A Study of the Relationship Between and Among Scheduling, Grouping, Grading, Curriculum, and Mathematics Achievement in Pennsylvania Secondary Schools

Abstract

Widespread access to technology facilitates the sharing of effective classroom practices across disciplines. The implementation of successful practices is essential; particularly in this era of educational accountability, most notably the adequately yearly progress (AYP) goals of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation. In addition to bottom-up classroom practices, teachers and other educational stakeholders are entitled to information about top-down policies to enhance teaching and learning. This study examines the correlation between policies in four areas and outcomes on one specific component of AYP in Pennsylvania public secondary schools. The policies considered herein are scheduling (traditional or block), grouping (homogeneous or heterogeneous), grading (weighted or not), and secondary math curriculum (U.S. Department of Education cited standards-based or traditional). This study quantifies the correlation between school district polices in these areas and results on the 11th grade mathematics portion of the 2006 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA). Standard and Poor's recognizes school districts in Pennsylvania and across the country whose students have achieved NCLB testing outcomes that exceed expectations. In 2005, 55 Pennsylvania districts were cited by Standard and Poor's as being "outperforming school districts." The 60 secondary schools in these districts served as the population for this study. The study quantifies the correlation between the specific combinations of the four policies utilized by the 40 participating high schools and PSSA results. Evidence is discovered that, of the four policies, only block scheduling correlated with higher PSSA 11th grade math outcomes.