County Public Schools Research Articles

High School Principals’ Leadership Roles and Use of Time

Time is the most valuable currency in schools. This study describes how successful high school principals reported spending and allocating their time to various leadership tasks using selected items from a study of principal-time use and school effectiveness in Miami-Dade County Public Schools in Florida US. Public high school principals were selected based on their 2019 Missouri School Improvement Program performance indicators and asked to complete either a paper or online survey. Findings show that principals spend more time on management-related activities than curriculum and instruction-related activities. There is a strong association between time-use on curriculum and instruction with both gender and school size. The more leadership experience a principal has, the less time they are likely to spend on school management activities. Time-use on organization management is strongly associated with school size. If instructional leadership is a fundamental priority for principals, then development and support of successful principalship will require a redesign of their roles to free time for instructional leadership. School districts that hire principals from a pool of assistant principals (AP) or invest in principal pipelines, need to develop a strategy to build APs’ instructional and leadership skills. Keywords : High school principals, principals’ time-use, principals’ roles, successful principals, instructional leadership. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-18-01 Publication date: June 30th 2020

Brief of Appellant in C.W. V. Denver County School District, No. 19-14-07 (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit)

In Fry v. Napoleon Community Schools, 137 S. Ct. 743 (2017), the U.S. Supreme Court decided important questions concerning the administrative-exhaustion requirements of the federal special-education statute, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). But Fry left open at least one important interpretive question, see id. at 752 n.4, and Fry’s new standards demand application in the lower courts. This brief, filed in C.W. v. Denver County Public School (No. 19-1407) — an appeal pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit — addresses Fry’s open question. It also addresses a wide range of issues concerning when a federal court may hear claims under the IDEA and other statutes, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act, that protect children with disabilities. Given the brief’s breadth, it likely will provide guidance to others seeking to navigate the IDEA's administrative processes and the federal courts post-Fry. Notably, the first-line drafters of this brief were second- and third-year student-lawyers at Georgetown Law’s Appellate Courts Immersion Clinic: Ana Builes, Erin O’Neill, Grace Paras, Rachel Scholz-Bright, and Rachel Schwartz.

Patterns of distributive environmental inequity under different PM2.5 air pollution scenarios for Salt Lake County public schools

Previous studies have cataloged social disparities in air pollution exposure in US public schools with respect to race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. These studies rely upon chronic, averaged measures of air pollution, which fosters a static conception of exposure disparities. This paper examines PM2.5 exposure disparities in Salt Lake County (SLC), Utah public schools under three different PM2.5 scenarios—relatively clean air, a moderate winter persistent cold air pool (PCAP), and a major winter PCAP—with respect to race/ethnicity, economic deprivation, student age, and school type. We pair demographic data for SLC schools (n = 174) with modelled PM2.5 values, obtained from a distributed network of sensors placed through a community-university partnership. Results from generalized estimating equations controlling for school district clustering and other covariates reveal that patterns of social inequality vary under different PM2.5 pollution scenarios. Charter schools and schools serving economically deprived students experienced disproportionate exposure during relatively clean air and moderate PM2.5 PCAP conditions, but those inequalities attenuated under major PCAP conditions. Schools with higher proportions of racial/ethnic minority students were unequally exposed under all PM2.5 pollution scenarios, reflecting the robustness of racial/ethnic disparities in exposure. The findings speak to the need for policy changes to protect school-aged children from environmental harm in SLC and elsewhere.

Crossroads: Integration and segregation in suburban school districts

As U.S. suburbs become more racially and ethnically diverse, they have the opportunity to make their schools similarly diverse. But integration is not assured, even in districts with significant demographic diversity. Iris Rotberg draws on Montgomery County Public Schools, a suburban Maryland district, to illustrate the opportunities and risks present in many other suburban districts. While large numbers of Montgomery County students attend diverse schools, segregation is a growing problem in the higher-poverty schools, and Black and Latinx students attending these schools have become more segregated in recent years. At the same time, White and Asian students attending low-poverty schools are in more diverse environments. Rotberg considers how policies related to school boundaries, housing, charter schools, and district secession have affected the integration of suburban schools.

