Gaddie, K. Jennifer
Abstract:
The purpose of this research was to determine whether a relationship existsbetween student achievement in communication arts and each of the following:perceptions of school climate by faculty, perceptions of school climate by parents, andperceptions of school climate by students. This quantitative study used purposivesampling from low-income Missouri elementary schools that had completed the MissouriSchool Improvement Program (MSIP), cycle four, and participated in the AdvancedQuestionnaire (AQ) during the academic year, 2010-2011. The sample included 58Missouri elementary schools. The independent variables in this study were the faculty,student, and parent perceptions of school climate as measured by the climate scale datafrom the MSIP Advanced Questionnaire. The numerical dependent variable was thepercentage of students scoring in the Proficient or Advanced range of the communicationarts Missouri Assessment Program test. A Pearson correlation coefficient was calculatedto determine the strength and relationship between each of the pairs of independent anddependent variables. The results of the data analysis indicated no statistically significantrelationship between students’ perceptions of school climate and student achievement incommunication arts in low-income Missouri schools, a marginally significant positiverelationship between faculty perceptions of school climate and student achievement incommunication arts in low-income Missouri schools, and a marginally significantpositive relationship between parents’ perceptions of school climate and studentachievement in communication arts in low-income Missouri schools. Recommendationsfor further research include expanding the study to include all elementary schools inMissouri and expand the study to include the area of mathematics achievement. Additionally, school administrators can analyze the self-efficacy scale on the MSIPAdvanced Questionnaire to determine the relationships between school climate andstudent achievement.