A Mixed Methods Study of Some of the Factors Associated With Successful School Strategies for Native Hawaiian Students in the State of Hawai’i

Abstract

A concurrent mixed methods design, giving equal priority to both quantitative and qualitative methods, was used to investigate some of the factors that influence academic achievement of Native Hawaiian students in public schools in the state of Hawai’i. School-level instructional strategies, curricula, policies, and other variables that distinguish more successful schools from less successful schools were a primary focus of the study. Successful schools are those having collaborative school governance structures, linking decision structures to data, having a well-established and dedicated teaching force, having focused learning communities, having engaged leaders, share accountability for their students’ learning, are committed to continuous learning, and that provide effective supplementary and after-school programming.