A dissertation completed at The Center for Education, Widener University, One University Place, Chester, PA 19013
The intensive scheduling model at Coatesville Area Intermediate and Senior High Schools: student behavior changes William Brunson, Ed. D. November 3, 2003
RETURN edited 5/20/04

ABSTRACT

Because the school schedule has become one of the primary administrative tools for an instructional leader and the school team, this study proposed an investigation of the process of restructuring the traditional schedule to an intensive scheduling system.

It is assumed that intensive scheduling would provide benefits to students and teachers. Lohr and McGrevin (1990) rightly identify the profound effect the daily schedule has on any high school. Whether students can receive the most appropriate instruction, whether a school's resources were in line with the goals of its curriculum, and whether time and space considerations supported the instructional program were all affected by the daily schedule's design, which permitted possibilities and set limitations on a school's academic program.

Research questions for this study are:

Question #1: At the Coatesville High School grades 11 and 12 and the Coatesville Intermediate School grades 9 and 10, what impact does intensive scheduling have on absence rate.

Question #2: At the Coatesville High School grades 11 and 12 and the Coatesville Intermediate School grades 9 and 10, what impact does intensive scheduling have on tardy referrals?

Question #3: At the Coatesville High school grades 11 and 12 and the Coatesville Intermediate School grades 9 and 10, what impact does intensive scheduling have on grade point average?

Question #4: At the Coatesville High School grades 11 and 12 and the Coatesville 111 Intermediate School grades 9 and 10, what impact does intensive scheduling have on students on the honor roll?

The schedule of any school, in a very real sense, should mirror the conscious instructional decisions of the faculty and administrators (Lohr and McGrevin, 1990). The schedule should be designed to resolve instructional problems. This study looks into the differences in student behavior, namely making the honor roll, academic achievement, number of times tardy, and the number of absences observed after the adoption of intensive scheduling.

The study can be considered descriptive research. Thus, the approach of this study examined the assumptions that the school officials made prior to the adoption of intensive scheduling. The study also identified and analyzed changes in student behavior following the adoption of the intensive scheduling model. Intensive scheduling was adopted under the assumption that teaching and learning would improve. In making the decision to adopt the intensive scheduling model, school officials felt that the reallocations of time in an intensive scheduling format at Coatesville would bring changes in student behavior indicating improved performance.

Intensive scheduling was identified by Cawelti (1994) as one of the seven primary indicators of major restructuring occurring at the high school level. Students (N = 2,090) in grades 9 through 12 during the school years 1994-1995, 1995- 1996, 1996-1997, and 1997-1998, respectively, comprised the population of interest. They are students at Coatesville High School and the Coatesville Intermediate School.

This study used SPSS Descriptive Program changes in academic progress, tardiness and absence referrals to evaluate longitudinally what could be attributed to intensive scheduling.

The finding of this study shows that in each case, intensive scheduling has an impact on student performance. The data seem to fall in the 90% confidence range of Chi square distribution, which approximates a normal distribution (bell curve). Chi varied from case to case (honor roll, absenteeism, tardiness, and grade point average change). In essence, intensive scheduling produced better student performance as compared to traditional scheduling. The same results are proven using T-test for absence and tardiness.

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