Looping and Extended Learning Time: Effects on Secondary Academic Achievement in At-Risk Adolescents

Current research has been primarily qualitative on both looping and effective use of time in the classroom leaving a distinct lack of quantitative research on the effects of both on academic achievement in the high school classroom. Therefore, the intent of this study was to increase current understanding of looping, educational time, and academic success while providing high school educators with quantitative data regarding these effects. This quantitative, quasi-experimental study with a regression-discontinuity design (RDD) with non-equivalent groups examined the impact of two educational interventions, (a) ELT and (b) ELT plus looping on the academic achievement of 9th and 10th grade at-risk students from two cohorts, one that graduated in 2012 and one that graduated in 2013, from a suburban high school in Indiana. Archival data was obtained from student records and included student scores on (a) performance on the ISTEP+ tests for mathematics and language arts, (b) academic grades for first and second quarter in 8th grade math and language arts, (c) STAR math, (d) STAR reading assessments, and (e) cognitive skills testing for a composite pretest value and student scores on the English 10 and Algebra ECAs for the posttest value. The statistical analysis to test the hypotheses was produced by utilizing a Regression Discontinuity Design (RDD). For the Algebra ECA, students in the treatment group performed approximately 13 points (SD=10.90) higher (p ≤ 0.01), on average, after receiving the combined looping and ELT treatment as opposed to the expected scores had they not received the intervention. For the English 10 ECA, students in the treatment group performed approximately 31.6 points (SD=9.47) higher ( p ≤ 0.01), on average, after receiving the combined looping and ELT treatment as opposed to what would have been expected had they received no additional intervention.