The primary purpose of this study is to investigate the degree to which register knowledge, register-specific motivation, and diverse linguistic features are predictive of human judgment of writing quality in three registers--narrative, informative, and opinion. The secondary purpose is to compare the evaluation metrics of register-partitioned…

Methods to handle ordered-categorical indicators in latent variable interactions have been developed, yet they have not been widely applied. This article compares the performance of two popular latent variable interaction modeling approaches in handling ordered-categorical indicators: unconstrained product indicator (UPI) and latent moderated…

When teachers first wrap their heads around scientific modeling, it can be a bit tricky to distinguish scientific models from diagrams and three-dimensional models. If a fifth grader draws and labels a food web, it's a model. Right? Not necessarily. When creating a model, students should be representing a system inspired by an inquiry or…

Students' development of conceptual understandings is a central goal of mathematics education (CCSS-Mathematics, 2010). Such a challenging, yet ambiguous, goal cannot be achieved without empowering teachers with the knowledge and tools critical for their ability to adequately convey the content, and assess and interpret students' performance. This…

Purpose: The Santa Ana Unified School District received an i3 grant (Investing in Innovation; funded by the U.S. Department of Education Grant number U411C160074) to build on their existing school climate practices. Called the Enhanced Positive School Climate Model, the aim is to improve school climate, student-adult relationships, create social…

This paper describes the 5E+I/A inquiry model and reports a case study of one curricular enactment by a US fifth-grade classroom. A literature review establishes the model's conceptual adequacy with respect to longstanding research related to both the 5E inquiry model and multiple, incremental innovations of it. As a collective line of research,…

This applied dissertation was designed to provide perceptual teacher data as well as summative testing data to educational leaders concerning the effects of implementing Investigations in Number, Data, and Space® (Investigations) in three Title I elementary school settings, two Title I schools, and one non-Title I school. Data collected during…

This paper presents an investigation of score prediction based on natural language processing for two targeted constructs within analytic text-based writing: 1) students' effective use of evidence and, 2) their organization of ideas and evidence in support of their claim. With the long-term goal of producing feedback for students and teachers, we…

The act of creating meaning with texts is complex, and this complexity creates unclear views of instruction in schools and even greater perplexity in knowing how to instruct students who may be struggling in this area of their schoolwork. Comprehension is often measured in schools as a product and an outcome, making it difficult to understand why…

In an influential paper, Jesse Rothstein (2010) shows that standard value-added models (VAMs) suggest implausible and large future teacher effects on past student achievement. This is the basis of a falsification test that "appears" to indicate bias in typical VAM estimates of teacher contributions to student learning on standardized…

This paper seeks to expand our understanding of how educators, and in particular school librarians, acquire and use professional-practice knowledge. This exploratory study, grounded in "lived practice" (Spillane, Hunt, and Healey, 2009) uses reflective analysis to amplify competencies and skill development in pre-service school library education.…

This study investigated the relationship between middle school students' scores for a written assignment (N = 162) and a process that involved students in generating criteria and self-assessing with a rubric. Gender, time spent writing, grade level, prior rubric use, and previous achievement in English were also examined. The treatment involved…

Teacher value-added models (VAMs) must isolate teachers' contributions to student achievement to be valid. Well-known VAMs use different specifications, however, leaving policymakers with little clear guidance for constructing a valid model. We examine the sensitivity of teacher value-added estimates under different models based on whether they…

Assessment for Learning for elementary classroom is a concept that aims to stimulate self learning and development among the student via assessment model. This research aimed to 1) develop an Assessment for Learning Model for elementary classroom and 2) test and assess the outcome of our model. The authors utilized interviewing, questionnaire and…

Background: In elementary grades, comprehensive health education curricula have demonstrated effectiveness in addressing singular health issues. The Michigan Model for Health (MMH) was implemented and evaluated to determine its impact on nutrition, physical fitness, and safety knowledge and skills. Methods: Schools (N = 52) were randomly assigned…