A University/School District Partnership to Close the Information, Opportunity, and Attainment Gaps for Students in Urban Schools

This article outlines how to replicate strategies employed during a two-decade partnership between the University of North Florida’s (UNF) school counselor preparation program and Duval County Public Schools, a large, urban, southern school district. The partnership created a culture of collaboration built on a mutual social justice philosophy for the purpose of closing attainment gaps. Participation in the partnership has become mandatory for UNF school counseling candidates in their preparation to be systemic change agents who ferret out and eliminate opportunity gaps and information gaps to benefit K–12 students.

Developing English Speaking Skill Indigenously Among the Prospective Teachers

Present research experimentally studied the effectiveness of indigenously developed Content and Language Integrated Modular Approach (CLIMA) especially designed for developing English language ability among university students. CLIMA is a blend of Content and Language Integrated Approach and the Modular Approach. Two equated groups of total 52 students from Bachelor of Education Programme (semester-I) participated in this randomised pre-test post-test control group experiment. The content used herein comprised a purposefully designed module of 5 units. Both groups were taught by the same specifically trained teacher on same days with an interval of one hour between the sessions with the two groups. Experiment was completed in 30 sessions (1.5 hour each) during 10 weeks. For both pre- and post-testing, the researchers used the Analytic Rubric of Fairfax County Public Schools (Virginia, USA). This Analytic Rubric has been termed as the Performance Assessment for Language Students (PALS). The experimental group witnessed (pre-testing = 31.6%, post-testing = 80.8%) a value addition of 49.2%; and the control group witnessed (pre-testing = 31.2%, post-testing = 66.2%) a value addition of 35.0%. Compared with TOEFL and IELTS, conclusively, CLIMA was found highly effective. Results are discussed in detail in the paper.

Transition Back to School

Janice Selekman, DNSc, RN, NCSN, FNASN Professor Emeritus, University of Delaware, Wilmington, DE. Amy Brubaker, BSN, RN, NCSN School Nurse, Culpeper County Public Schools, Culpeper, VA. The authors declare no conflict of interest. Correspondence: Janice Selekman, DNSc, RN, NCSN, FNASN, University of Delaware, Wilmington, DE. E-mail: [email protected]

Developing English Speaking Skill Indigenously Among the Prospective Teachers

Present research experimentally studied the effectiveness of indigenously developed Content and Language Integrated Modular Approach (CLIMA) especially designed for developing English language ability among university students. CLIMA is a blend of Content and Language Integrated Approach and the Modular Approach. Two equated groups of total 52 students from Bachelor of Education Programme (semester-I) participated in this randomised pre-test post-test control group experiment. The content used herein comprised a purposefully designed module of 5 units. Both groups were taught by the same specifically trained teacher on same days with an interval of one hour between the sessions with the two groups. Experiment was completed in 30 sessions (1.5 hour each) during 10 weeks. For both pre- and post-testing, the researchers used the Analytic Rubric of Fairfax County Public Schools (Virginia, USA). This Analytic Rubric has been termed as the Performance Assessment for Language Students (PALS). The experimental group witnessed (pre-testing = 31.6%, post-testing = 80.8%) a value addition of 49.2%; and the control group witnessed (pre-testing = 31.2%, post-testing = 66.2%) a value addition of 35.0%. Compared with TOEFL and IELTS, conclusively, CLIMA was found highly effective. Results are discussed in detail in the paper.

Operationalizing the Intersection of Racial and Socioeconomic Diversity in Predicting School-Level Academic Achievement

Since Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education et al., school districts seeking to voluntarily integrate schools have designed a host of metrics to structure within-school diversity using characteristics of students’ neighborhoods rather than the race of individual students. This study utilizes a correlational–multiple regression design to investigate the efficacy of one such measure of socioeconomic/racial diversity, the diversity index (DI) of Jefferson County Public Schools, in predicting the aggregate academic achievement of students within a school. Moreover, this study seeks to compare the relative efficacy of the DI with other common measures of socioeconomic and racial diversity analogous to component factors of the DI. Metrics such as the DI provide an opportunity for researchers to better understand the intersections of poverty and race as well as their relationship with academic achievement. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Effect of Secondary School Categorization on Examination Failure Rates Among Public Secondary Schools Students in Kenya

