Virtual reality is a rapidly growing technological innovation that continues to garner attention for use in education. This self-study of two teacher educators spans immersive head-mounted virtual reality implementation from 2014-2023 with middle-grades students, preservice teachers, and adult learners. Empirical data sources include learner…

Middle school students experience decreased academic motivation and declining achievement without proper classroom strategies and academic support. This single case study explores the parallels between child and adult education theories to identify a practical approach to adolescent learning and teaching by identifying effective educational…

This exploratory study, in which the participants portrayed a critical role, aimed to discover the perceptions of professional development in changing educator practice at the secondary level with middle school teachers in an urban school district. The data collection process included semi-structured interviews with nine secondary teachers via…

The effective continuing professional development (CPD) programs primarily aim to have an impact on teachers' knowledge bases, beliefs, and views and their classroom practices, which rationally lead most of the researchers to investigate those changes on teachers primarily. Although neglected, the interrelationship between CPD programs and…

Self-directed learning (SDL) is a critical success factor for massive open online course (MOOC) learners. This meta-analysis study examined the influence of SDL on learning outcomes in MOOCs by extracting the effect sizes of 60 samples from 14 studies published between January 2010 and April 2022. The results showed that the overall effects of SDL…

This mixed methods study was conducted to investigate the impact the knowledge, skills, dispositions, and coaching style of an instructional coach has on middle grades teacher instructional practices. The results of this study can be used to inform school leaders, administrators, and instructional coaches on methods for improving instructional…

In this paper, we report the results of a qualitative study examining the development of leadership competencies as Montessori school leaders gain experience using a coaching protocol with their teachers. Extending previous work, the emphasis is on the school leaders' specific roles as instructional supervisors leading reflective practices.…

Diverse learners attending online K-12 schools deserve high quality and accessible educational programs. This research studies the preparation, knowledge, and practices of online middle school general and special education teachers in relation to supporting the needs of diverse learners, namely students with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD). A…

The purpose of this study is to examine teachers' social justice-based practices, the outcomes of those practices, the leadership roles revealed in the process, and the problems experienced. The sample of the study consisted of 13 teachers who were reached through the snowball sampling method. 10 middle school and 3 primary school teachers working…

This Data Point examines parent and/or guardian involvement in various school-based engagement opportunities before the coronavirus pandemic. This information was reported by U.S. public school principals on the principal survey of the 2017-18 National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS). The NTPS is a sample survey of public and private K-12…

The aim of this study was to investigate the localized training for teachers during the reform of the education system in Kuwait between 2015 and 2017. It focuses on analyzing the professional development plans that were delivered to teachers for four core subjects in elementary and middle public schools. A mixed-method approach was employed,…

Though culturally relevant educational leadership has been practiced for more than 20 years, marginalized students from culturally diverse communities continue to be underserved. Additionally, other educational programs outside of traditional K-12 school environments are far less likely to have educational administrators who have any experience or…

The past decade has seen a resurgence of interest in career and technical education (CTE) as a way to engage students, help people build the skills necessary to succeed in a technologically advanced economy, and meet employer demand for workers. MDRC--which has a three-decade history of developing and evaluating CTE programs, including a landmark…

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, transitioning to online education proved to be difficult due to lack of training, resources, and funding to adequately provide what every student and teacher needed. We present a framework for ongoing professional development for in-service teachers to expand their attitudes and beliefs about culturally…

Due in part to parent advocacy, Texas passed legislation and released guidelines to support identification and instruction for students with dyslexia, and their families. In alignment with state guidelines, since January 2020, the Houston Independent School District (HISD) implemented an additional instructional intervention using Reading by…