The purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions of kindergarten teachers concerning the skills that demonstrate the five components of readiness as organized by the National Education Goals Panel (NEGP) and to identify which skills kindergarten teachers believe are most important for students to be successful. In November 2023, 136…

Background/Context: There were over 500,000 open computing jobs across the country in 2018, but only 35% of U.S. high schools offer computer science classes, and only 8-10% of STEM graduates study computer science (Code.org, 2018). In 2021, only 5.1% of all Bachelor's degrees conferred were in Computer and Information Sciences (IPEDS, 2018). STEM…

Although research studies have been conducted regarding professional development in various areas of education, few have specifically focused on transitional/early exit bilingual education programs. This qualitative study could fill in the gaps identified in previous research regarding transitional/early exit bilingual education programs, obtain…

Professional development and job satisfaction is a topic of great interest for all those who are involved in the field of early childhood education. Professional development is closely related to organizational development, both representing a result of continuous changes in education. At a personal level, professional development has an internal…

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions of experienced STEM teachers regarding STEM preparedness and implementation at a South Texas elementary school for grades kindergarten-five (K-5). This qualitative study used a phenomenological framework. The site for this study was a South Texas elementary school currently…

Professional learning should be designed in a way that is responsive to the needs of teachers and intentionally planned with adult learning principles in mind. This article outlines one practitioner's professional journey to redefine how professional learning is designed with best practices in adult learning in mind. Strategies utilized during…

In this study, the researcher used the quantitative descriptive methodology to explore and more clearly describe teachers' knowledge of dyslexia to improve dyslexia referral and evaluation practices for students on at-risk campuses. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine what English-language arts teachers who teach kindergarten,…

Much research has noted the misalignment between kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12) academic standards and curriculum materials used in classrooms. Many states and education organizations have been pushing for greater use of standards-aligned curriculum, especially during the past several years. In this report, the authors share results…

This exploratory study builds upon extant reading development studies by identifying discrete groups based on reading comprehension trajectories across first grade. The main goal of this study was to enhance the field's understanding of early reading comprehension development and its underlying subcomponent skills, with the intent of better…

Some children come to school with a smaller vocabulary than their peers. If children do not have knowledge of the meaning of the words they read in texts, they will fail to comprehend those texts and struggle to keep up with their peers. This is critical because the link between vocabulary and comprehension is very clear (Sticht et al., 1974, as…

Teachers are essential in ensuring children and society are aware of neurodiversity by actively incorporating inclusive children's literature into their classroom activities to promote understanding and acceptance of neurodiverse individuals. Integrating such literature may enhance children's awareness and acceptance of neurodiverse individuals.…

There are multiple explanations for why many children do not have access to well-prepared pre-K teachers. The five programs profiled in this report show that it is possible to give pre-K teachers rich, research-based training that prepares them to work with young children. However, there is a scarcity of opportunities focused on the developmental…

Lesson study, especially when conducted with support from targeted resources, is often identified as a potentially effective means to support teacher learning. In this study, 80 school-based teams of educators, representing 80 classrooms of third- or fourth-grade students in the US, were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: lesson study…

The problem addressed in this study was low student achievement among students from underrepresented student groups. In this quasi-experimental research study, the self-efficacy theory was utilized to examine the relationship between teachers' receipt of instructional coaching and student achievement scores. The purpose of this quasi-experiment…

In 2019, declines in reading achievement across Texas motivated changes for teacher recertification, which required 60-hour professional development in the science of teaching reading (STR). The problem this study addressed was the challenges K-Grade 3 reading teachers encountered when implementing the recently adopted Reading Academy content at a…