Date Approved
4-29-2003
Embargo Period
5-2-2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A. in School Administration
Department
Educational Services and Leadership
College
College of Education
Advisor
Kern, Robert
Subject(s)
Education, Secondary--Research; High school students--Attitudes
Disciplines
Elementary and Middle and Secondary Education Administration
Abstract
Students in large schools are getting lost. In a school of over 2300 students, it is very easy for a student, who does not excel academically or athletically or those students who gain attention through negative behavior, to blend into the student body for four years without being noticed. Across the nation the move to create smaller learning communities has been an attempt to solve the ills that plague our inner city schools. The intended question of this study is whether or not the smaller learning communities will have the same measurable impact in a suburban district.
The data collected and analyzed were measures of academic achievement, student discipline and student feelings towards the school. Lenape Regional High School District is a regional high school district located in Burlington County, in the southern part of New Jersey. Cherokee, the third largest high school in the Lenape District, implemented a small learning community set up in the fall of 2000.
The data collected revealed that in three of the four data sets, the creation of a small learning community had a detrimental effect on students, manifested as increased suspensions, lower attendance, and a slight decrease in GPA.
Recommended Citation
Campbell, Matthew G., "Analysis of small learning communities on suburban schools" (2003). Theses and Dissertations. 1269.
https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1269
