This empirical study quantified the effects of academic tracking and labeling on student efficacy in the three extended learning time (ELT) schools in Boston, Massachusetts. Prominent research on student efficacy implicates literacy instruction, conduct development, and student mentorship as key factors driving student achievement. These three factors were used as the dependent variables in a cross sectional student survey. The student survey was given to 8th grade students in the ELT Boston Public Schools. The students' responses were then analyzed by academic track: Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID), general education, English as a Second Language, and special education. Samplings of students who were surveyed were interviewed to ascertain best practices for effective teaching, in order to triangulate the data. This study utilizes quantitative data and theoretical analysis to disrupt the one dimensional praxis of "achievement gap" theories to truly examine and address the multifaceted and interdependent dynamics of disparities and hierarchies within contemporary education. Furthermore, the study endeavored to impart tangible instructional and social strategies for teachers by relying on the students' view of successful educational strategies. Literacy instruction was the most significant predictor of efficacy according to the regression models conducted. As efficacy has been identified as a significant predictor of achievement, literacy instruction has been extrapolated as an essential element of effective education. The significance of these findings implicates certain protocols for the reorganization of schooling. The No Child Left Behind act prioritized "highly qualified" teachers as indicated by degrees and licenses, whereas literacy instruction requires a paradigmatic shift towards identifying "highly effective" teachers. Effective teaching requires teachers who are passionate and compelling, who possess the ability to invigorate students with an enthusiasm about education. Instructional leadership, as the new framework for principalship, also becomes significant as principals become responsible for training teachers, ensuring that they acquire the skill sets to move from "qualified" to "effective." Additionally, the regression models identified conduct development as the second most significant predictor of efficacy. This study demonstrates that in order to promote the success of urban youth in schools there must be a proliferation of programs which develop strong character. As students begin to develop and identify their role in society, and realize the consequence of their learning in society, they begin to value their schooling rather than viewing it as socially irrelevant to their own existence. This survey envisions academies which demand proficiency or better on their academic measures for all students, with a strong emphasis on conduct development. Given these results, this study aims to re-centralize quality teaching, effective leadership, and educational structure to contextualize student performance as a function of system proficiencies rather than individual capabilities. The insights emerging from this study demand not only structural adjustments in educational institutions, but pedagogical and paradigmatic reconstructions of theories of knowledge and teaching. Particularly given the vast intricacies and nuances of the intersectional ties across race, gender, class, language, and culture within any given school and community, this study calls upon innovative practices which are truly culturally relevant. As such, the results and theories suggest changes for populations suffering from the disparities of the "achievement gap," but inform, as well, the educational theories which bolster the schooling of privileged and "successful" populations. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]