An investigation of academic achievement, discipline, and attendance of students enrolled in an alternative schoo

Trends show a steady increase in the number of students served in alternative schools. The successful transition of students from alternative schools to reintegration in traditional schools is critical for educational leaders, teachers, parents, and policymakers.;The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an alternative educational program on the academic achievement, disciplinary behavior, and attendance of students. The variables identified data on students enrolled in traditional school settings prior to enrollment in an alternative school setting and after enrollment in the alternative school setting. Descriptive statistics, frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, correlations, and dependent sample t-tests were used to analyze the data in order to respond to the three research questions.;The study found that the majority of the students in the selected school district who were enrolled in an alternative school were Black, male, participated in free and reduced lunch, and were in 8th or 9th grades.;The first research question sought to determine if there were significant differences in students' academic achievement as measured by students' average of course grades before and after enrollment in an alternative school. The mean score for the students' academic grades before enrollment in the alternative school was 72.321, and the mean score for the students' academic grades after enrollment in the alternative school was 70.073. The mean scores were slightly higher for the students before they entered the alternative school. There was no significant difference found between the paired sample means of students' grade averages before and after enrollment in the alternative school.;The second research question investigated if there were significant differences in students' disciplinary referrals before and after enrollment in an alternative school. The findings from the study indicated that the students' mean score after attendance was lower. There was a significant difference between the paired samples means for the number of students' disciplinary referrals before enrollment in an alternative school and after enrollment in an alternative school. In general, the number of students' disciplinary referrals was found to be less after enrollment in the alternative school.;The third research question sought to determine if there were a significant difference in students' attendance as measured by number of days absent before and after enrollment in an alternative school. The result of the paired sample t-test was not significant. There was not a significant difference between the paired sample means for the students' attendance before enrollment in the alternative school and after enrollment in the alternative school.;General recommendations were made for administrators, teachers, and policymakers. Recommendations for future research included other variables and longitudinal studies.