A dissertation completed at
The , Widener University,
One University Place, Chester, PA 19013 		 
IMMERSION: A CONSIDERATION OF SELECTED VARIABLES OF SINGLE GENDER MALE CLASSES AT HATCH MIDDLE SCHOOL, CAMDEN, NJ, 1995-96
Willie Howard Maddox, Jr., Ed. D.
August 1999

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edited 12/21/00

 


ABSTRACT

According to S. 113 8, Legislation (1993), initially submitted by former U. S. Senator John Danforth, the Secretary of Education should be given "...discretion to allow experimentation with same gender education in low income, educationally disadvantaged areas.." It further states that a purpose of this legislation is "...to determine whether same gender classes make a difference in the educational achievement and opportunities of low income, educationally disadvantaged individuals" (S. 1138). The goal of the bill was to provide a waiver exempting selected school districts from adherence to some civil rights statutes which prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex.

The Danforth Bill sprang from an educational concept referred to as "immersion." Immersion is the theory which advances the notion that classes composed of all African American males characterized by intensive student-teacher relationships, and a focus on multicultural education will increase male self-esteem, strengthen educational achievement and, subsequently, lower the drop out rate (Dunkel, 1991). It is an intervention which many believe will improve educational outcomes. The opportunities offered by American society are inextricably linked to an individual's level of educational attainment. Gordon and Nembhard (1995) indicate that he African American male has experienced tremendous problems in achieving academic success. As a result, many African American males' upward mobility has been thwarted. It is a problematic situation which leads to negative psychosocial, political and economic consequences. When considering that America spends $8.9 billion annually on incarcerated African Americans, one can posit the theory that the educational problems of the African American male are the problems of America.

The study provides data relative to immersion or single gender education. The research was conducted at Hatch Middle School and Camden High School in Camden, NJ. The gathered data were on the Hatch Middle School "Class of 1996," which received immersion and mixed gender education during the 1995 - 96 school year. Additional data was gathered at Camden High School when the class re-entered mixed gender education during the 1996 - 97 school year. A focus was placed on variables such as: grade level; gender; achievement test scores; academic achievement; attendance; and punctuality. In this project, quantitative measures were used to evaluate the possible effects of immersion, or single gender instruction, on the selected variables. Data was gathered utilizing guidance files, attendance records, student report cards, and other resources from the Camden City School District Office of Research and Technology. A random sampling of students was assessed for significance.

The findings indicate that on most variables the African American males assigned to the single gender class were similar to the males assigned to the mixed gender class. This similarly existed at both the 8th and 9th grade levels. At the 8th grade level, significant differences were found in marking period grades in the language arts, reading and math subject areas. Also, a significant difference existed in the math portion of the California Achievement Tests/5. Although many differences numerically favored the single gender African American male classes, often the differences were insignificant and cannot be generalized to the African American male population.

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