Description
An abstract of the dissertation of Danielle Bolduc for the degree of Doctor of Education
in Leadership, Learning, and Community
Presented on Date: June 27, 2022
Title: The Power of Place-Based Learning Experiences on Student Engagement,
Writing Achievement, and Community Perception
Abstract approved:
Name: Marcel Lebrun
Dissertation Committee Chair
The purpose of this mixed methodology action research was to determine if a
place-based learning experience would lead to changes in student engagement, writing
achievement, and community perception. Specifically, this study attempted to answer the
following questions: What impact does a place-based learning experience have on student
engagement within a writing workshop? What impact does a place-based learning
experience have on student achievement within a writing workshop? What influence does
a place-based learning experience have on the community's perception of the school?
This action research study took place in a rural elementary school located in
central New Hampshire. There were 61 fourth graders and three teachers that participated
in this study. A community survey was also distributed which included 94
parents/guardians, 23 community members, and 11 staff members.
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There were eight findings in this study. The first finding showed 89% of students
strongly or somewhat agreed that choosing their own writing topics contributed to
engagement. The second theme revealed by examining student open response questions,
classroom observations, and teacher interviews was that writing set in a social context
increases student engagement. In the area of writing achievement, 100% of the teacher
participants strongly agree or somewhat agree that they noticed an improvement in
student writing achievement since the implementation of place-based learning. Overall
student growth increased 1.56 points from 3.82 to 5.38 on the pre- and post-writing
assessment. A matched pair t-test was used to determine if the difference between the
average pre-writing score and post-writing score was significant. The p value = .026,
which is statistically significant. As for the influence of a place-based learning experience
on community perception, five themes emerged: creativity and innovation, inspires a new
generation of learners, connection to the community, encourages hands on learning, and
conjures pride in the local community.
