Educational research has been around for over one hundred years and has faced periods of optimism, pessimism, and skepticism. Currently, there is a plethora of educational research available for teachers and districts to use. However, there is a research-practice gap. This gap refers to the amount of research available and educators using the…

Language should not be a hurdle for English language learners in mathematics. The participatory action research study focused on how first-grade teachers identified, planned, and implemented discourse strategies to support English Language Learners in math instruction. To do so, I engaged three teachers who were English Language Learners as…

In math classrooms, actively engaging with the subject matter can be crucial to learning. However, not all students speak up, ask questions, or express their ideas. Aware of the importance of the equitable participation of all students, mathematics education experts developed an observation tool called Equity Quantified In Participation, or EQUIP.…

Many teachers have strong beliefs about the way literacy should be taught, despite what the research shows about how students learn best. If an educator's existing beliefs about literacy clash with updated instructional understandings and methods about the science of reading, there's a likelihood that teachers may resist embracing change and…

This qualitative case study examined the contribution a year-long professional development in the science of reading had on 10 first-grade teachers' knowledge of how reading develops and their instructional practices. Data for this research study was collected through a longitudinal interview process, from pre- and post-knowledge inventory…

Decades of research in the science of reading suggest that using scientifically based reading practices that are aligned with the science of reading will help improve literacy. Literacy is a necessary skill and is critical for a child's overall development. How well children learn to read in school can impact their future success. This mixed…

The current study sought to investigate the agreement between teachers and parents about the mental health of first-grade students, the factors that affected this agreement and the associations between measures completed by students, parents and teachers. The investigation used baseline data collected during the PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX GBG)…

Identifying an appropriate class size is an important decision public schools face as they weigh balancing their budget with the impact class size may have on student achievement. This study examined perceptions of South Dakota kindergarten through third-grade teachers, elementary principals, and superintendents concerning optimal class size and…

With a shift towards 21st century literacy practices and a greater variety of literature, the mere definitions of literacy and text are shifting. The focus on traditional text that heavily relies on words and supporting pictures to convey meaning has changed to text of multiple modes. Teachers are now charged with fostering new skills in students…

A teacher study group explores issues of home and community literacies with a goal of utilizing out-of-school literacies to support in-school literacy learning. The result was the beginning of a new mindfulness that allowed them to begin to recognize the existence and legitimacy of home and community literacies. They explored how their own biases…

The use of student achievement data to evaluate an individual teacher's effectiveness has become a new focus in educational policy. This article focuses on the underresearched teacher perception of this new policy measure. Drawing on ethnographic research procedures, this article explores how first-grade teachers in one state navigated a new…

The purpose of this research is to examine preschool and first grade teachers' opinions on the effects of school readiness to classroom management. The participants of this research consisted of the 18 preschool and 22 first grade teachers who work at public and private schools in the cities of Konya, Ankara and Kayseri in Turkey. Phenomenological…

This study aims to determine the perceptions of teachers and pre-service teachers about 4+4+4 education system via the metaphors they have developed. In this study, the opinions of teachers and pre-service teachers are described with qualitative approach. The participants of the study are 137 primary school 1st grade teachers, working in Mugla in…

Drawing from Chicana feminist perspectives and Pérez ("Living Chicana theory." Third Woman Press, Berkeley, pp 87-101, 1998) theories of "sitios y lenguas" (space and discourses) the authors reposition understandings of teaching and learning through a qualitative case study of a first grade Spanish/English bilingual classroom.…

This mixed methods descriptive study examined the effects of job-embedded professional development (JEPD) in reading on the content knowledge and instructional practice of teachers of English learners (ELs). Four first-grade teachers of ELs at one urban elementary school received JEPD over the course of a year. Results of pre- and posttests of…