| Student survey responses from one urban high school in Columbus, Ohio were studied to isolate evidence of the possible differences in and relationships between student perceptions about their high school educational experience in a trimester block scheduling environment when the students are grouped on the basis of variables such as grade level, parental education, sex, race, grade point average, status on passage of proficiency tests, educational and work goals, and graduation. This study sought to fill a gap in the literature about high school block scheduling with information segmented on the basis of particular student characteristics.; Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data from a convenience sample of 637 students. Student responses on a three-point Likert-like scale were summed to obtain a perception score. The dependent variables formed by a data reduction factor analysis were as follows: (1) Perceptions about learning activities and climate; (2) Atypical types of assessment; (3) Typical types of assessment and teacher expectations; (4) Instructional resources. Analyses of variance were conducted, and the relationships measured using an Eta or comparable coefficient. The linear combination of all the independent variables was also regressed on each dependent variable. The major findings can be summarized as follows: (1) Like those reported in the literature, students' perceptions of their high school educational experience in a block scheduling environment were positive, both overall and about numerous specific aspects. Although small, several of the differences were statistically significant (p < .05) and revealed interpretable response patterns. Independent variables exhibiting statistical significance with respect to at least one of the dependent variables include grade level, grade point average, high school work patterns, sex, and education and work goals. Grade level was significant for all four dependent variables; (2) Of the dependent variables, perceptions about learning activities and climate accounted for the greatest amount of variance, 11.8%; (3) The strength of the correlation of the dependent and independent variables was very low.; The major conclusion is that students, regardless of their different identified characteristics, find their experience in a trimester block scheduling environment in an urban high school to be congenial and beneficial. |
