school environment or in school-related environments vary in relation to variations in the frequency of severe violent behavior by students at school?
5. Do student perceptions of safety in the school environment or in school-related environments vary in relation to school requirements, if any, concerning the wearing of prescribed dress (uniforms) at school?
The preliminary research design stated in the proposal for this study provided for the collection of data from two middle schools in Georgia. Negotiations between the researcher and school administrators led to changes in the preliminary plan. The revised focus of the study was on elementary schools. The two elementary schools participating in the study were as follows: (1) Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School in Atlanta, Georgia, a school with a mandatory student uniform policy; and (2) Sara Cobb Elementary School in Americus, Georgia, a school with no student uniform policy. The two participating were compatible demographically, as the following data indicate:
1. Student enrollment: Martin Luther King ? 559; Sara Cobb ? 568.
2. Proportion of students receiving free lunch: Martin Luther King ? 86 percent; Sara Cobb ? 77 percent.
3. Racial/ethnic student distribution:
a. Martin Luther King: African American ? 99.6 percent; Hispanic ? 0.0 percent; white ? 0.4 percent.
b. Sara Cobb: African American ? 85.0 percent; Hispanic ? 1.0 percent; white ? 14.0 percent.
Data analysis for the investigation of research questions one and two involved the determination and comparison of (1) the rate per 100 students of violent and otherwise disruptive behavior by students (for research question one) and (2) the rate per 100 students of severe violent behavior by students (for research question two) in relation to student uniform policies at the participating elementary schools. Analysis of variance determined the statistical significance of the differences in...