Two trends have increased the importance of cross-boundary teaming in schools. School educators face more interdisciplinary tasks and problems. They are also further required to include diverse voices derived from students' greater demographic diversity toward creating culturally inclusive school education. In light of this, cross-boundary…

The intent of this mixed-methods case study was to examine the practices, processes, and associated factors of a school-based team mandated by the district for the purpose of supporting freshmen students during their first year of high school. The study utilized the Theory of Change theoretical framework with the logic model as a reference for…

School improvement depends, fundamentally, upon collective agency--a group capability to work productively together and solve problems. Unfortunately, many schools operate in contexts of adversity that can pose considerable challenges with developing collective agency. Schools serving high-poverty communities of color often face chronic resource…

The focus of this practice-based research was to explore teachers' perceptions of implementation approaches to multitiered system of supports (MTSS). For more than 10 years there have been varied approaches for implementation of MTSS, which has caused a lack of guidance and support for teachers. Therefore, this qualitative descriptive study…

The participatory action research (PAR) aimed to build educators' culturally responsive teaching capacity to support equitable classrooms. The study focused on the culturally responsive teaching development and decision-making process of a middle school principal, three Language Art teachers, and the culturally responsive teaching influence to…

Background: It has been widely accepted that Sports-based Youth Development (SBYD) programs are potentially ideal contexts to develop children socially and emotionally. However, there is a limited empirical examination on how validated models-based practices could be harnessed in SBYD programs to promote children's social and emotional…

Purpose: Relying on the principles of the social exchange theory, the current study is aimed at investigating the impact of team-member exchange relationships (TMX) among school management team (SMT) members on school outcomes (organizational citizenship behavior [OCB], job satisfaction and innovation) via the mediating role of leader-member…

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects and impact of interdisciplinary teaming on teacher practices and efficacy. This study revealed the perspectives of eight 7th and 8th grade teachers, who teach one of the core disciplines (English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies) and the school principal by interviewing…

A school safety team collaborates with stakeholders to promote and maintain a physically and psychologically safe school environment. Together they must identify safety deficits and prioritize initiatives and practices. This phenomenological qualitative case study examined how a school safety team makes decisions and determines safety outcomes.…

Research from the field has indicated that when a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) is implemented within education settings, these data-driven frameworks can promote positive student academic and behavioral outcomes, as well as safe and optimal school climates (Ockerman et al., 2012, Sugai & Horner, 2009; Ziomek-Daigle, 2016). As school…

Design thinking has an important role in STEM education. However, there has been limited research on how students engage in various modalities throughout the design process in hands-on design tasks. To promote middle school students' engineering literacy, it is necessary to examine the use of design modalities during design. Using a case study…

In this dissertation, I K-8 mathematics teacher agency and learning within a research-practice partnership (RPP) context. I asked three primary research questions: (a) How is teacher agency enacted within the RPP?; (b) what do teachers perceive they are learning from their participation in the RPP?; and (c) how is teacher agency connected to…

The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive, single case study was to explore how K-8 teachers, lead teachers, and school administrators in an Arizona school district experienced shared leadership and described its influence on student and school success. The theoretical foundation that provided a lens for this study was the theory of shared…

The study aimed to examine the correlation between teamwork in schools, administrative support perception, and sense of school belonging, and the mediating effect of teamwork on the correlation between administrative support and school belonging. The research was designed in the relational screening model, which is one of the quantitative research…

This report from the field shares information describing a pilot program that addressed the literacy needs of middle school culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. One of the authors played a key role in designing and implementing the Building Bonds family literacy program. This program was made to engage these students and their…