School-level resource allocation practices in elementary schools to increase student achievement

Schools aim to achieve high student performance outcomes that were never expected by society, government leaders, and many education professionals in the United States. They must educate students to achieve grade-level standards to proficient or advanced levels. Schools must achieve this goal with limited financial resources. California's public schools have been under-funded for decades. They now aim to achieve high standards of student performance with additional reductions made to their school budgets.;The focus of this study is on the resource use and allocation of schools that have increased student performance during times of on-going fiscal constraint. This dissertation focuses on the resource use and allocation practices of schools that have significant numbers of English learning and economically disadvantaged students. It has been a struggle for many schools with significant percentages of English learner and economically disadvantaged students to raise levels of student achievement on standardized tests. The study examines how schools have managed to increase these students' achievement by providing quality instructional programs while receiving fewer resources to fulfill their goals.;The study consisted of qualitative analyses of five elementary schools in the Southern California region as compared to the Picus-Odden Evidence-based Model. The major findings revealed that schools that have provided quality instructional programs to improve student achievement prioritized spending on professional development on evidence-based instructional strategies and immediate student interventions for struggling students. Findings also showed that the case study schools have reduced resource use and allocation for strategies that have improved student achievement in previous years due to on-going budget reductions.