The purpose of this action research project was to determine if: (a) writing in student journals affected the grades of my students, and (b) if student attitudes were affected by writing in journals and receiving teacher feedback. The research was conducted during the third semester at Triton Regional High School with a total of 49 tenth-grade students enrolled in two Laboratory Biology classes. Students in one class wrote in journals about teacher-posed topics for five minutes on average of once per week. The topics were written to encourage personalization of learning and further interaction with science. An attitude survey was administered to both classes in the beginning and again at the end of the semester. Responses from the pre- and post-test surveys for both classes were compared, as were each students' second and third trimester grades. Data revealed no correlation between journal writing and achievement and a positive correlation between journal writing and student attitudes. Suggestions for further research and future use of journals in the classroom are discussed.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of this action research project was to determine if: (a) writing in student journals affected the grades of my students, and (b) if student attitudes were affected by writing in journals and receiving teacher feedback. The research was conducted during the third semester at Triton Regional High School with a total of 49 tenth-grade students enrolled in two Laboratory Biology classes. Students in one class wrote in journals about teacher-posed topics for five minutes on average of once per week. The topics were written to encourage personalization of learning and further interaction with science. An attitude survey was administered to both classes in the beginning and again at the end of the semester. Responses from the pre- and post-test surveys for both classes were compared, as were each students' second and third trimester grades. Data revealed no correlation between journal writing and achievement and a positive correlation between journal writing and student attitudes. Suggestions for further research and future use of journals in the classroom are discussed.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Cowell, Holly"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.S. in Teaching","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Cinaglia, Marianne"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2003,"date_issued":"2003-07-02T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2003-07-02T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:14:13Z","subjects":["Triton Regional High School (Runnemede, N.J.); Biology--Study and teaching; High school students--Diaries","Secondary Education and Teaching"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1280","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Cinaglia, Marianne"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Cowell, Holly"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2016-05-03T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.S. in Teaching"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Triton Regional High School (Runnemede, N.J.); Biology--Study and teaching; High school students--Diaries","Secondary Education and Teaching"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1280"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of this action research project was to determine if: (a) writing in student journals affected the grades of my students, and (b) if student attitudes were affected by writing in journals and receiving teacher feedback. The research was conducted during the third semester at Triton Regional High School with a total of 49 tenth-grade students enrolled in two Laboratory Biology classes. Students in one class wrote in journals about teacher-posed topics for five minutes on average of once per week. The topics were written to encourage personalization of learning and further interaction with science. An attitude survey was administered to both classes in the beginning and again at the end of the semester. Responses from the pre- and post-test surveys for both classes were compared, as were each students' second and third trimester grades. Data revealed no correlation between journal writing and achievement and a positive correlation between journal writing and student attitudes. Suggestions for further research and future use of journals in the classroom are discussed.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The effect of student journals on achievement in and attitudes toward science"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Cinaglia, Marianne"],"dc:creator":["Cowell, Holly"],"dc:date.available":["2016-05-03T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of this action research project was to determine if: (a) writing in student journals affected the grades of my students, and (b) if student attitudes were affected by writing in journals and receiving teacher feedback. The research was conducted during the third semester at Triton Regional High School with a total of 49 tenth-grade students enrolled in two Laboratory Biology classes. Students in one class wrote in journals about teacher-posed topics for five minutes on average of once per week. The topics were written to encourage personalization of learning and further interaction with science. An attitude survey was administered to both classes in the beginning and again at the end of the semester. Responses from the pre- and post-test surveys for both classes were compared, as were each students' second and third trimester grades. Data revealed no correlation between journal writing and achievement and a positive correlation between journal writing and student attitudes. Suggestions for further research and future use of journals in the classroom are discussed.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1280"],"dc:subject":["Triton Regional High School (Runnemede, N.J.); Biology--Study and teaching; High school students--Diaries","Secondary Education and Teaching"],"dc:title":["The effect of student journals on achievement in and attitudes toward science"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.S. in Teaching"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:14:13Z"}