This research study focused on the effects of departmentalization in the elementary school setting. Previous research on the topic of departmentalization in elementary school settings presented inconclusive results. The purpose of this study was to collect and analyze data from self-contained and departmentalized classrooms in fourth and fifth…

The shift from the traditional self-contained classroom to the departmentalized classroom structure in upper-elementary classrooms is increasing as the pressure to maximize student outcomes is higher than ever for public schools. Teachers prefer departmentalization but findings as to its benefits for students are mixed. This study considers the…

Spelling instruction is often overlooked by many teachers during reading and language arts. The purpose of this study was to implement a manageable differentiated word study instruction curriculum, drawn from the "Words Their Way (WTW)" curriculum, to determine how it affected students' spelling accuracy and how the participants…

As a result of educational reforms in many countries, including Finland, new or renovated comprehensive schools have increasingly begun to incorporate open and flexible designs and principles. Multipurpose and adaptable open learning spaces can provide children with amplified opportunities to be physically active during general education.…

This case study examined the school-based interventions used to determine a self-contained special education placement for a fourth-grade African American male student with an emotional disturbance disability. The study aimed to answer four research questions, which included the academic and behavioral school-based interventions provided to the…

This study examined the psychological well-being of students enrolled in two gifted programs with different service delivery models. Participants were 292 fifth- and sixth-grade students (M[subscript age] = 11.70, SD[subscript age] = 0.65) enrolled in a gifted math pull-out program (n = 103), a self-contained gifted program (n = 90), or a program…

This article provides an example of how one sixth-grade classroom teacher and an instructional coach built a bridge for students in a grade 6 self-contained classroom to support their conceptual understanding and procedural fluency with dividing fractions. Baseline data showed that most of the students in this class had mastered only the…

There is a national shortage of special education teachers, so it is imperative to retain special educators in the field (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2017). The most commonly cited reason special education teachers shared for leaving is lack of support from their administration. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how…

Classroom management, although considered one of the essentials of the optimal learning experience, is often a challenge for teachers. Certain classroom management strategies, such as group contingency interventions and token economies, are evidence-based strategies to aid teachers in gaining successful management of the classroom. The utilization…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how special education teachers describe selecting and applying differentiated instructional strategies for students with mild, moderate, to severe disabilities in self-contained classrooms within a school district in Arizona. Jean Piaget's social constructivism theory and Carol Ann…

Relative to their middle and high school teacher counterparts, elementary science teachers are both uniquely situated and uniquely challenged for excellent science instruction. More than 90 percent of elementary teachers work in self-contained classrooms, meaning they have opportunities to connect their science instruction with English language…

In this single-subject study, we examined the effects of a summarizing strategy on the written summaries of children with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBDs). Six students with EBDs in fifth and sixth grades learned a mnemonic-based strategy for summarizing taught through the self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) approach. Visual…

This article focuses on an argument-based inquiry (ABI) approach to a fourth grade unit on waves. A fourth-grade teacher included multiple opportunities for students to read, write, and use language to represent their understanding of physical science Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) performance expectations (NGSS Lead States 2013). He…

In order to reach gender equity in the gifted population, an affirmative action policy was instituted in Israel to increase the number of girls identified as gifted. The purpose of this study was to compare the self-efficacy beliefs of girls in the top 1.5% (gifted girls (GG)) with those of girls in the top 3% (GG in affirmative action). It was…

The main purpose of the study was to characterize gender patterns regarding ways of thinking and learning among 242 fifth- and sixth-grade young gifted students in Israel. A written questionnaire was developed to assess ways of thinking as either connected (empathic) or separate (critical, detached). Findings showed that boys consistently rated…