Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to determine whether there was a significant difference between the middle school at-risk students who have participated in the Model Arts Program for two years and middle school at-risk students who have not participated in the Model Arts Program for two years in the areas of: (1) student academic achievement measured by the California Standards Tests, English-Language Arts and Mathematics, (2) student attendance measured by absence occurrences, and (3) student discipline measured by suspension occurrences. Methodology. Descriptive research methodology was used. This study examined two independent variables and six dependent variables, and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the t-test of difference for independent samples were used to analyze data. Findings. Females, as a group, performed better than males on their sixth grade CST tests. Following the second year of the Model Arts Program, the MAP group (males and females) and MAP females performed significantly higher than the non-MAP group and non-MAP females on the 2004 CST English-Language Arts in seventh grade. Similarly, MAP females and MAP males performed significantly higher on the 2004 CST Mathematics Test after two years of arts education. MAP females had a higher mathematics mean than all other groups. Attendance data collected indicated non-MAP students were absent three days less than MAP students. It must be considered that incomplete data may have contributed to the imprecise representation of attendance and suspension findings. Conclusions. One year of an arts education program did not result in a significant academic performance by the treatment group on standardized tests. However, the treatment group outperformed the control group after a second year of the program in English-Language Arts and Mathematics. Recommendations. Further research is advised. It is recommended that future studies be conducted to determine what types of programs contribute to student achievement, and that case studies designed to examine arts education programs and the reasons for absenteeism and suspension be carried out. It is also recommended that an arts program over time be examined, and that a commitment to the arts be kept alive for all students.