An Analysis of Factors Correlated with the Achievement of the Goal Standard for the Science Portion of the Connecticut Academic Performance Test

This thesis is being archived as a Digitized Shelf Copy for campus access to current students and staff only. We currently cannot provide this open access without the author's permission. If you are the author of this work and desire to provide it open access or wish access removed please contact the Wahlstrom Library to discuss permission.This study sought to identify factors that could be used to predict the success of students on the science portion of the grade ten Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). While the Connecticut State Department of Education measures student achievement in mathematics, reading and writing in grades 4, 6, and 8, science is assessed only in the grade ten CAPT. Since the CAPT science test does not identify specific areas in need of improvement, it is not possible to determine causes for low test scores. To address this, the study investigated the predictive values of the grade eight Mastery Tests in mathematics and reading, the student ability scores of the Otis-Lennon School Ability Index, and grades in prior science courses. The research sample consisted of five hundred and twenty-five students, member of the graduating classes of 2000 and 2001 in a large suburban high school. Students in the study had participated in the district testing program and their scores for the grade seven Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT), the grade eight Connecticut Mastery Tests (CMT) and the grade ten Connecticut Academic Performance Tests (CAPT) were available for analysis. This study investigated correlations between student achievement on the CMT and the science subtest of the CAPT, between OLSAT scores and the CAPT science scores, and between grades in ninth grade science and CAPT science scores. Scores were disaggregated by gender and by course level. Hypotheses 1, 2, 3 and 4 investigated the Pearson Product Moment Correlations of the OLSAT, CMT and course grades with scores on the science portion of the CAPT. Hypothesis 5 compared the scores of male and female students, using the t-test of independent sample means. Calculations showed moderate correlations for hypotheses 1-4, and the hypotheses were accepted. Hypothesis 5 was accepted for one class and rejected for the other. On the whole, female students received higher course grades and lower standardized test grades. Recommendations included the use of reading strategies to improve comprehension, the inclusion of inquiry-based science activities in the curriculum, and the development of valid and reliable classroom assessments that allow students to apply their content knowledge in authentic tasks. The suggestion that cultural and social factors could account for differences in scores of male and female students warrants further study