Research has established that reading and writing skills are closely linked for most individuals, which can be explained by the shared knowledge and functional relations theoretical perspectives. The current study used quantile regression to explore differences between and within Grades 3-5 in the United States in the associations between a…

The shift from the traditional self-contained classroom to the departmentalized classroom structure in upper-elementary classrooms is increasing as the pressure to maximize student outcomes is higher than ever for public schools. Teachers prefer departmentalization but findings as to its benefits for students are mixed. This study considers the…

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…

Early mathematics achievement is a strong predictor of later mathematics achievement, and student competence in fractions and division may be the strongest predictor of success in secondary-level algebra. We used a multisite cluster-randomized trial to estimate the impact of a mathematics teacher professional development (PD) program on student…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if a direct, explicit method of teaching vocabulary with the Vocabulary Scenario Technique -- General Education 16 Encounter (VSTGE16) protocol would yield gains in the vocabulary knowledge of fourth grade students in a general education classroom. Two research questions examined whether fourth…

Behavior rating scales represent one of the most commonly used types of assessments in school psychology. Yet, they suffer from a fundamental limitation: They are an indirect methodology influenced partially by student behavior and partially by rater perspectives. Thus, the current study utilized advanced analytic approaches to evaluate rater…

Research suggests that elementary English Learners (ELs) benefit from interactive dual-language vocabulary instruction delivered one-on-one or in small groups. However, there are many barriers to providing this type of instruction to all ELs, including time constraints and bilingual teacher shortages. Thus, there is a high need for innovative,…

Math programming that includes assessments to predict standardized mathematics scores can help evaluate student performance and growth during the academic year. ACALETICS® is a highly interactive, culturally inclusive mathematics program that utilizes posttests as continuous comprehensive assessments to evaluate student mathematical knowledge.…

The purpose of this study was to understand the nature of writing instruction across time and grade bands. We used quantitative and qualitative analyses of teacher interviews and video records of classroom instruction of English language arts writing instruction in 97 fourth- through eighth-grade classrooms in 2010 and 2018. Video records showed a…

Children and adolescents spend considerable time online. The current study investigated moderators of short-term longitudinal associations from social media use to changes in body satisfaction and physical activity. Participants (144 girls, 152 boys) were third-sixth grade students (ages 8-13) attending public schools in Florida (USA).…

Teacher evaluation systems treat instructional quality as generic. Principals often observe elementary teachers in one subject and generalize assessments to all subjects. However, there is little empirical work to justify these decisions. This study provides needed evidence about whether elementary teachers engage in comparable instruction across…

Researchers explored how 13 states in which policymakers have adopted an A-F school letter grade accountability system performed on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) post-policy implementation. Researchers found mixed results, with approximately half of these 13 states increasing achievement post-policy, and the other…

The simple view of reading (SVR) proposes that performance in reading comprehension is the result of decoding and linguistic comprehension, and that each component is necessary but not sufficient for reading comprehension. In this study, the joint and unique predictive influences of decoding and linguistic comprehension for reading comprehension…

Many studies conducted in the last decades report that very few elementary-grades students understand the meaning of = in mathematics, and that upper-elementary students do not understand it any better than the lower-elementary students do. Using data from thousands of Florida elementary students, we show that students in Florida perform ten to…

Movement creativity is a key factor in motor development in children, yet very few exercise programs promote the development of motor creativity in children. To address this gap in the literature, this study tested the effectiveness of a creative exercise program on children's motor and cognitive creativity, and their probability of adaptation to…