Black students and their linguistic resources are undervalued, disdained, disrespected, and disregarded in language arts classrooms. Not only is Black Language often ignored in English language arts instruction, but language more generally remains largely hidden within elementary ELA. Elementary ELA educators are tasked with teaching a vast array…

Purpose: Previous research shows that identity and academic learning are interdependent, so affecting one can affect the other. The purpose of this case study was to explore preservice English teachers' reading identities and their perceptions of reading identity development in the context of English classrooms. Design/methodology/approach: This…

This study focused on determining the aspects of the relationship between teacher quality and student achievement. These teacher quality measurements were framed around overall evaluation scores, teacher experience, teacher certifications, and teacher degree levels. This study investigated whether there was a correlation between teacher quality…

The role of the English language, used around the world for international diplomacy, aviation, health, economics, technology, education, and research, cannot be overstated. In places where English is not the first nor an official language, the task for second language teachers in elementary schools through college to perfect students' language…

This critical case study (Grosvenor & Pataki, 2017; Merriam, 2009) examines how taking up diversity and plurality within in situ literacy and language arts courses in a Bachelor of Education program created a critical discursive space within mainstream teacher education. Data in this research included interviews with teacher candidates and…

Large-scale performance assessment programs are a longstanding reform tool. However, standard setting can be a challenge for assessment programs that use primarily non-standardized assessments. The purpose of this paper is to extend this field of research by explaining the standard setting methodology applied to one more recent instantiation of a…

This paper uses an assignment given to the authors' preservice teachers to address and push back against common arguments used to uphold canonical text selection in secondary ELA classrooms. Using the metaphor of canon defense as empire building first made by Toni Morrison in the canon debates of the 1980s, the authors examine the weaknesses in…

The absence of social studies curriculum is a problem because it undermines the essential purposes of schooling: to prepare participatory, contributing members of a democratic society. In this article, we argue that integrating the literacy and social studies curricula is one meaningful way to support such civic-minded social studies instruction…

This forum article discusses using disciplinary literacy approaches for reading literary text targeting interpretation as a goal. Disciplinary literacy approaches make the assumption that literacy tasks and processes differ based upon the demands, goals, and epistemology of each discipline and that identifying these differences is key toward…

The paper explores how preservice ELA teachers' expectations of teaching compare to the reality of their experiences during the first year of teaching. The authors consider common concerns of beginning ELA teachers and their implications for teacher self-efficacy. The paper is informed by narrative research, which provides practical and specific…

This dissertation documents 214 White pre-service English Language Arts teachers' engagement in explicit discussions of race and racism in online class discussions about teaching about dialect diversity. Participants were recruited from eight geographically distinct teacher education programs in the United States that implemented Godley and…

Using a mixed-methods approach, this article reports survey findings regarding the factors secondary English-language-arts teachers in the United States reported as influential to their text selection and examines how those factors varied by years of teaching experience. Teachers' department was the most cited influence regardless of years'…

In the age of accountability, school counselors are responsible for ensuring that their services are effective for all students by providing evidence of the impact of comprehensive school counseling programs (CSCPs) on student academic outcomes. Numerous studies provide empirical evidence of the impact of RAMP on student outcomes; however, none…

This article examines the teaching practices and pedagogical theories preservice teachers (PSTs) enacted in a newly designed after-school literacy club field placement. We draw from sociocultural and activity theories to analyze data collected in the qualitative study that examined the following research questions: (1) What teaching practices do…

Policy makers, school practitioners, and scholars around the world have been searching for better school improvement models. The purpose of this study was to understand how an instrument we developed, Orientation to School Renewal, can be used to predict school-level academic achievement. We used the instrument to predict the academic performance…