The validity of grade 5 and 8 placement committee decisions for predicting high school graduation

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorHemmer, Lynn
dc.contributor.authorRichardson-Guartuche, Kandee
dc.contributor.committeeMemberKouzekanani, Kamiar
dc.contributor.committeeMemberElliff, D. Scott
dc.contributor.committeeMemberTejeda-Delgado, Carmen
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5698-7375
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5698-73750000-0001-5698-7375https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5698-7375
dc.creator.orcid0000-0001-5698-7375en_US
dc.date.accessioned2020-11-08T17:26:11Z
dc.date.available2020-11-08T17:26:11Z
dc.date.issued2020-08
dc.description.abstractGrade-level retention and social promotion are complex issues which have long-lasting repercussions for children. Policy development and implementation for grade-level retentions have been the subject of reform efforts at the international, national, and state levels. As a response to national political trends in favor of halting social promotion, Texas responded by instating strict guidelines for grade-level retention at Grades 5 and 8. The Student Success Initiative (SSI) mandated the implementation of the Grade Placement Committee (GPC). The GPC determines whether to advance a student to the next grade who had unsuccessfully attempted the state assessment three times. The research on the GPC decision and its link to high school graduation is limited. The purpose of the study was to determine the criterion-related validity of GPC decisions in 5th and 8th grades in predicting high school graduation, controlling for selected demographics and special programs. The following research questions guided this study: (1) To what extent does the Grade Placement Committee (GPC) decision in the 5th grade predict high school graduation?; and (2) To what extent does the Grade Placement Committee (GPC) decision in the 8th grade predict high school graduation? The study employed a correlational design and was predictive in nature. Due to non-experimental nature of the study, no causal inferences were drawn. A sample of Grade 5 (2009–2010) and Grade 8 (2012–2013) students was obtained from the Texas Education Agency (TEA). Two Binary Logistic Regression (BLR) (Field, 2018) analyses were performed to examine the unique contribution of the GPC in predicting graduation after controlling the demographics and special programs variables. After controlling for the confounding variables of gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, special education status, and limited English proficiency status, the GPC decision was a statistically significant predictor of the outcome measure, which was not surprising because of the large sample sizes that enabled the detection of small effects; however, its practical significance/explained variation was limited. The GPC promotion decision seemed to be a better predictor of graduation at 8th grade compared to 5th grade. The implications of the study are substantial for practitioners because the GPC policy continues to be implemented in Texas in Grades 5 and 8 even though the majority of students are promoted. The theoretical framework selected for the study was Critical Policy Analysis (CPA) (Young & Diem, 2017). The results are discussed in the context of this framework. Immediate and sustained systemic changes are needed, specifically an overhaul of the GPC process should be considered.en_US
dc.description.collegeCollege of Education and Human Developmenten_US
dc.description.departmentEducational Leadership, Curriculum & Instructionen_US
dc.format.extent134 pagesen_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1969.6/89110
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.rightsThis material is made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used should be fully credited with its source. All rights are reserved and retained regardless of current or future development or laws that may apply to fair use standards. Permission for publication of this material, in part or in full, must be secured with the author and/or publisher.en_US
dc.rights.holderRichardson-Guartuche, Kandee
dc.subjectgrade placement committeeen_US
dc.subjectgrade-level retentionen_US
dc.subjectgrades 5 and 8en_US
dc.subjectsocial promotionen_US
dc.subjectstudent success initiativeen_US
dc.subject.lcsheducational leadershipen_US
dc.titleThe validity of grade 5 and 8 placement committee decisions for predicting high school graduationen_US
dc.typeTexten_US
dc.type.genreDissertationen_US
dcterms.typeText
thesis.degree.disciplineEducational Leadershipen_US
thesis.degree.grantorTexas A & M University--Corpus Christien_US
thesis.degree.levelDoctoralen_US
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Educationen_US

Files

Original bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Richardson-Guartuche_Kandee_dissertation.pdf
Size:
1.49 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download

License bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.72 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description:
Download

Collections

Dissertations
College of Education and Human Development Theses and Dissertations