HR: 1330h
AN: ED13A-03    [Abstracts]
TI: Selected Science Educational Outcomes as a Function of South Dakota Educational Reform Policies 1995-2004
AU: * Hsu, T
EM: thsu@usd.edu
AF: University of South Dakota, 414 Clark St., Vermillion, SD 57069 United States
AU: Tien, K C
EM: ktien@ufl.edu
AF: University of Florida, PO Box 110570, Gainesville, FL 32611 United States
AB: This research investigates selected South Dakota science educational outcomes as a function of selected educational reform policies. In the state of South Dakota, echoing divergent reform initiatives from "A Nation at Risk" to "No Child Left Behind," new guidelines and requirements have been instituted. Yet, very little effort has been made to assess the progress of these educational changes. In this study, selected educational outcomes-SAT8/9/10 scores-as a function of selected South Dakota educational reform policies were examined. School districts, ranked in the top and bottom five percent of socioeconomic status (SES) in the state, were selected for analysis. Comparison on student's science educational outcomes was also be made between the two major ethnic populations-Caucasians and Native Americans. All research questions were stated in the null form for hypothesis for statistical testing. Critical t was the statistic technique used to test the hypotheses. The findings revealed that the selected reform policies in South Dakota appeared to assist students from the higher socioeconomic backgrounds to perform better than pupils from the lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The academic performance for the ethnic and social class minorities remained unchanged within the study timeline for reform. Examined from the prism of Michael Apple's critical theory, the selected South Dakota reform policies have paid little attention to the issues of social equality. Continuing and collective efforts to promote equitable reform policies for enhancing the learning experience of all children in South Dakota seem necessary.
DE: 0840 Evaluation and assessment
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly