"Xtreme Reading" is a supplemental literacy curriculum designed to improve the literacy skills of struggling students in grades 6 to 12. The curriculum is primarily designed to help students improve their vocabulary, decoding, fluency, and reading comprehension skills. To ensure a productive learning environment, students initially learn…

In today's workforce, individuals are staying in their respective professions longer and retiring at ages past 67, resulting in a generationally diverse workforce. Currently, teachers range from 21-80 years of age, working in the same profession and receiving the same professional development. Considering adult learning and the dynamics associated…

"Xtreme Reading" is a supplemental literacy curriculum designed to improve the literacy skills of struggling students in grades 6 to 12. The curriculum is primarily designed to help students improve their vocabulary, decoding, fluency, and reading comprehension skills. To ensure a productive learning environment, students initially learn…

Purpose: The purpose of this two-year study was to assess the impact of the CORE program, a model that integrates technology and active learning modules in high schools by providing multi-disciplinary teams of teachers and administrators with professional development and resources to support the development of students' non-cognitive skills and…

Sexual minority youth (SMY) students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT+) often struggle with gender identity and sexual orientation (Craig, Austin, & McInroy, 2014). The inclusion of Gay-Straight Alliances (GSA) and Safe Zones have united students and facilitated cultural shifts in schools (Patterson, 2013).…

The purpose of this quantitative correlational research study was to determine to what extent, if any, teacher technology-related professional development affected the actual integration of technology in the classroom among 9th-12th-grade teachers. Convenience sampling was used to collect data. The sample for this study was 78 high school teachers…

Little is known about the naturalistic development of mindfulness in adolescence and how it relates to changes in emotional well-being. The current longitudinal study examined the development of one dimension of mindfulness, nonreactivity to difficult inner experience (or in more colloquial terms, being able to notice, but "take a step…

This study examined the effects of Reading Intervention for Adolescents, a 2-year extensive reading intervention targeting current and former English learners identified as struggling readers based on their performance on the state accountability assessment. Students who enrolled at three participating urban high schools were randomly assigned to…

In response to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 2001 (No Child Left Behind), states have sought various ways to adequately assess students in order to in turn hold schools and districts accountable for closing the achievement gap. As the state of Texas, motivated by pressure from parents, teachers, and other vested interest groups who…

The entrance into ninth grade is a critical time for urban high school students. A successful transition is needed to ensure that students do not fall behind and graduate on time with their cohort. There was a need to study the perceptions of teachers to better understand specific issues surrounding the transition to high school. The purpose of…

This is the final report of a large-scale independent evaluation of the Building Assets and Reducing Risks (BARR) model in ninth grade in eleven high schools in Maine, California, Minnesota, Kentucky, and Texas. This sample of schools included large and small schools in urban, suburban, and rural areas, serving students from a wide range of…

The transition from middle school to high school can be challenging for some students. Many school districts are implementing practices to ease the transition to high school. The current study examined one school district's practices and procedures for the development and implementation of a ninth-grade center. In this study, I examined the…

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the implementation and impact of the IDEA Public Schools' Mathematics Curriculum Redesign (MCR) effort, funded by an Innovation and Research (EIR) grant. Methods: The study used a quasi-experimental matching design to examine the effect of MCR on student achievement outcomes. The study compared…

English learners with learning disabilities (LD) have well-documented difficulties comprehending text. This study examined the effects of an intensive reading intervention (Reading Intervention for Adolescents [RIA]) on reading outcomes (word reading, vocabulary, and comprehension) for ninth-grade ELs with LD (n = 85). In the RIA, students…

This study examined the impact of a multi-year, large-scale professional development program on student achievement in mathematics and science. Math and science teachers at the elementary and secondary levels who participated in the professional development program were matched to a control group. Results revealed no differences in State of Texas…