Balanced Calendar versus Traditional Calendar: Measuring the Difference in Reading Academic Achievement among Kindergarten through Third-Grade Students Who Have Been Identified as Reading Below or Well-Below Grade Level
Abstract
School accountability is increasing with federal mandates. As public schools investigate
strategies to raise students’ achievement scores and graduation rates, some have implemented a
modified school calendar. Schools are focusing particularly on the academic success of students
from third-grade through twelfth-grades, as these are the grade level performances where
accreditation is determined. However, recent studies have shown that the most imperative work
happens in the primary grades, including a link between third-grade reading success and
graduation rates (Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2010). The purpose of this quantitative study was
to examine the relationship between reading achievement and the balanced or traditional school
calendar for Kindergarten through third-grade students who are considered to be reading below
or well-below grade level. This study examined the progress of 266 students who attended
schools using two types of school calendars in one suburban school district: the balanced
calendar and the traditional school calendar. The results for this study found that the relationship
was not statistically significant (p = .750) between growth of reading skills for struggling readers
in grades Kindergarten through third and the type of calendar used in the school that they
attended. There was, however, a deeper analysis that looked at groups of children and one
group, Kindergarten males, was found to be statistically significant (p = .470)
Table of Contents
Introduction -- Review of literature -- Methodology -- Results -- Discussion -- Appendix A. IRB approval form
Degree
Ed.D.