Date of Award

Fall 12-1-2008

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Educational Leadership

First Advisor

Joyce Fulford

Second Advisor

Joshua Powers

Third Advisor

Steve Gruenert

Abstract

This study was conducted to understand parental perspectives on mandatory academies (intersessions) in three alternative (year-round) calendar middle schools. The alternative calendar was implemented by the study school district to improve student performance and parent attitudes toward the education their children receive. Academics (intersessions) are the source of time added to improve student performance. The three middle schools are located in an urban school district in the Midwestern state of Indiana. The students who attend are from lower socio-economic homes; the majority of the students live in homes where the guardian is a single mother or a member of the family other than a parent. Sixty-six percent of students are achieving at one or more grade levels below their actual grade in Language Arts and Mathematics. Most studies conducted to determine parental perspectives have been done through the use of surveys. This study was able to understand parents in-depth via interviews and broadly as reflected in student performance and survey information made available by the study school district. Components of the Grounded Theory methodology were employed to collect data and report interview data results. The interview results revealed that parental attitudes toward their children's education in the three schools were impacted by the following findings: loss of summer vacation time, more time for learning, student academic improvement and communication with parents about academies.

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