load, high school
GPA, high school mathematics gap, and high school mathematics curriculum composite
score as predictor variables, was significant in predicting success in Intermediate
Algebra.
The actuarial model correctly classified 1,688 subjects who would fail
Intermediate Algebra, achieving a hit rate of 75% in predicting failure in Intermediate
Algebra. Similarly, the model achieved a hit rate of 54% when classifying subjects who
would pass Intermediate Algebra. The improvement-over-chance index, I, was 44.8%,
representing a 45% reduction in error when classifying subjects who would fail
Intermediate Algebra. Thus, the actuarial model, with all its predictor variables, provides
helpful guidance when advising incoming first-time-in-college (FTIC) students.

The purpose of this study was to determine differences in satisfaction of public university Resident Assistants (RAs) with regard to several job satisfaction factors identified on the Resident Assistant Satisfaction Survey (RASS), specifically as compared to Casey’s (2009) normative sample of RAs in privatized university housing. The RASS outlined eight Employment Aspect Factors and three Criterion Factors to determine RA job satisfaction. This study also determined if there were differences in job satisfaction for public university RAs based on gender, racial ethnic identification, or academic class standing. Resident Assistants from three Research I Florida institutions in the United States completed the RASS. There has been very little research identifying
the factors influencing job satisfaction of paraprofessional RAs, specifically at Florida public institutions of higher education and as compared to a privatized university housing Company.

This study compared the effectiveness of a mnemonic and a non-mnemonic study strategy for immediate and delayed recall of place location associations. Subjects were 43 college student volunteers, predominantly female education majors, ranging in age from 21 to 44 years. Treatment consisted of a self-paced study period of up to 35 minutes, during which subjects in the mnemonic group studied hints linking place names to their map location, while subjects in the non-mnemonic group used their own best method to study. Place location tests administered immediately after the study period (acquisition) and one week later (retention) were compared between-groups using an analysis of variance (ANOVA) with a Type I error probability of.05. The mnemonic group retained significantly (F(41,1) = 13.63, p $<$.002) more place locations than the non-mnemonic group. It was concluded that mnemonic strategies can facilitate the long-term retention of place location associations for college students.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether at-risk elementary school students enrolled in an after-school program offering resiliency training would be positively affected both academically and behaviorally. Survey results and literature reviews indicate that the issue of at-risk, neglected, or abused students is the number one issue facing society and has moved it to the forefront of educational prominence. Although there is a substantial amount of literature on the subject, most is not research based and is focused only on the pathology or risk factors with which children have to cope, rather than on controlled, evaluative studies that could assess success or failure of specific strategies or programs. The researcher evaluated students from two Florida elementary schools identified by the Florida Department of Education as "critically low performing schools." The students in the population were identified as critically low academic achievers and/or those demonstrating aggressive behaviors. The key characteristics of students targeted were academic performance and behavior in school. The schools identified in the study, in addition to having low academic achievement and a high level of behavior problems, also had demographic issues that contributed to the needs of the school population. The researcher targeted appropriate activities and behaviors necessary to evaluate the programs within each of the schools selected. Although results of the statistical treatment failed to reveal significant differences among the hypotheses tested, resiliency enhancement is still a viable means by which academic or behavioral gains can be made with students. The researcher suggests that additional evaluative activities be incorporated into future studies. It is recommended that further analysis to determine the specifies of problems facing individual schools be more qualitative. It is also suggested that increasing the sample size to increase the power of the analysis will rule out the inconclusiveness of the analysis. Previous research indicates that although students may make academic or behavioral gains, they may still be far from the absolute levels of performance that are recognized as being significant. This research has also established that the imperative for growth and development exists and develops naturally in the presence of certain environmental attributes. Other conclusions and recommendations for further study were offered.

The developmental research schools, or laboratory schools, of the state of Florida became single-school public school districts in 1991. This allowed the four Florida laboratory schools to receive full-time equivalency funding from the state, but also required the schools to have state-mandated programs in place. Laboratory school teachers have varying roles that include teacher, researcher, writer, and presenter. These roles have caused discussion about appropriate performance appraisal methods for laboratory school teachers. In Florida, public school districts must have a human resources and management development plan that addresses evaluation and supervision of teaching personnel. With the passage of the Florida Clinical Education requirements for teachers who supervise developing teachers, it became necessary for the developmental research schools to demonstrate a commitment to an established system of measuring teacher growth. Teacher involvement is an integral part of building a sound supervision and evaluation system, so this study looked at the attitudes of the laboratory school teachers toward administrative practices in supervision and evaluation. The sample included one hundred fourteen instructors from the four Florida developmental research schools. The teachers taught grades kindergarten through eight. Seventy-six percent of those in the sample had advanced degrees, and seventy-five percent had over five years of teaching experience. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from the teachers. The survey included questions on individual teacher demographics as well as assessment of the teachers' attitudes and perceptions of formal and informal evaluation practices. Descriptive statistics and t-tests results compared the average perception of formal evaluation as an accurate measure of teaching effectiveness for the different teacher groupings. Results indicated that eight of the nine null hypotheses were rejected. Null hypothesis 3, predicting no difference in teachers' perceptions of formal evaluation as an accurate indicator of teaching effectiveness between teachers who had developed a personal professional development plan and teachers who had not, was not rejected. Being able to create individual professional development plans increased teacher confidence and enthusiasm. Teachers viewed self-evaluation forms such as portfolios and checklists as accurate means of assessing teacher effectiveness. Recommendations for further study include: enlarging the sample size to include laboratory school teachers in other states and countries, adding non-laboratory school teachers to the study; and encouraging teachers to become involved trying to include alternative assessment methods such as portfolios and professional development plans as part of the district teacher supervision and evaluation plan.

