Date of Award
2012
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Abraham S. Fischler College of Education
Advisor
Karen Kimball
Committee Member
Lucille Beisner
Committee Member
Ronald P. Kern
Keywords
academic performance, achievement, at-risk students, attitudes toward science, experimental research, gender, Grade 5, integrated curriculum, low-income students, mentors, mentoring, minority students, perceptions, pretest-posttest, questionnaire, race, science achievement, science experiments, science mentoring program, science programs, socioeconomic status, student attitudes, test performance, 15-week program
Abstract
This applied dissertation was designed to test the theory that a comprehensive science mentoring program would help low income, minority, and other at-risk students improve their attitudes toward science and their test performance in science in Grade 5. The study research questions focused on (a) How did mentoring improve achievement in science? (b) What evidence illustrated whether those students mentored in science showed improvement in perceptions or experiences? (c) How did the students’ attitudes and appreciation change by the end of the mentoring program?
The researcher used an experimental research design for a single group. The design included pretest-posttest. Participants in the study were 10 boys and 10 girls in Grade 5 in a school in the Midwest located in a midsized suburb adjacent to a large metropolitan area. Selected students participated in a Saturday mentoring program centered on science, the independent variable, for a period of 15 weeks. Dependent variables were defined as academic performance on a test of science achievement and scores on a questionnaire measuring attitude toward science. Intervening variables were defined as gender, socioeconomic status, race, and ethnicity.
As a result of their participation in the Saturday mentoring program on science, students exhibited higher achievement in science from pretest to posttest achievement scores and improved their attitudes about science.