Attached is a sample dissertation. Chapter 3 needs to be written very similar because I'm using the same exact E-Delphi approach. My dissertation is also attached.
A Consensus Review of Strategies and Techniques Using Best Practices to Increase Summer Reading Growth: Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Please fill this inComment by Gretchen Stampley: Filled in A QUALITATIVE E-DELPHI STUDY by Gretchen Carter Copyright 2021 A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Educational Leadership University of Phoenix Introduction Summer reading growth is essential for students to sustain skills and knowledge acquired during the previous academic season. Students experience a loss in mathematics, but economically disadvantaged students face a more considerable loss in reading (Bowers & Schwarz, 2017). The academic achievement gap is a significant problem in the United States. Summer learning loss adds to an academic achievement gap (Seawright, 2017). Summer learning loss occurs at a traditional middle school in the southwestern United States (Beach et al., 2018). Comprehension is a significant part of the learning curve. According to research, children who engage in summer reading initiatives enhance their reading comprehension and, therefore, perform better in academic subjects than those who do not engage in such an initiative (Bowers & Schwarz, 2017). The Southwest school district has provided unlimited resources for literacy development throughout the summer. However, the case under study still experiences summer learning loss among its students, even with the emphasis placed on literacy.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Learned recently all identifying information now needs removed so use a pseudonym for this Comment by Gretchen Stampley: district This chapter provides the background and implications of academic summer school reading programs for elementary school students with explicit stress on a summer curriculum hosted by a Southwest school district. The subject of summer reading programs and the impact on tutorial performance in reading is mentioned as relevant to the planned study. The problem, providing the premise for the study, the statement of purpose, guiding analysis questions, and the nature of the study are conferred during this chapter. The chapter concludes with an announcement of significance and a presentation of relevant terms.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Same idea here replace all of these with just SW stateComment by Gretchen Stampley: a southwest school district Background of the Problem Educators have noticed that children from low-socioeconomic backgrounds experience significant gaps in learning during the summer months compared to their peers. Furthermore, the gaps will only widen over time (Campbell et al., 2019). The summer reading setback accounts for about 80% of the reading achievement difference, contributing to this disparity (Campbell et al., 2019). Children accelerate at the same rate of learning during the school year. As a group, the reading achievement of low-socioeconomic students typically declines during the summer vacation period, while the reading achievement of children from more economically advantaged families holds steady or increases modestly. Extended vacations from formal education take students away from the classroom's regular learning blueprint and into a period when they are less likely to participate in official literacy programs (Chin et al., 2020). Parents reading with their children, plus the availability and use of reading resources, are all part of a healthy home literacy environment. Different degrees of parental participation in a home learning environment and a child's lack of participation with texts during a prolonged vacation might help evaluate probable variables leading to summer reading setbacks (Chin et al., 2020). Reading declines in early elementary grades show that, despite significant reading gains established in kindergarten and first grade, the summer session between first and second grade is particularly problematic for students who do not have opportunities to engage with reading during summer recess (Seawright, 2017). The lasting impact of low reading abilities in early grades is associated with low, middle, and high school achievement. Therefore, the implications of reading loss must be addressed (Beach et al., 2018). Comprehensive information for parents through a user-friendly guide is the most appropriate method to address this issue. Summer reading loss is well documented and is more persistent among students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds who are already at risk for academic failure (de Groot, 2021). Declines in academic achievement during summer break are more prevalent and consistent for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds than students from middle and higher socioeconomic classes (Campbell et al., 2019). Over time, the breach amplifies and leads to an achievement gap among students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. This issue has caused policymakers, school districts, and other stakeholders throughout the United States to debate formal year-round education for elementary and middle school students (Seawright, 2017). In a typical school calendar, summer break for students averages 12 weeks (about three months); this equates to a significant length of time when the educational process is interrupted. During this time away from the structure and reinforcements of the regular school day, home and family variables have influenced reading growth or regression in young students (Campbell et al., 2019). For example, in a 12-week layoff, early learners who lack access to print with little opportunity to read the text at their independent levels will often experience regression in fluency and comprehension skills (Hillier, 2021). This regression is often seen in students from disadvantaged homes (McDaniel et al., 2017). Many parents from higher socioeconomic backgrounds provide reading enrichment and continuous learning for their children during the summer (Beach et al., 2018). Students who do not continuously learn throughout the summer could lose up to three months of reading progress, setting them further behind for the new academic school year (Campbell et al., 2019). Summer vacation inequalities in educational opportunities and outcomes lead to uneven learning gains (Seawright, 2017). Limited book access, difficulties self-selecting books, the school calendar, socioeconomic status, and the amount of information retained over the summer are all reasons for student reading digressions (Capotosto, 2019). Further investigation is needed to explore strategies to keep students engaged in reading growth throughout the summer to prevent reading growth loss in the Southwest rural, low-socioeconomic school district. There is no consensus in the research literature regarding the best strategies and techniques used to increase summer reading growth (Capotosto, 2019). In addition, there are no available research studies regarding effective practices to increase summer reading growth. This study addresses the gap in literature and aims to determine effective practices for closing the academic achievement gap that occurs during the summer within this school district.Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: citeComment by Gretchen Stampley: CitedComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Of what, finish this thought...Comment by Gretchen Stampley: practices to increase summer reading growth Problem StatementComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Wait, you have no problem statement in your problem statement section. Honestly, I would move all of this to the background of the problem as that was short and this is what was missing. Then see dissertation alignment guide to write a small section here that includes your problem statement in the context of your design and that is cited in current literature showing best industry practices have not been identified.