This research was conducted to understand how 30 American school leaders coped with the COVID-19 pandemic. A case study approach was used in the study. The researchers used convenience and snowball sampling to conduct Zoom interviews in May 2020. The research findings revealed that leaders faced numerous difficulties related to having to lead…

This study investigated what difficulties school administrators experienced in making decisions, planning, organizing, communicating, influencing, coordinating and budgeting during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample consisted of 32 school administrators in the first semester of the academic year 2020-2021. Participants were recruited from seven…

In an era of increased accountability, it is important to understand how exemplary teachers navigate the demands placed on them by their schools, districts, and states in order to support student learning aligned with their beliefs of effective instruction. To understand these negotiations, the authors examined tensions facing exemplary literacy…

Examination of district-level special education leaders' practice reveals strategic actions utilized as they constructed equitable, inclusive learning opportunities as a means to advocate for all learners. Analysis shows that the following strategic actions shaped the ways participants led the inclusive special education services in their…

Improving the quality of teaching and instruction takes time and planning and may be costly and require intensive work. This is particularly true when trying to make improvements among multiple preschool sites, because preschool systems often lack a cohesive infrastructure for supporting high-quality implementation of curricula and teacher…

This Research Note summarizes research conducted through a collaboration of New America and the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership. New America's Early & Elementary Education Policy team conducted a 50-state survey of departments of education (DOE) and a few state elementary school principal associations to scan the policy…

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) encourages school counselors to promote equity experiences for all students through leadership, advocacy, and collaboration. School counselors and school administrators (e.g., principals, assistant principals) are uniquely positioned to combine their social capital in an effort to create a positive…

This article explores how three early childhood teachers working in grant-funded preschools within a public school context construct and negotiate their professional identities. Teachers share narratives that contribute to an understanding of how their beliefs, knowledge, and practice are marginalized by the context in which they work. The…

Through a collaborative autoethnographic approach, a former principal, current principal, current assistant principal, and aspiring principal recount their experiences pertaining to identification of leadership talent. As identified through previous research, proper identification or talent is the first major component to quality succession…

With 20 new governors and 16 re-elected governors starting new terms in January, 2019 has the potential to be a year of big change at the state level. This is particularly the case in the early childhood policy arena, as many newly elected governors discussed early childhood education as part of their campaigns. Governors are in a prime position…

This study analyses exclusion, enrolment cancellation, and suspension rates in government schools in the Australian state of Queensland to investigate the impact of legislation to extend principals' disciplinary powers. Results suggest that the provision of alternative disciplinary options, including Saturday detentions and community service,…

We developed and pilot tested the effectiveness of a physically active academic program, Active Breaks (AB), whose objective is to increase school time moderate/vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among first graders, through daily 15-minute bouts of MVPA, at the beginning of the first lesson. Initially, 240 cards including one game each were…

This article describes the process teachers at a public elementary school completed to develop and implement a developmentally appropriate, race-conscious, anti-bias curriculum in all K-5 classrooms. The study focuses on the experiences of the teachers and children in three early childhood classrooms using a case study design. Data were gathered…

It is estimated that 1.6 billion students were displaced from the traditional school building in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic (UN, 2022; IMF, 2020). While the drastic change in how society normally functions was a shock for everyone, children and historically marginalized people suffered disproportionately severe impacts (GHO, 2022; UNESCO,…

American schools have been dealt a blow that included a pandemic, economic crisis, as well as racial unrest, initiating an energized charge for social justice advocacy. Our superintendents are currently facing an unprecedented challenge in ensuring that the campus community lives in a fair, inclusive, and opportunity-rich society. However, school…