Locate,
review, and
cite
two
University of Phoenix dissertations
completed within the past year that relate to your topic in the Theoretical or Conceptual Framework sections.
Develop
the Theoretical or Conceptual Framework section, in which you:
- Explain how the dissertations you located relate to the research design you have chosen.
- Ensure the selected theoretical or conceptual framework is a good fit for your study. Remember that a theoretical framework is typically used for a quantitative study to model the theoretical relationships between the variables; a conceptual framework is typically used for a qualitative study and consists of several theories that underpin the topic.
- Explain whether you are using a quantitative or a qualitative methodology as described above.
SAMPLE DISSERTATION TITLE: A QUALITATIVE E-DELPHI STUDY A Consensus Review of Strategies and Techniques Using Best Practices to Increase Summer Reading Growth by Gretchen Carter Copyright 2021 A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Educational Leadership University of Phoenix Introduction Summer reading growth is essential for students to sustain skills and knowledge acquired during the previous academic season. Students experience a loss in mathematics, but economically disadvantaged students face a more considerable loss in reading (Bowers & Schwarz, 2017). The academic achievement gap is a significant problem in the United States. Summer learning loss adds to an academic achievement gap (Seawright, 2017). Summer learning loss occurs at a traditional middle school in the southwestern United States (Beach et al., 2018). Comprehension is a significant part of the learning curve. According to research, children who engage in summer reading initiatives enhance their reading comprehension and, therefore, perform better in academic subjects than those who do not engage in such an initiative (Bowers & Schwarz, 2017). The Southwest school district has provided unlimited resources for literacy development throughout the summer. However, the case under study still experiences summer learning loss among its students, even with the emphasis placed on literacy.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Learned recently all identifying information now needs removed so use a pseudonym for this Comment by Gretchen Stampley: district This chapter provides the background and implications of academic summer school reading programs for elementary school students with explicit stress on a summer curriculum hosted by a Southwest school district. The subject of summer reading programs and their impact on tutorial performance in reading is mentioned as relevant to the planned study. The problem, providing the premise for the study, the statement of purpose, guiding analysis questions, and the nature of the study are conferred during this chapter. The chapter concludes with an announcement of significance and a presentation of relevant terms.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Same idea here replace all of these with just SW stateComment by Gretchen Stampley: a southwest school district Background of the Problem Educators have noticed that children from low-socioeconomic backgrounds experience significant gaps in learning during the summer months compared to their peers. Furthermore, the gaps will only widen over time (Campbell et al., 2019). The summer reading setback accounts for about 80% of the reading achievement difference, contributing to this disparity (Campbell et al., 2019). Children accelerate at the same rate of learning during the school year. As a group, the reading achievement of low-socioeconomic students typically declines during the summer vacation period, while the reading achievement of children from more economically advantaged families holds steady or increases modestly. Extended vacations from formal education take students away from the classroom's regular learning blueprint and into a period when they are less likely to participate in official literacy programs (Chin et al., 2020). Parents reading with their children, plus the availability and use of reading resources, are all part of a healthy home literacy environment. Different degrees of parental participation in a home learning environment and a child's lack of participation with texts during a prolonged vacation might help evaluate probable variables leading to summer reading setbacks (Chin et al., 2020). Reading declines in early elementary grades show that, despite significant reading gains established in kindergarten and first grade, the summer session between first and second grade is particularly problematic for students who do not have opportunities to engage with reading during summer recess (Seawright, 2017). The lasting impact of low reading abilities in early grades is associated with low, middle, and high school achievement. Therefore, the implications of reading loss must be addressed (Beach et al., 2018). Comprehensive information for parents through a user-friendly guide is the most appropriate method to address this issue. Summer reading loss is well documented and is more persistent among students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds who are already at risk for academic failure (de Groot, 2021). Declines in academic achievement during summer break are more prevalent and consistent for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds than students from middle and higher socioeconomic classes (Campbell et al., 2019). Over time, the breach amplifies and leads to an achievement gap among students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. This issue has caused policymakers, school districts, and other stakeholders throughout the United States to debate formal year-round education for elementary and middle school students (Seawright, 2017). In a typical school calendar, summer break for students averages 12 weeks (about three months); this equates to a significant length of time when the educational process is interrupted. During this time away from the structure and reinforcements of the regular school day, home and family variables have influenced reading growth or regression in young students (Campbell et al., 2019). For example, in a 12-week layoff, early learners who lack access to print with little opportunity to read the text at their independent levels will often experience regression in fluency and comprehension skills (Hillier, 2021). This regression is often seen in students from disadvantaged homes (McDaniel et al., 2017). Many parents from higher socioeconomic backgrounds provide reading enrichment and continuous learning for their children