Secondary schools in Kenya are categorized as national, extra-county, county, sub-county and private secondary schools. Students who excelled in K.C.S.E examination with a minimum grade of C+ are allowed to pursue different courses in public and private universities. Others who scored C and C- grade joined diploma colleges. The paper sought to find out the effect of secondary school categorization on examination failure rates among public secondary schools students in Kenya. The scope of the study was limited to all the students from public secondary schools in the four counties of Kakamega, Bungoma, Busia, and Vihiga in Kenya. It was limited to randomly chosen sample size of 464 students, 58 principals, and 58 directors of studies from the 58 sampled out public secondary schools. Wellberg’s (1981) theory of educational productivity was employed. The paper employed mixed methods and survey research design. Data collection instruments included questionnaires, interview schedules, focused group discussions and analysis of secondary data. Content validity was determined through subject matter expert review while reliability was determined through test-retest measures for consistency. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze data. Inferential one was the Kruskal Wallis test. The paper concluded that secondary school categorization led to failure of students in public secondary schools at KCSE examinations in Kenya due to academic inadequacies experienced in sub-county and some county public secondary schools. It was therefore recommended that the classification of students into the four distinct groups of national, Extra County, county and sub county students be abolished. Keywords: academic achievement, Analysis, categorization, effect, Public s econdary school DOI : 10.7176/JEP/10-33-03 Publication date: November 30 th 2019

Advocating for Students to Receive Ongoing Hearing Support in Class

Advocating for Students to Receive Ongoing Hearing Support in Class

"Barbershops Encouraging Black Boys to Read"

This research project Involved interviewing Title I personnel in Charles County Public Schools and visiting six barbershop owners in Charles County Maryland who are a part of the Barbershop Books project. The visit to these barbershops included interviewing the owners of the barbershops as well as reviewing the books used in the project. These barbershops display a variety of books for young black boys to read while they are waiting to get their hair cut. These books are located on a small bookcase in the corner of the barbershops’ waiting area. The idea of books in the barbershops was to help improve reading skills for Black boys in elementary school. The project was purposed and funded by the Charles County Public Schools Title I Program. The literacy project began in August 2018. Mr. Alvin Irby, who is a former kindergarten teacher in New York City, is the founder of Barbershop Books.

EFFECTS OF STUDENTS’ COMPREHENSION SKILLS ON SOLVING MATHEMATICAL WORD PROBLEMS

Mathematical word problems are concepts taught at the end of every topic to allow students apply the content that was taught. This paper looks at the effect of students’ comprehension skills on solving mathematic word problems in Tindiret Sub County public secondary schools, Kenya. The target population was form three mathematics students and teachers. Stratified random sampling techniques were employed to select nine public secondary schools; one boys’ school, one girls’ school and eight mixed secondary schools. Questionnaires, achievement test items were used to collect data. The data collected was coded and analyzed using the SPSS. The study revealed that students had difficulties in (1) comprehending mathematical word problems. It was concluded that the poor comprehension of word problems led to student difficulties in solving word problems in mathematics. The paper recommends that the teachers should find ways of ways of improving comprehension skills of the students by having activities like debates and public speaking to improve language mastery and comprehension. Article visualizations:

A quasi-experimental study of the impact of school start time changes on adolescents’ mood, self-regulation, safety, and health

ObjectiveTo determine whether school start time changes impact adolescents’ mood, self-regulation, safety, and health. MethodsIn September 2015, two school start time changes were implemented in Fairfax County (VA) Public Schools: a 50-minute delay (to 8:10 am) for high schools and secondary schools and a 30-minute advance (to 7:30 am) for middle schools. We conducted cross-sectional surveys of students’ sleep, mood, self-regulation, health, and safety before (2017 students) and after (1180 students) these changes. ResultsAdjusted for confounders, a 50-minute delay was associated with a decreased prevalence of low mood (−4.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −8.2%, −1.2%), drowsy driving, (−8.4%; 95% CI: −15.9%, −0.9%), and skipping breakfast (−4.2%; 95% CI: −8.1%, −0.2%) but no other significant changes. There were no significant changes associated with a 30-minute advance. ConclusionsA 50-minute delay in school start time in high schools and secondary schools was associated with a decreased prevalence of low mood, drowsy driving, and skipping breakfast. A 30-minute advance in start time in middle schools was not associated with any appreciable changes.

