This action research study aimed to improve reading with understanding in a lower primary classroom in Fiji. Five emergent readers were selected through an examination of class running records. Peer observation, student worksheets, and class running records were utilized to collect data. The data analysis revealed that when teachers implement…

This research arises within the scope of the Postgraduate Course of Specialization in Technologies and Robotics in Elementary School. Its aim is to analyze the impact of robotics and programming on the motivation and involvement of students in the development of computational thinking, in the learning of mathematical concepts. The study was…

This case study investigates how teachers supported below-level readers who made reading comprehension gains in a virtual reading clinic during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data sources included case reports, lesson plans with reflections, and recorded instructional sessions for 10 participants--5 teachers and 5 students. All student participants were…

The Common Core State Standards emphasize the need for U.S. students to read complex texts. As a result, the level of word complexity for primary-level texts is important, particularly the dimensions of and changes in complexity between first grade and the important third-grade high-stakes testing year. In this study, we addressed word complexity…

The National Summer Learning Project (NSLP) examined the implementation and effectiveness of voluntary summer learning programs developed by five school districts--Boston, Massachusetts; Dallas, Texas; Duval County, Florida; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Rochester, New York--and their local community partners. The study spanned three phases. The…

Spatial reasoning skills are necessary to perform activities at school, at work and in everyday life, in general. Different studies indicate the importance of its development at an early age, since it allows the reading of a three-dimensional world and its interpretation in two-dimensional representations. Our research focuses on the design of…

This dissertation showcases collective sensemaking in action. The study was situated in a larger North Carolina project, in which educators took a systems approach to update the state's instructional guidance infrastructure during content standards reform. Specifically, I investigated how K-5 educators from multiple stakeholder groups--teachers,…

With large-scale wicked problems threatening our world, the integration of sustainability into teacher professional learning is systemically lacking in the United States. The purpose of this case study was to understand the impact of a multi-session, sustainability-related professional learning program on twelve PreKindergarten-8th grade educators…

This study examines the impact of an online math learning program on third through fifth grade math achievement in Louisiana. Employing Zearn Math usage metrics and administrative data from the Louisiana Department of Education, the results indicate that grade levels that programmatically used Zearn Math scored, on average, about .03 standard…

The present illustrative case study explored elementary teachers' perception of preparation for a pandemic-driven pedagogical shift. Third grade teachers from a South Florida school district that were teaching in a Title 1 school during COVID-19 pandemic and made the pedagogical shift (N=10) were selected to share their perspectives of the…

Dynamic Measurement Modeling (DMM) is a recently-developed measurement framework for gauging developing constructs (e.g., learning capacity) that conventional single-timepoint tests cannot assess. The current project developed a person-specific DMM Trajectory Deviance Index (TDI) that captures the aberrance of an individual's growth from the…

Today's increasingly rapid technological developments do not only appear in the field of communication but are also needed in education. In the education field, it is expected to instill students with adequate knowledge and critical thinking skills, which are needed for their future. Practicing critical thinking skills can be done with mobile…

Storytelling is a well-established literary practice in language classrooms. However, approaches influencing its effectiveness and efficiency have rarely been investigated. This study compared the effects of three storytelling approaches on the vocabulary acquisition and response patterns of third-grade students of English as a foreign language…

For many years, researchers studied executive functions (EFs) in the laboratory with a focus on understanding an individual child's development and brain processes in a controlled environment. Building on this foundational research, there is a growing interest in EFs in the context of a child's dynamic, social world, and the contextual and…

This study examined a professional development (PD) intervention that provided kindergarten-through third-grade teachers with drama-based pedagogy to improve student reading achievement. The PD consisted of collaboration between teaching artists and teachers to integrate drama into English language arts instruction for a school year. Twenty-six…