The English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS) program was developed to address the need to effectively integrate second language acquisition with quality content area instruction. English language learners (ELLs) have struggled on standardized tests and there has been little empirical evidence regarding the impact of the ELPS program on…

Throughout the history of education, it has been noted that teachers are influential people in lives of children (Applegate & Applegate, 2004; Daisey, 2010; Gambrell, 1996; Ruddell, 1995). Children spend one-third (or more) of the day with teachers; and as they enter into adolescence, children come in contact with more and more teachers during…

In 2010, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) began its seventh year of testing (Texas Education Agency, 2009a). High stakes testing is a reality. This study considered the impact on mathematics achievement based on the mathematics program students were receiving during their middle school years. The purpose of this study was to…

Mentoring and support of beginning teachers is a key element of reducing teacher attrition. Most schools have implemented an induction program with assigned mentors for inexperienced teachers. However, the problem of attrition begins before the induction year of teaching, given that many certified teachers never enter a classroom. This…

The "Connected Mathematics Project" ("CMP") is a mathematics curriculum designed for students in grades 6-8. Each grade level of the curriculum is a full-year program and covers numbers, algebra, geometry/measurement, probability, and statistics. The curriculum uses an investigative approach, and students utilize interactive…

This annual report provides information for the 2010-11 school year on grade-level retention and student performance in the Texas public school system. Student retention and promotion data are reported with data on the performance of students in Grades 3-10 on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) reading and mathematics tests. [For…

This study explores the characteristics of after-school program activities at a charter school in the Southeast US highlighting students' experiences with and gains from these after-school program activities. A qualitative case study design was employed to understand students' views and opinions regarding the activities and their learning…

The purpose of this study was to determine if the four assessments for entrance into an academic middle school gifted English program were accurately predicting success, as measured by students' grades each nine-week grading period. Some students were dismissed from the program each year because they could not maintain the required minimum average…

The Apollo 20 project was launched during the 2010-2011 school year to accelerate Houston Independent School District's (HISD's) efforts to improve student performance in every school and close the achievement gap districtwide. This partnership with EdLabs at Harvard University incorporates best practices from successful public and charter schools…

Middle school teachers tend to rely heavily on texts that have become increasing more visual. There is little information available about the graphical demands of general middle grades' science texts. The purpose of this study was to quantify the type and quality of the graphical representations and how they interacted with the textual material in…

The purpose of this study was to examine teacher Levels of Technology Implementation (LoTi) self-ratings and student Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) scores. The study assessed the relationship between LoTi ratings and TAKS scores of 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students as reported in student records at Alamo Heights Independent School…

This study examined the communication of non-aggressive, rejected (NAR) children and popular children during peer interaction. The participants were 80 fifth and sixth graders recruited from a larger sociometric sample (40 boys and 40 girls; 20 NAR children and 60 non-aggressive, popular children). Participants were assigned to 40 same-gender…

This paper reports the results of a descriptive study on the use of a technology-enhanced formative assessment system called Accelerated Math (AM) for ELLs and their native-English-speaking (NES) peers. It was comprised of analyses of an extant database of 18,549 students, including 2,057 ELLs, from grades 1 through 8 across 30 U.S. states. These…

Ironically, adults control most of the world of children's literature: adults write the books; adults choose which books to publish; adults review the books, adults bestow the awards on books and adults purchase the books for bookstores, libraries, and their children. In this paradigm of adult control, children's opinions are often overlooked. The…

This study was designed to investigate the effects of the year-round calendar on student performance in Texas middle schools as measured by achievement on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. In the State of Texas, 15 schools served students in grades six through eight using the year-round calendar in 2009-2010. The 15…