Student misbehavior in the classroom is often reported as an area of concern for teachers. Having to focus on classroom management rather than content results in a loss of important instructional time, which can have a deleterious impact on student academic achievement. The purpose of the study was to examine whether a character education program…

Western educational researchers have eagerly accepted activity theory (AT) also known as cultural historical activity theory (CHAT) to collect and analyze data in rich description of complex situations. As this theory is applicable to a wide variety of disciplines, this review is limited to education and specifically to qualitative studies of…

The dangers of a single story in current U.S. large-scale writing assessment are that assessment practice does not align with theory and this practice has negative effects on instruction and students. In this article, I analyze the connections or lack of connections among writing theory, writing assessment, and writing instruction, critique the…

The current study is a qualitative case study that investigated the writing development of seven Chinese-speaking English language learners (ELLs) from kindergarten and 3rd-grade ESL classes in an elementary school in the Midwest and intended to discover the factors that affect students' English writing development in a one-year period. Guided by…

Numerous educational efforts have been tried in order to address problems of conflicts and violence at various levels of society. These efforts have been effective to various degrees. This article investigates the effectiveness of the Swedish-based peace education project "The dream of the good" (DODG), through its use of…

In this article we explore socio-cultural theories of learning and some of the processes by which children learn democratic values. Norwegian policy and practice emphasises children's right to participation and involvement in decision-making. We discuss the importance of adults' attitudes, knowledge and ability to relate to and understand…

According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, reading skills for African American male students in Grades 4 and 8 have improved over the past decade. However, a significant reading achievement gap still exists between African American male students and their European American counterparts. The purpose, as well as the central…

The significance of relationships between the parents and teachers of preschool and kindergarten children is well established. Teachers and schools are presumed to be responsible for lack of parent-teacher collaboration. Internationally, early childhood teacher education programs recognize this and offer courses related to parents and families.…

The structure of the American family has changed over the years. Although the traditional father, mother, child structure still dominates, other family patterns are emerging. In this article the authors present: (1) current statistics relating to diverse family structures; (2) reasons for using diverse family structure literature with children;…

This article maps recent progress on 5 key questions about "the academic pipeline problem" of different rates of persistence through school among ethnically diverse students across the nation. The article shows the complementary development of the Overlapping Spheres of Influence Theory and Sociocultural Theory and aligns concepts and measures…

Rates of childhood overweight have reached epidemic proportions (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2001), and schools have been called on to play a role in the prevention of this medical condition. This article describes a multiyear health promotion effort--the Athletes in Service fruit and vegetable (F&V) promotion program--which…

Despite a growing interest in children's drawing, there are few meaningful frameworks for examining what it is that children are doing when they draw. In this paper particular aspects of Vygotsky's sociocultural theories are re-examined in relation to young children's drawing processes. Using one kindergarten child's drawings of the growth and…