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: section moved to the backgroundComment by Gretchen Stampley: added the problem statement The problem is students, on average, lose from a month up to three months, and overall, up to 25 to 30 percent of school-year learning over the summer break (Alexander et al., 2016; Atteberry & McEachin, 2016). Proponents of the faucet theory believe literacy gaps occur during the summer (McDaniel et al., 2017). Despite continued measures to close the achievement gap over the past decades, considerable disparities remain. On average, summer vacations produce an annual achievement gap of approximately three months between wealthy and poor students, biasing the students from the more economically advantaged families (Alexander et al., 2001). Higher-income students have the advantage of continued learning through vacation experiences and summer programming (Morgan et al., 2019). Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Ensure this is approved with URM in week 7 review.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: awaiting URM review feedbackComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Continue to work with URM in DOC741 to get this finalized for alignment Summer reading loss has been documented and is more tenacious among pupils from poor socioeconomic conditions who are already at risk of academic failure (Laurie et al., 2019). An academic analyst examined 13 epidemiological findings involving approximately 40,000 schoolchildren and discovered that, on average, the reading competency status of the pupils from lower-income households declined significantly during the summer season. In contrast, the reading competency levels of schoolchildren from middle-income households were enhanced (Capotosto, 2019). The availability of reading materials has long been recognized as a factor in differential reading development since students from low-income families frequently lack access to a home library and therefore do not have the required study material. Primary school reading slides reveal that despite massive reading improvements in preschool and kindergarten, summer activity between first and second grade is incredibly stressful for children, especially for children who do not have ways to be involved in reading throughout summer break (Nicholson & Tiru, 2019). Because poor reading in early elementary is related to lower high school attainment, the long-term consequences of reading decline must be acknowledged (McDaniel et al., 2017). Moreover, since no effective practices and strategies are available to close this summer reading loss gap completely, this e-Delphi study is being conducted. Purpose of the Study The purpose of this qualitative e-Delphi study is to gain consensus from a panel of education professionals on practical strategies and techniques to increase summer reading growth throughout the summer months in a rural, low-socioeconomic-status school district in southwest. The school district is a small, high-poverty school district in southwest Mississippi. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the efficient steps to sort this study loss problem. For this thorough literature review is conducted as suggested by (Volley, 2020). Understanding the research dedicated to summer reading loss is imperative when identifying ways to close the achievement gap (Volley, 2020). Later, through thorough analysis, suitable parameters to close this issue of summer study loss will be identified along with the strategies for effective implementation. Investigating the predictors of success in reading can improve students' academic achievement (Seawright, 2017). Population and SampleComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: This section still needs some work for clarity. I'm having to search and think through what you are saying to understand and am still not 100% sure I am clear on your intentions. Be very clear and organized with your writing and do not repeat information in different ways.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: Revised to clarify. The study population and the sample should meet the expertise requirements, including practical communication skills, education and experience on the issues, capacity, and compliance to participate, and enough time to complete the e-Delphi study (Volley, 2020). The sample population will consist of district-level administrators, literacy coaches, instructional coaches, interventionists, and the curriculum director. The sample for this study will be selected based on the following criterion: years in public school education with at least a minimum of ten years of experience as either a state or national board-certified teacher in reading, English, language arts, or English as a Second Language. Sample adequacy in qualitative inquiry pertains to the suitability of the sample configuration and size (Nicholson & Tiru, 2019). The sample size guidelines suggested a range between 15 and 20 interviews be adequate. The more useable data is collected from each person, the fewer participants are needed (Nodeland & Morris, 2018). This e-Delphi study will consist of a sample size of 12 to 15 that should provide satisfactory results (Nodeland & Morris, 2018). The minimum number of participants is dependent on the study design (Beach & Traga Philippakos, 2020). To achieve data saturation, a predetermined sample size of 12–15 education experts within the rural Southwest school district will be interviewed. If panel consensus is not achieved with the 15 participants, the researcher will go beyond this number if needed (Sampson, 2019).Comment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: The goal is for the data to become saturated not avoid this.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: Changed to avoid to forComment by Tiffani Bateman: Panel consensus opposed to saturationComment by Gretchen Stampley: changed to say panel consensusComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Yes, goodComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: You mentioned 20-30 in the first paragraph which is unclear.Comment by Gretchen Stampley: changed to reflect 15 and 20 Significance of the StudyComment by TIFFANI BATEMAN: Still needs more depth, review dissertation alignment guide and also ensure it is aligned to your designComment by Gretchen Stampley: added: The adverse outcomes of summer reading loss are noteworthy. Summer reading loss impacts students throughout their academic careers. Students who cannot read on grade level in the third grade are less likely to graduate by age 18 than those who read at or above grade level (Hernandez, 2012). The lasting implications of descending literacy rates extend to placement in high school classes, high school dropout rates, and college attendance (Smith, 2011). The results are even astounding for children who grow up and live in destitution. According to Alexander, Entwisle & Olsen (2007), children from disadvantaged backgrounds experienced significant gaps in learning during the summer months compared to their counterparts, and the gaps only continued to widen over time. Studies have shown that reading gaps widen each year between first and sixth grade if students are not supplied adequate intervention (O'Connell, 2020). Identifying the potential benefits of summer reading programs between the first and second grade year will provide guidance about how sufficiently to help students at risk for low reading achievement. The adverse outcomes of summer reading loss are noteworthy. Summer reading loss impacts students throughout their academic careers. Students who cannot read on grade level in the third grade are less likely to graduate by age 18 than those who read at or