The problem on which this study focused was the need to organize and implement effective leadership meetings that led to improved professional collaboration. The purpose was to evaluate the use of a protocol in organizing and implementing such meetings. The research questions were framed around the four levels of the Kirkpatrick (1996) evaluation…

This study examined the impact on 16 middle-school teachers' conceptions of mathematics learning and teaching of reflections on their learning experiences within mathematics professional development. The research questions were: In their reflections, what do teachers express about how they best learned mathematics through these learning…

Researchers in the areas of psychology and education strive to understand the intersections among validity, educational measurement, and cognitive theory. Guided by a mixed model conceptual framework, this study investigates how respondents' opinions inform the validation argument. Validity evidence for a science assessment was collected through…

The use of fitness testing is a practical means for measuring components of health-related fitness, but there is currently substantial debate over the motivating effects of these tests. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the cross-fertilization of achievement and friendship goal profiles for early adolescents involved in the…

In the rapidly changing globalized world, school librarians cannot prepare today's students for every possible outcome, but they can give them the skills that will make them adaptable in 21st-century learning and work settings. The mission for school library programs is to ensure that students are effective users of ideas and information by being…

In a montage of genres, Helen Collins Sitler illuminates the subtle yet powerful, often detrimental messages we send to girls that silence their public and private voices and diminish their opportunities to question and learn.

The authors of the three papers in this issue discuss and analyze the practice underlying "critical exploration," a research pedagogy applied in common within their separate art, science, and teacher education classrooms. Eleanor Duckworth developed critical exploration as a method of teaching by involving students so actively and reflectively…

Drawing on data from an ethnographic study in an urban district in the state of Utah, this article highlights how liberalism shapes educational policy and practice in particular ways that ultimately reproduce and legitimate the status quo of whiteness. I employ critical race theory to analyze two aspects of liberalism that are especially pervasive…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of an evidence-based practice that addresses the learning needs of middle school students who have difficulty comprehending science texts. The teachers used a single-subject reversal design to implement peer-mediated instruction while asking to what degree the use of peer-mediated…

As experiential education attempts to achieve more prominent influence in school reform efforts, organisations often bring adventure into the classroom. This paper will use the Project Adventure RESPECT Program as a means to explore the challenge of implementing a system-wide experientially-based programme as an agent for whole school social and…

Since the passage of PL 94-142, also known as the Education of All Handicapped Children Act, in 1975, special and general educators have been urged to work together to improve the education of children with disabilities through increased access to the general education curriculum. Over the years, the evolution of a collaborative approach to…

According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, about 60% of students cannot read proficiently at their current grade level. Findings from the National Reading Panel (NRP) indicate that there is not sufficient research on the topic of struggling middle school readers. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the impact…

In 2007-08 and 2008-09, 2,500 randomly-selected middle school students completed an annual survey on school climate and character development. In examining differences based upon grade, gender, race/ethnicity, school, and length of program participation, significant differences were found for all but length of program participation. Responses of…

Racially mixed schools are important because they affect the distribution of academic achievement, racial attitudes, subsequent social and economic outcomes of students, and patterns of residential integration. The purpose of this article is to capture and describe the role that adolescent friendships play in the educational and social experiences…

Establishing effective transition programs for students entering high school is an ongoing process. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore best practices transition programs employ to aid student's success. The participants in this study were six administrators chosen from a population of administrators at 60 central Indiana high…