Improving Academic Achievement of Underachieving Students in a Heterogeneous Classroom

This action research project implemented and evaluated a program to address the academic needs of all students in a heterogeneous classroom. The targeted population consisted of middle school students in a rural western Illinois community. Evidence of academic underachievement was documented by teacher observation, surveys, test scores, and student assignments. The 4-month intervention was multifaceted and included student goal setting, development of unit organizers, classroom grouping strategies, improved teacher-student contact time, the use of social skills, and the use of higher order thinking skills in problem-solving activities. Ten seventh and eighth graders identified as underachievers were studied over an 11-week period. Evaluation findings indicated that, following the intervention, the underachieving students were actively engaged in the learning process and took better responsibility for their learning. Nine of the ten students improved academic achievement during the intervention by about half a letter grade. (Contains 34 references.) Appendices include the teacher survey, unit goals of achievement, self-evaluation of unit progress: homework and class participation, and student questionnaire. (KB)