The New York State Education Department (NYSED) has a partnership with NWEA for the development of the 2024 Grades 3-8 English Language Arts Tests. Teachers from across the State work with NYSED in a variety of activities to ensure the validity and reliability of the New York State Testing Program (NYSTP). The 2024 Grades 3 and 4 English Language…

Researchers use data from the RAND American Mathematics Educator Study surveys of public school principals and teachers to investigate three school structures--referred to as "school opportunity structures" throughout this report--that may affect kindergarten through 8th grade (K-8) students' mathematics learning. These structures are…

Current literature exists centered on Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) framework, its components, and ways in which MTSS is intended to support all students. Yet, there is a gap in the literature that examines how elementary schools are implementing it. This dissertation study sought to understand what the MTSS framework implementation at…

Social-emotional learning (SEL) has become a significant concern for schools across the United States and abroad, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Research suggests that school support is necessary for students to succeed academically and emotionally. In recognition of this need, the New York State Education Department mandated schools to…

Identified English learners are students from a home where a language other than English is spoken and who are in the process of acquiring English. These students participate in diverse educational programs, representing over 10% of the United States' student population. Many English learners experience English immersion with teachers who have…

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…

U.S. schools have witnessed educational reforms that have shifted science curriculum and pedagogy within classrooms. Yet, all these reforms have failed to reduce the racial and gender gaps in STEM fields. In 2016, New York State implemented the New York State Science Learning Standards (NYSSLS) to address these gaps. Problems remain, however, with…

As content literacy intervention is expanded in schools, data-based decision-making practices need to also advance, especially in the areas of science. Vocabulary-matching curriculum-based measures (VM-CBM) may allow educators to identify students needing additional support in science vocabulary to assist with using and comprehending disciplinary…

This qualitative study examines elementary teachers' strategies for supporting trans and/or gender-expansive elementary students. The findings come from observations and interviews with a purposive sample of 31 teachers from five elementary schools with principals whom parents characterized as supporting their transgender and/or gender-expansive…

The purpose of this qualitative inquiry was to explore the implementation of the third pillar of dual language education (DLE), sociocultural competence. Teachers' perceptions of the structures both supporting and challenging implementation of the pillar were examined. An Elementary (K-5) two-way immersion DLE Program in the lower Hudson Valley…

The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive study was to explore how school administrators described their understanding of the decision-making process in the allocation of funds to urban elementary schools in New York. Twelve participants took part in online questionnaires followed by Zoom interviews. A convenience sample of principals were…

Collective leadership of teachers and administrators can be a vehicle for catalyzing school improvement. In chemistry, a catalyst is any substance that increases the rate of reaction without itself being consumed. Leadership that accelerates good work without using up the leader is increasingly necessary. We identified schools that demonstrated…

In the U.S., state guidance to schools in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was politicized. We used state-level political affiliation to explore whether access to curricular resources differed pre-pandemic or during pandemic remote teaching and teachers' reported control over curricular resources during pandemic teaching. We found that…

The purpose of this study was to identify the perceptions of elementary administrators' and elementary teachers' on the effectiveness of school-based disciplinary policies as they relate to English language learners. This study identified the current policies and beliefs that are in place when it comes to discipline for our ELL population, and if…

The purpose of this case study was to explore elementary school teachers' perspectives and experiences on the implementation of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) in their classrooms. The study utilized a qualitative research approach, focusing on an elementary charter school located in the State of New York. This study addressed the following…