| I Recent research on charter schools and schools with small enrollments showed that the dropout issue still existed in these places, albeit on a smaller scale. The reason for the continued poor performance of some students in small schools was unclear, but this study hypothesized that a small school structure was simply not enough---small schools still had to actively engage their students. Thus, this study sought to understand the effect of a pullout program on student engagement and on the adult participants' beliefs in sense of belonging. And lastly, this study determined which conditions of autonomy affected the design and implementation of the program.;My findings were based on student academic and attendance data, thirty-six survey responses from students and adults, eleven journals, seven meeting transcripts, and one interview with a principal. Although students in the intervention program did not improve their grades and attendance significantly, some of the students experienced milestones in their academic and personal development. The findings suggested that student relationships with adults inside and outside of classes did not improve, and the students ended up identifying with the intervention program, rather than with the school. The adult participants did believe strongly in creating a sense of belonging in students, but they also believed that, more importantly, the intervention process should have been individualized to address the particular needs of the students. The findings also showed that the design and implementation of the intervention benefited greatly from the autonomy of the school, but the limited resources of a small charter school hampered the process.;To help other small schools with the design and implementation of intervention programs, this study made the following recommendations: the intervention should help students create individualized education plans, and help teachers individualize their instruction; the intervention program should be closely integrated into the school; the school should institute systems to allow teachers and students to build positive relationships outside of class; the school should create opportunities for parents to participate in student learning at school; and small schools with a high degree of autonomy but limited resources should consider a focused intervention design with fewer components. |
