This study explores how early childhood teachers in a progressive private school in the Midwest adapted to changes resulting from the closing of schools due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Employing Bourdieu's notions of habitus, field, and illusio, we examine how educators in the school approached the move to distance learning during the early months…

The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences and perceptions of teachers who use arts-integrated instruction and their directors of K-2 students before, during, and after the unique period of online instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in March of 2020. Arts integration is a method of teaching in which students are…

The first year of teaching has and continues to be fraught with challenges for early educators in public school contexts across the United States. A persistent problem that has been documented across the globe is the ability of novice teachers to engage in developmentally appropriate practices (DAP) with their students. We examine this issue…

Learning to read is essential, especially for our youngest learners, as the foundational skills for learning to read can determine the future success of our students. The disruptions to learning from the COVID-19 pandemic have affected education. Researchers are still working to understand the depth of learning loss students have experienced.…

Education is a continually evolving profession in which students should always be the top priority. Throughout the history of the American education system, attempts have been made to prioritize the needs of students. These attempts often miss the mark in terms of student needs, and it, unfortunately, becomes more of a political cause than a way…

This embedded case study sought to answer the question of what obstacles and opportunities presented when a reading initiative aimed at increasing the amount of time students spent reading independently was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four embedded grade level cases from a small rural elementary school were explored over the course…

The importance of access to quality physical education (PE) among children is well-documented. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, resulted in significant shifts in PE curriculum delivery alongside a rapid uptake by PE teachers of new technologies. Although some research about integrating technology into teaching does exist, there is very…

Researchers have studied stress and burnout in the field of education for decades. The problem addressed in this study was that early childhood (EC) teachers of kindergarten through second grade in a large, northeastern, suburban public school district have returned to in-person instruction with many challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic.…

Due to the increasing mental health needs of children, schools have been tasked with supporting academic and social emotional needs of students. One component of mental health and wellness that is growing in popularity in the school environment is social emotional learning, or SEL. This qualitative multiple case study explored factors influential…

This study investigated the repercussions of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the subsequent quarantine on the emotional well-being of children in their initial years of formal schooling, with particular emphasis on children with special educational needs (SEN) and children from high and low socioeconomic statuses (SES). This longitudinal study…

Future Forward is an early elementary literacy program which, through a family-school-community partnership approach, integrates one-on-one tutoring and family engagement to support literacy development at school and at home. In the 2020-21 school year, as part of an Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Mid-Phase grant, the impact of a modified…

Early childhood education leaders were challenged to assist K-3 teachers with transitioning to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore early childhood education leaders' challenges to assist K-3 teachers with transitioning to online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. The…

School closures can occur not only during a pandemic, but also during disasters, which can impact students' social and emotional well-being and lead to detrimental behavioral outcomes and trauma-related symptomatology. Such negative impacts can potentially be alleviated by inclusion of effective virtual or blended SEL programming that supports…

This qualitative study examined families' experiences supporting young children's (ages 3-8) remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Twenty-three participants completed open-ended questions in an online survey and three of those participants shared further in an online, recorded focus-group interview. Parents revealed young children's…

During the COVID-19 pandemic, K-5 teachers and students rapidly transitioned to an online learning modality. Both the swift conversion and lack of preexisting research left educators and families underprepared for fostering virtual interaction and learning. The purpose of this study was to examine the nature of K-5 online student collaboration,…