Abstract:
Improving student achievement is an ongoing challenge for schools with a great deal of data collected to ascertain improvement trends. In this thesis, possibilities for using this
achievement data to improve outcomes for students, through establishing academic
achievement targets was explored. Longitudinal achievement data were collected about students, over time and analysed for patterns and trends. This information was then used to formulate individual academic achievement targets for students in Year 9 and Year 11. All
the academic targets for the students incorporated an element of challenge and were intended to lift individual student performance but were not designed to be predictive. The targets (specifying standards, credits and levels of achievement) were then shared with students as part of an academic counselling programme. The study also explored classroom
teachers’ experiences of the target setting process in the subject areas of English and
mathematics.
The results indicated statistically significant higher achievement outcomes for
students with academic targets compared to those without such targets. The students involved in the intervention were 1.9 times more likely to gain the Level 1 National Certificate of Educational Achievement, than those students not in the intervention, when controlling for prior achievement, ethnicity and gender variables. In addition, being part of the intervention allowed those students who entered the school with a significantly lower intake score (as measured by the Middle Years Information System (MidYIS)) to be more
successful in gaining the Level 1 Certificate, than students in previous years. The quality of
achievement in Year 11 was also improved as measured by a grade point score in the subjects of English and mathematics. The study demonstrated the benefits of the systematic use of longitudinal achievement data as a basis for establishing achievement targets for students.
The teachers reported that discussing the targets with students helped improve
relationships between themselves and the students. However, the provision of targets did not change teaching practices and in some cases created an element of tension when teachers’ expectations of students conflicted with the targets established through the models
explained in the early parts of the study.