Date of Conferral
1-27-2025
Degree
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
School
Education
Advisor
Andrea Wilson
Abstract
Services at the local disciplinary alternative education program (DAEP) include counseling and behavioral services to referred secondary students, aiming to improve their behavior. The problem addressed in this quantitative study was that a DAEP was in place in the local district since 2009, but there had been no formal assessment to determine whether differences in student discipline occurred in the semester before and the semester after students attended the DAEP. Guided by Bandura’s social cognitive theory, the purpose of this ex post facto, causal-comparative, quasi-experimental study was to investigate if there was a difference in student discipline as measured by the number of discipline referrals (DRs) and the number of suspension incidents (SIs) in the semester before and the semester after students’ attendance in a DAEP while controlling for students’ length of stay in the alternative education program. Deidentified archival discipline data for 72 middle and high school students who attended the DAEP were included in the census sample. Data were analyzed using a repeated measures ANCOVA. Results indicated no statistically significant difference (p = .096) in the number of DRs and a statistically significant decrease (p < .001) in the number of SIs in the semester before and the semester after students attended the DAEP. Mean number of SIs decreased by 1.25 suggesting improvement in occurrence of severe incidents. Findings were used to develop a policy recommendation with details for enhancing services at the DAEP to improve student discipline outcomes. The study helps inform the local district’s procedures, allowing school leaders to make data-driven decisions to strengthen discipline practices and improve student outcomes creating the potential for positive social change over time.
Recommended Citation
Gallaway, Alicia Michelle, "Assessing the Influence of an Eastern State's Disciplinary Alternative Education Program on Secondary Student Behavior" (2025). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 16955.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/16955