during the summer (Beach et al., 2018). Students who do not continuously learn throughout the summer could lose up to three months of reading progress, setting them further behind for the new academic school year (Campbell et al., 2019). Summer vacation inequalities in educational opportunities and outcomes lead to uneven learning gains (Seawright, 2017). Limited book access, difficulties self-selecting books, the school calendar, socioeconomic status, and the amount of information retained over the summer are all reasons for student reading digressions (Capotosto, 2019). Further investigation is needed to explore strategies to keep students engaged in reading growth throughout the summer to prevent reading growth loss in the Southwest Mississippi's rural, low-socioeconomic school district. There is no consensus in the research literature regarding the best strategies and techniques used to increase summer reading growth. In addition, there are no available research studies regarding effective practices to increase summer reading growth. This study addresses the gap in literature and aims to determine effective practices for closing the academic achievement gap that occurs during the summer within this school district.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Of what, finish this thought...Comment by Gretchen Stampley: practices to increase summer reading growth Problem StatementComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Wait, you have no problem statement in your problem statement section. Honestly, I would move all of this to the background of the problem as that was short and this is what was missing. Then see dissertation alignment guide to write a small section here that includes your problem statement in the context of your design and that is cited in current literature showing best industry practices have not been identified.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: section moved to the backgroundComment by Gretchen Stampley: added the problem statement The problem is that there are no effective practices available that can close the academic achievement gap that occurs during the summer within this school district and that is why the gap is continuously increasing. Proponents of the faucet theory believe literacy gaps occur during the summer (McDaniel et al., 2017). Despite continued measures to close the achievement gap over the past decades, considerable disparities remain. On average, summer vacations produce an annual achievement gap of approximately three months between wealthy and poor students, biasing the students from the more economically advantaged families (Alexander et al., 2001). Higher-income students have the advantage of continued learning through vacation experiences and summer programming (Morgan et al 2019). Summer reading loss has been well documented and is more tenacious among pupils from poor socioeconomic conditions who are already at risk of academic failure (Laurie et al., 2019). An academic analyst examined 13 epidemiological findings involving approximately 40,000 schoolchildren and discovered that, on average, the reading competency status of the pupils from lower-income households declined significantly during the summer season. In contrast, the reading competency levels of schoolchildren from middle-income households were enhanced (Capotosto, 2019). Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: You have to cite all of your claims Comment by Gretchen Stampley: cited The availability of reading materials has long been recognized as a factor in differential reading development, since students from low-income families frequently lack access to a home library and therefore do not have the required study material. An evaluation of primary school reading drops reveals that, despite massive reading improvements defined in preschool and kindergarten, the summer activity between second and first grade is incredibly stressful for children. Especially for children who do not have ways to be involved in reading throughout their summer break (Nicholson & Tiru, 2019). Because poor reading attributes in early elementary are related to lower high school attainment, the long-term consequences of reading decline must be acknowledged (McDaniel et al., 2017). Since there are no effective ways available so far that that can cover or close this summer loss completely, this e-Delphi study is conducted.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Break up paragraphs into 3-5 sentencesComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: For a delphi study The unknown nature of the problem must be stated in literature and the problem must be cited. You must make the case that the solution to the reading gap for disadvantaged students is not known clear here.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: added statement "Since there are no effective ways available so far that that can cover or close this summer loss completely, this e-Delphi study is conducted". Purpose of the Study The purpose of this qualitative e-Delphi study is to gain consensus from a panel of education professionals on practical strategies and techniques to increase summer reading growth throughout the summer months in a rural, low-socioeconomic-status school district in a southwest state. Socioeconomic status has a significant impact on summer learning loss, particularly in reading (Beach et al., 2018) but there are no effective measures that can resolve the issue of summer reading loss. The school district is a small, high-poverty school district in southwest Mississippi. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the efficient steps to sort this study loss problem. For this thorough literature review is conducted as suggested by (Volley, 2020). Understanding the research dedicated to summer reading loss is imperative when identifying ways to close the achievement gap (Volley, 2020). Later, through thorough analysis, suitable parameters to close this issue of summer study loss will be identified along with the strategies for effective implementation. Investigating the predictors of success in reading can improve students' academic achievement (Seawright, 2017).Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Ok so here, as you are stating this you are saying you already know what causes reading loss during the summer. You are saying that poverty causes reading loss over the summer essentially which I do not think is true. Even if it is what the literature says then you already know the cause of your problem. For this design you don't know the cause of reading loss for socioeconomically disadvantaged