This study investigated the philosophies of adult education and teaching styles as self-assessed by the Florida Cooperative Extension county-based agents. The Philosophy of Adult Education Inventory(c) (PAEI) was used to identify philosophic orientations and the Principles of Adult Learning Scale (PALS) was used to measure teaching style preference as either teacher-centered or learner-centered. Responses to the census survey were received from 217 agents in the six program areas: agriculture (101), family and consumer sciences (56), 4-H and youth development (50), natural resources (6), sea grant (2), and energy (2). The response rate was 69.11 percent. Program area, with its six discrete categories, was the independent variable while the scores from the PAEI(c) and the PALS instruments were the dependent variables. One-way analyses of variance were preformed to determine differences among the program area groups in their adherence to philosophies on the PAEI (c) and scores obtained on the PALS. Analyses revealed that the progressive philosophy was preferred by all groups and that there were significant (p < .05) differences between the program areas and their adherence to the five philosophies. The family and consumer sciences program area had a significantly higher mean score for both the behavioral and progressive philosophies than did 4-H and youth development area. The program area of 4-H had a significantly higher mean than did agriculture for the humanistic philosophy. The total mean scores on the PALS by program area were: agriculture (135.4604); family and consumer sciences (139.3304); 4-H and youth development (136.7100); and the combined areas of natural resources, sea grant, and energy (144.2000). One significant difference was found between the higher mean score of the family and consumer sciences group and that of the agriculture group on factor 3 (relating to experience). Correlations were calculated for the PAEI(c) and PALS cumulative scores plus the factor scores across the three program areas of agriculture, family and consumer sciences, and 4-H and youth development. Though there were individual, significant correlations found between philosophies and scores on the PALS factors, they could not meet the criteria necessary for significance when the per cell alpha level was estimated in order not to exceed the total alpha level of .05 when dealing with multiple hypotheses.

Studying the relationship between the achievement of technology standards and the availability of on-site support will help educational leaders prepare and modify individual and district-wide technology plans in the years ahead. There are many factors influencing success rates in attaining these standards, including the availability of hardware and software, the adequacy of the equipment, and the amount of training provided to teachers. The relationships between the predictor variable, on-site support and the dependent variables, hardware, software, training, integration, and networking were investigated using correlation analysis in the 190 public schools of Broward County, Florida. The relationships between the additional predictor variables of socioeconomic status and school level and the dependent variables were also examined. An alpha level of.01 was used for all statistical tests. Correlations were found to be significant (p<.01) between on-site support (N=190) and the dependent variables, hardware (r=.338), software (r=.563), training (r=.451), integration (r=.432), and networking (r=.315). Correlations between socioeconomic status (n=174) and school level (N=190) and the dependent variables were found not to be significant (p<.01). The study confirmed that increased levels of technological support helped public schools in Broward County realize greater success in achieving specific technology standards. Educational leaders should consider these findings significant when staffing schools and centers. Further, the socioeconomic status of a school did not influence the achievement of technology standards in the sample. This indicated that schools in this study had access to hardware, software, training, and other resources at a level equal to each other. Broward County policymakers seemed to have succeeded with their efforts to ensure that all schools had access to the funds and other resources needed to meet the locally established standards of technology.

The purpose of this study was to identify how various student, school, and staff predictors related to the academic performance of Mexican American fourth graders in selected schools as evidenced by their scores on the Florida Writes Assessment as well as on norm referenced achievement tests in reading comprehension and math applications. Three null hypotheses were tested to show if there was a correlation between predictors and these criterion variables: writing skills, reading comprehension, and math applications. A sample of 64 students from two Florida districts and twelve elementary schools was obtained. Data were collected from archival sources within each school district as well as from surveys distributed to English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teachers. These were then analyzed to determine correlations with Florida Writes and with Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) as well as California Test of Basic Skills (CTBS) subtests in reading comprehension and math applications. The researcher was most interested in determining the relationship between a language arts pull-out program and achievement of ESOL students at a focal school which was in danger of being identified by the Florida Department of Education as "critically low" in academic performance because of low test scores. Correlations of predictor variables including the pull-out program were analyzed to determine statistical significance. Only the third hypothesis--that relating to math applications--was rejected at a probability level of.05. In this case, three predictors were considered significant: number of Limited English Proficient (LEP) students, number of Mexican American students, and the pull-out program. Because of small sample size and limited applications, no far reaching conclusions were drawn although further study was suggested because the Mexican American population in Florida is growing, and these students have historically not performed well in school. It was also recommended that the Florida Department of Education reconsider the timeline for ESOL student participation in norm referenced testing in writing and reading because most research shows that it takes at least five to seven years for most students to acquire comprehensible second language skills.