This report presents the results from the third biennial Texas OER Landscape Survey, administered in 2023 and commissioned by the Digital Higher Education Consortium of Texas (DigiTex) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB). The survey aimed to explore the open educational resources (OER) landscape, policies, and practices at…

Public high school principals (n = 130) participated in a study comparing extracurricular activities available at high schools located in poverty areas with extracurricular activities available at high schools not located in poverty areas. Results indicated that high schools in poverty areas are, in general, characterized by fewer extracurricular…

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the implementation and impact of the IDEA Public Schools' Mathematics Curriculum Redesign (MCR) effort, funded by an Innovation and Research (EIR) grant. Methods: The study used a quasi-experimental matching design to examine the effect of MCR on student achievement outcomes. The study compared…

In this study a survey was developed to investigate students' engagement during general chemistry laboratory sessions. Aspects of engagement surveyed included cognitive, behavioral, and emotional engagement, and the survey items were focused on activities during the pre-laboratory introduction, laboratory procedures, and data collection.…

Rip currents are narrow seaward-flowing currents common on many global beaches and are capable of transporting even experienced swimmers a significant distance offshore, placing them at risk of needing rescue or drowning. In this respect, rips represent a significant hazard to beach users around the world and are recognized as a major health…

Background: College students are susceptible to cigarette smoking initiation, and those who smoke are at risk for a lifetime addiction. Purpose: This study examined the differences in college student smoker and nonsmoker perceptions about cigarette smoking in relation to emotional benefits, health hazards, self-confidence, and body image. Methods:…

Research studies indicate that, the rate of burnout among professional counselors is a continued concern. The nature of the work that counselors do make them susceptible to stress and poor self-care leading to possible burnout. Counselors and counselors in training need to develop awareness about the possibility of burnout when entering the world…

Transition planning requires quality vocational and transition assessment tailored to the student's needs, strengths, preferences and interests. Limited research is currently available that addresses assessment types and use of results that rural practitioners utilize to aid in transition planning for students with intellectual disabilities (ID).…

Although the consensus seems to be that high-school-level introductory engineering courses should focus on design, this creates a problem for teacher training. Traditionally, math and science teachers are trained to teach and assess factual knowledge and closed-ended problem-solving techniques specific to a particular discipline, which is unsuited…

In an effort to increase reading compliance and active reading strategies, quizzes and reading guides were given to 100 participants in four psychology courses. Each participant was given four weeks of reading quizzes and four weeks of reading guides. Participants consisted of students (freshman through senior level) from two colleges along the…

Main idea and summary are essential elements of reading comprehension. We report results from Grades 4 and 5 student performance on two years of state-mandated standardized reading testing which indicate that students perform statistically significantly lower on main idea and summary questions on the tests than any other question category. In this…

There is a debate on students' low science achievement in the United States, particularly among low income, African American students, and Latino students. An important part of the education community's response to low achievement generally and in science specifically has been the implementation of high stakes accountability policies. Because of…

The importance of music education in American schools is well established, with 93% of Americans agreeing that music should be a part of a well-rounded education (Harris, 2005). Students preparing to teach in the elementary classroom (elementary education majors) in American colleges and universities typically take a music class (sometimes two) as…

The purpose of this study was to determine the implementation level of best practice strategies for middle level education in the state of Texas described by This We Believe (AMLE, 2010) and to determine the relationship of those practices with the schools' academic achievement in math and reading. A survey was distributed to principals of all…

This study examines previously untested variables that influence social loafing in professional and technical communication group projects by determining the influence of communication quality and task cohesion on social loafing. A set-up factors model, which included group size, peer review, project scope, and method of team formation, was also…