This study uses qualitative methods to explore the subjective experience of Black girls within the formal educational context. Placing two theoretical approaches in conversation, this study applies a decolonial Black feminist epistemological framework to provide a narrative account of the experience of Black girls in their own words. Recognizing…

In 2009, I began my journey to earn an EdD with determination and passion but found the road included twists and turns that required perseverance and patience. By examining middle school students' perceptions about the role their relationship with a teacher has in the learning process, I listened for elements of their experiences that might inform…

This case study exemplifies an experimental design to measure the effectiveness of a new educational approach compared to the conventional approach. The researchers were interested in the impacts that reading culturally responsive Young Adult novels might have on eighth grade students' reading comprehension. Students were randomly assigned to the…

This case study describes how our research team conducted an individual differences research project in a middle school science classroom. The main goal of our work was to investigate whether individual differences in cognitive abilities predict individual differences in scientific reasoning in middle school students. In order to address our…

In winter 2014, I came upon an opportunity to conduct a case study on a team of middle school math teachers who initiated a study group to examine how a set of learning progressions could help them with their planning, instruction, and assessment. Learning progressions are research-based hypotheses about how students develop more sophisticated…

Tools to measure perceptions of child wellbeing using a questionnaire are commonplace in educational research. However, the design and development of these tools vary widely. This case study considers a new approach used by researchers who were part of a collaborative, mixed-methods study of child wellbeing, resulting in Australia's first…

The purpose of my research was to examine how three middle school general education teachers included students with disabilities in their classrooms. At the time I implemented the study, there was an extensive body of research pertaining to elementary inclusion, but little in the area of middle school inclusion. I had spent 8 years as a middle…

The issue of quality education is a critical topic of discussion, for South Africa facing the challenge of implementation amid a plethora of progressive policies. The purpose of the research reported here is to describe the procedures undertaken to explore the feasibility of implementing a monitoring system in the South African context. The…

The study reports on a small international qualitative research project on the implementation of national curriculum reform in Chinese middle schools, involving a team of eight researchers from the University of Leeds and two Chinese partnership institutions in Zhejiang and Beijing. Data were collected from six case study schools based on a…

Grounded theory methodology allows researchers to generate theories that answer research questions that existing theories do not adequately explain. This methodology involves the use of the constant comparative method in an iterative cycle of data collection and analysis. To understand the data and make decisions that drive the cycle forward, the…

The K-8 Cajon Valley Union School District (Cajon Valley USD) is one of forty-two school districts in the greater San Diego, California metropolitan area. Serving approximately 16,000 students, the Cajon Valley USD is extremely diverse; 36 percent of students are Hispanic, 46 percent are white, 7 percent are African American, and many students are…

The effect that mode of administration, computer versus paper and pencil, had on the performance of 120 middle school students on multiple choice and written test questions was studied. Results show that, for students accustomed to writing on computers, responses written on the computer were more successful. Implications for testing are discussed.…

The relationships among student achievement, student culture, and educational practitioners' attitudes and expectations were investigated for 20 Mexican-American middle school students with the assistance of 12 teachers and 2 administrators. Findings indicate that these students, whether high or low achieving, perceived themselves, and were…