Book Description

The relationship between frequent mobility and student achievement is complex. While studies have shown that frequent mobility may have a detrimental effect on student achievement, the suggestion that poverty is an underlying cause for poor academic progress has been proposed (Buerkle and Christenson, 1999; United States GAO Report, 2010). The purpose of this dissertation project was to study frequent mobility and its possible connection to achievement and literacy. The author has compiled research concerning the relationship between student mobility, socio-economic level and academic achievement (Burkham, Lee, and Dwyer, 2009; Daneshvary, 2005; Eddy, 2011; Necati, 2006; A Report from the Kids Mobility Project, 1998). The study employed the definition of highly mobile as students who change school enrollment three or more times before the end of third grade for reasons other than promotion to the next grade. The author has investigated research regarding the development of literacy, and the current brain science informing the teaching of reading through code-focused instruction that is developmentally designed (Connor, et al., 2011). The purpose of the literacy investigation is to determine the effects experienced by students whose educational experience is disrupted by frequent enrollment changes creating the possibility that they will miss essential pieces of instruction and skill training that are regarded as crucial steps in the developmental hierarchy of reading acquisition. This quantitative study was conducted on data compiled from the entering fourth grade population of an urban, northwest Ohio, school district to determine whether a relationship exists between frequent mobility before the end of the third grade and the mastery of early literacy skills. The data analysis findings were reviewed for each subscore of the fourth grade DIBELS Next assessment for 533 students. In addition to the descriptive statistics, a Chi-square test and multiple linear regressions were performed to determine whether an association exists between socio-economic status and mobility status. The findings of this study establish strong evidence in two areas. First, on average, students who were frequently mobile during the first three years of school scored lower in reading comprehension and on an overall composite score than did students who were identified as stable. Second, the study establishes that frequent mobility during grades kindergarten through three affects student academic achievement most profoundly in the area of reading comprehension, regardless of socio-economic level.