Inspired by the work of Muhammad (2020) and building upon the previous work of Hays (2021) in using young adolescent literature as a tool for social change, the authors highlight the ways in which educators such as Amardeep Bajwa can cultivate students' intellect through literature circle-based activities. More specifically, Hays worked with local…

We discuss an original study and two replications conducted over 18 years examining the impact of Teacher Study Group (TSG) in Vocabulary, a professional development (PD) approach for improving pedagogy and student learning. Study 1 focused on the design and development of the PD and included a small-scale randomized controlled trial to assess the…

Computational thinking (CT) has the potential to enhance learning when integrated into mathematical classroom activities. Teachers are being asked to include CT concepts in their core disciplines; however, there is an open question as to how best to equip teachers to integrate CT into their practice. Oftentimes teacher candidates enter math and…

Teacher-education programmes around the world face the challenge of preparing professionals capable of adapting their teaching processes to rapidly accumulating empirical knowledge, while remaining relevant in an era of constant change. In this case study, we propose that integrating Simulation-Based Learning (SBL) into teacher-education…

International comparisons suggest that middle school American students compare poorly to their international peers in tasks that require spatial skills. This deficiency in spatial skills is more prominent in females and has been linked to a lack of developmental activities influenced by gender norms. These deficiencies are especially concerning as…

In the 2023-24 Speak Up Research facilitated by Project Tomorrow®, 75% of high school students and 66% of middle school students say their principal use of technology in class is to complete an online quiz or assessment. While online testing provides many benefits to educators and schools in terms of efficiency and potentially greater access to…

Background: This study explored science teachers' participation in a professional development partnership with informal science institutions (ISIs) designed for urban middle school science teachers, known as the "Urban Advantage Science Initiative." The teacher training involved a whole school focused approach, providing teaching…

This dissertation investigates the critical role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in urban education through the lens of educators working in a diverse middle school setting in St. Louis, Missouri. With a focus on understanding educators' perceptions and experiences, this study aims to explore the effectiveness of SEL programs in addressing the…

This dissertation investigates the critical role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in urban education through the lens of educators working in a diverse middle school setting in St. Louis, Missouri. With a focus on understanding educators' perceptions and experiences, this study aims to explore the effectiveness of SEL programs in addressing the…

This dissertation investigates the critical role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in urban education through the lens of educators working in a diverse middle school setting in St. Louis, Missouri. With a focus on understanding educators' perceptions and experiences, this study aims to explore the effectiveness of SEL programs in addressing the…

This dissertation investigates the critical role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in urban education through the lens of educators working in a diverse middle school setting in St. Louis, Missouri. With a focus on understanding educators' perceptions and experiences, this study aims to explore the effectiveness of SEL programs in addressing the…

This dissertation investigates the critical role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in urban education through the lens of educators working in a diverse middle school setting in St. Louis, Missouri. With a focus on understanding educators' perceptions and experiences, this study aims to explore the effectiveness of SEL programs in addressing the…

There are well-documented justice-related issues in engineering education. How do teachers begin to develop a way of seeing forward in their teaching, both in how they understand their role and their hoped-for outcomes for students, in ways that bridge the goals of justice with required engineering disciplinary expectations? In this manuscript, we…

This study explores the relationships between teachers' beliefs about teaching, self-efficacy beliefs for teaching and their attitude towards the implementation of curriculum change through the mediating role of their readiness for change. In so doing, the study seeks to suggest an advanced approach to manifest the complex relations among the…

Effective educators value young adolescents, are prepared to teach them, and are knowledgeable about this age group. Middle level educators' understanding of adolescent brain development and developmentally responsive teaching strategies can help to support all adolescents' cognitive and social-emotional development in school. This article…