A Comparative Study of Year-Round and Traditional Calendar Schools in Chicago

<p>Restructuring the school calendar has been investigated by school districts as a possible way to increase student achievement in order to meet the standards of higher accountability. In order for districts to make sound and informed decisions about year-round schools and to evaluate the effectiveness of calendar differences; educators and administrators need to review the research on this subject. However, the research on year-round schools (YRS) can be misleading, biased, and inconclusive. While increased student achievement would arguably be of importance when researching YRS; demonstrating and reporting student achievement can be challenging.</p> <p>This study will investigate the academic achievement in year-round and traditional schools in Chicago, Illinois. This study is designed to determine if there is a difference in student achievement between year-round schools and traditional calendar schools as demonstrated on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT). This study matches 39 year-round schools in Chicago, Illinois, with 39 traditional schools that have student populations with similar geographic locations, socio-economic status, and ethnic backgrounds. The purpose of the study is to determine if the academic achievement of students in year-round schools is different than the achievement of students schooled on a traditional school calendar. Specifically, passing percentage averages in reading and math for third grade students will be compared between the 78 schools for the 2008-2009 school year. Subgroups of low-income and minority student achievement will also be examined in both types of schools.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

School of Education

Year dc:date.available

2010

Author dc:creator

• Winkelmann, Andrea Therese

• Educational Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/114

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ecommons.luc.edu:luc_diss-1113