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The author examined the effect of demographic variables and attitudes on achievement of 8th-grade algebra students. Participants (N = 107) in 4 classes completed a questionnaire that determined demographic characteristics. They also completed attitude scales at the beginning and end of the school year. Dependent measures were the North Carolina State End-of-Grade Mathematics Test and North Carolina State End-of-Course Algebra I Test, which were required of all students. Analysis of variance results showed that ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and attitudes significantly affected mathematics scores. On the attitude measure, postscores were significantly less positive than were prescores. There was a significant difference in schools that was explained partially by qualitative observations of variation in teacher quality.
Leah P. McCoy (Sat,) studied this question.