Black and Latinx students, along with those in special education programs, are suspended and expelled at rates higher than their peers. Exclusionary discipline can lead to poor academic performance, high dropout rates, and incarceration. Restorative practices (RP) promote a positive school culture, reduce punitive discipline, and build strong…

The current evidence base for outdoor and nature-based education in a context of education for sustainability is limited and unrepresentative of the realities of small, urban schools, which tend to be characterised by small outdoor spaces devoid of nature. To address this research gap, we carried out two studies in Malta, as an example of a…

This study investigated the relationship among home language use, parents' beliefs about dual language development, and Spanish-speaking children's vocabulary knowledge. Parents (n = 162) completed a questionnaire about their home language use and beliefs about dual language development, and elementary-age children (N = 190) -- Kindergarten…

This study focused on a problem of practice at Mystic River School (MRS), a kindergarten through eighth grade school in an urban district in New England. Schoolwide diagnostic data showed a significant gap between multilingual learners (MLs) and their native English speaking peers in literacy. An analysis of this data, interviews with staff and…

This study examined the perceptions of participants regarding the use of embedded video demonstration lessons during literacy professional development sessions. The videos were captured in an urban elementary classroom and modeled two new literacy strategies. Based on survey responses from 160 kindergarten through fifth grade elementary school…

The current study examined the relationship between teachers' cultural competence and Multitiered System of Supports (MTSS) referrals for students belonging to racial/ethnic minority groups. Teachers serving grades kindergarten through five in two schools in a large, urban school district in Connecticut participated in the study. MTSS referrals…

This non-experimental, quantitative study explored how factors related to teachers' beliefs, curricular orientation, training and support received, and their identity and background experiences are associated with their use of curriculum. Specifically, this study sought to examine teachers' use of a curricular resource specifically designed to…

Paraeducators play an important role in the classroom supporting students and certificated teachers. However, literature on the actual roles of paraeducators has revealed that paraeducators are rarely included in the teaching team (Patterson, 2006). Paraeducators are frequently asked to perform difficult or unpleasant jobs and may not be…

Using a DisCrit intersectional lens and statistical and spatial methods, we trace how the creation of K-8 schools functioned to create pockets of privilege in one urban U.S. school district. K-8 schools were both whiter and wealthier than district averages, serving as "enclave" schools. Although far fewer students with disabilities were…

This article explores inequity in access to and provision of bus service across student sociodemographic groups and examines possible barriers to bus access and utilization. To so do, we use administrative data on New York City K-6 public school students from 2011-2017, including information on race/ethnicity, poverty status, distance from home to…

This paper presents a case study of a yearlong research-based peace education program at one urban K-8 private Catholic school situated in a community plagued by structural violence in an enclave of a large Midwestern city. To frame the analysis, the author employs concepts central to culturally responsive pedagogy (including cultural competence,…

This study sought to answer the following questions: (1) Is it feasible to develop Academic Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and collect data on them across member urban school districts? (2) Are comparisons between districts on academic performance measures valid and reliable? (3) Do districts collect and maintain requested KPI data in a way…

Principals' beliefs and actions have powerful outcomes in the lives of the students and families they serve. In this article, we offer the portrait of a long-standing principal of a diverse urban school where the student body is 90% Latinx, 65% English learners (ELs), and 87% eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. We explore many key practices…

Two decades ago, the New Jersey Supreme Court in "Abbott v. Burke" mandated that the state establish high quality preschool education in the 31 highest-poverty school districts. New Jersey created a pre-K program with high standards and a continuous improvement system that transformed a patchwork of private and public programs into a…

Curriculum Associates' "i-Ready® Instruction" is a supplemental, online personalized instruction program available for reading and mathematics. The Human Resources Research Organization (HumRRO), in collaboration with Century Analytics, implemented a quasi-experimental design (QED) using 2018-19 "i-Ready Diagnostic and…