Using Instruction-Embedded Formative Assessment to Predict State Summative Test Scores and Achievement Levels in Mathematics

If we wish to embed assessment for accountability within instruction, we need to better understand the relative contribution of different types of learner data to statistical models that predict scores and discrete achievement levels on assessments used for accountability purposes. The present work scales up and extends predictive models of math test scores and achievement levels from existing literature and specifies six categories of models that incorporate information about student prior knowledge, socio-demographics, and performance within the MATHia intelligent tutoring system. Linear regression, ordinal logistic regression, and random forest regression and classification models are learned within each category and generalized over a sample of 23,000+ learners in Grades 6, 7, and 8 over three academic years in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. After briefly exploring hierarchical models of this data, we discuss a variety of technical and practical applications, limitations, and open questions related to this work, especially concerning to the potential use of instructional platforms like MATHia as a replacement for time- consuming standardized tests.

Evidence to Support Universal Blood Pressure Screening in School-Based Clinical Settings

Objective: The majority of elevated blood pressure (BP) in children/adolescents remains undiagnosed. The American Academy of Pediatrics states there is limited evidence to support school-based measurement of children's BP. We explored the clinical/public health utility of providing BP screening in school health clinics. Methods: A cross-sectional sample of 4096 students ages 6-to-17 from Title 1 Miami-Dade County Public Schools (50% female, 71% non-Hispanic Black, 26% Hispanic, mean age 12.0 [CI 95%: 11.90-12.09]) had their …

Coach's delegation of duty to student violated FERPA

Case name: Letter to: Orange County Public Schools (FPCO 10/03/16).

Student, Neighborhood, and School Factors and Their Association With College Readiness: Exploring the Implementation of a Race- and Socioeconomic-Based Student Assignment Plan

In response to the Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education Supreme Court decision, Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) reconfigured the district’s race-based student assignment and implemented a race- and socioeconomic-based student assignment plan. Using hierarchical linear multiple regression, this study examined students’ backgrounds and school composition factors within a race- and socioeconomic-based assignment plan to determine their relationship with college and career readiness as measured by the ACT. We found that student race, participation in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), ACT PLAN performance, school composition, and neighborhood category were the largest and most consistent factors for predicting college and career readiness. African American students were at a disadvantage in each model compared with White students. Participation in NSLP was negatively associated with student performance compared with non-NSLP students, and PLAN scores positively predicted ACT performance. School composition was found negatively associated with ACT performance (Title I compared with non–Title I schools), and Category 1 and Category 2 neighborhoods were negatively associated with ACT scores compared with Category 3 neighborhoods. We conclude by discussing implications for policy, practice, and future research.

Socioeconomic-Based School Assignment Policy and Racial Segregation Levels: Evidence From the Wake County Public School System

In the wake of political and legal challenges facing race-based integration, districts have turned to socioeconomic integration initiatives in an attempt to achieve greater racial balance across schools. Empirically, the extent to which these initiatives generate such balance is an open question. In this article, we leverage the school assignment system that the Wake County Public School System employed throughout the 2000s to provide evidence on this issue. Although our results show that Wake County Public School System’s socioeconomic-based assignment policy had negligible effects on average levels of segregation across the district, it substantially reduced racial segregation for students who would have attended majority-minority schools under a residence-based assignment policy. The policy also exposed these students to peers with different racial/ethnic backgrounds, higher mean achievement levels, and more advantaged neighborhood contexts. We explore how residential context and details of the policy interacted to produce this pattern of effects and close the article by discussing the implications of our results for research and policy.

The Effects of Physical Resources on the Implementation of Inclusive Education in Public Secondary Schools – Kenya

Educational frameworks and Kenyan constitutions mandate schools to adopt; design and implement programmes that support inclusive education. Despite the inclusive education policy, disability remains a major course of exclusion in public secondary schools in Kenya. The study evaluated the influence physical resources towards the implementation of inclusive education in Kenyan schools. The study employed mixed method research design which uses both qualitative and quantitative methods. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 201 respondents from 18 extra-county and county public secondary schools that had enrolled learners with physical disabilities. Quantitative data was collected using questionnaires while qualitative data was collected through interviews and focus group discussions. A t-test was used to test the significance and determine whether to reject or accept the study hypotheses. An analysis of the findings indicated significant relationships between physical resources and implementation of inclusive education. The Linear Model showed a moderate positive correlation between human resource and inclusion. The model further showed that the rate of physical resource accounted for some variation towards the implementation of inclusive education. Creating an inclusive school where physical resources are modified and restructured to respond to learner diversity is a complex process with many inter-related elements. The schools should have a collaborative approach by creating back-up partnerships with parents, the community and disability associations. There is a need mobilize all key stakeholders to modify physical resources in order to overcome barriers that hamper access and participation in the learning process