Children are often denied science education that engages their emotions and multiple identities. This study focused on ways in which embodied arts-based experiences offer opportunities for such engagement in pedagogical efforts associated with justice-centered science. The conceptual framework that informed the study considers the body as a site…

Purpose: This study is part of a participatory design research project and aims to develop and study pedagogical frameworks and tools for integrating computational thinking (CT) concepts and data science practices into elementary school classrooms. Design/methodology/approach: This paper describes a pedagogical approach that uses a data science…

The purpose of this dissertation-in-practice was to examine the perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs of K-5 elementary school teachers in a suburban Central Texas school on their use of blended learning in the classroom. Before conducting the study, previous research on blended learning was reviewed in the areas of student achievement, student…

Highly effective elementary teachers faced challenges to professional development which differed from their urban or suburban peers. With the increasing need for student proficiency in reading, strategies to help grow their engagement and motivation were necessary to investigate and apply to instructional habits. The purpose of this basic…

Through a conceptual framework focused on student engagement, this article explores students' perceptions about the impact the design of learning environments has on student engagement. The current mixed-methods study was conducted at two Texas replacement elementary schools where the entire learning community, all teachers, administrators, staff,…

Reading requires appropriate strategies to spark initial interest and sustain engagement. One promising strategy is the pedagogical approach of learning-by-teaching, transforming learners into active participants. Integrating this approach into digitalized and individualized reading contexts has the potential to foster the development of young…

This report evaluates the impact of intensive student support services provided by Communities in Schools of Kalamazoo (CISK) to elementary students of Kalamazoo Public Schools (KPS). These intensive services typically follow a case-management format and include activities related to academic assistance, basic needs, enrichment/motivation, and…

This paper examines the context for developing computational thinking (CT), computational participation (CP), and spatial reasoning among predominantly Black elementary students in grades 5 and 6, who attended a public school in the urban fringe of a large city in the Eastern United States. A case study is presented as the method to examine two…

Elementary teachers can help students develop a critical literacy lens and learn how to question, analyze, and challenge assumptions. In turn, this can develop an inclusive classroom. My teacher action research looks at how critical literacy impacts both me, the teacher, and my fifth-grade students, in a predominantly White suburban public school…

Engaging students in self-reflection about their learning performance is a potentially promising pedagogical approach for supporting math learning. However, it is unclear how models for math learning in regular classrooms translate in a virtual environment. The purpose of this paper is to (a) analyze rich assessment data from virtual schools to…

Even though there is growing consensus for engaging primary students with early algebraic ideas, there is limited research knowledge about the relevant learning opportunities designed in textbooks. Textbooks are considered to play an important role in what is happening in classrooms, especially in educational contexts where classroom instruction…

This study presents evidence of the validity and reliability of scores for the newly developed Brazilian Portuguese version of the Delaware School Climate Survey-Student (Brazilian DSCS-S). The sample consisted of 378 students, grades 5 through 9, attending four private and three public schools in southern Brazil. Confirmatory factor analyses…

Students attending schools in urban areas with high concentrations of poverty are at risk for academic failure. Besides being more likely to live in poverty, urban students in comparison to suburban students are more likely to be English language learners and to be exposed to violence and other health and safety risks linked to negative school and…

The purpose of this study was to investigate how engagement, mood and number of assignments completed on computerized differentiated homework using an iPad in a one-to-one mobile device environment influenced the growth index and normalized gain in reading literature benchmark assessments of students in grades five, six, and seven. Furthermore,…

Drawing from an ecological assets framework as well as research and theory on positive youth development, this study examined the relationship of early adolescents' satisfaction with life to trait optimism and assets representing the social contexts in which early adolescents spend most of their time. Self-reports of satisfaction with life,…