In the context of a digital age that marks all sectors of modern life, access and use of new technologies and the Internet by digital natives is an area with multiple speculations based on relatively little empirical research. It was noted that young people of this generation share a global common culture characterized more by their experience in…

In this multiple case study, we apply sense-making theory to examine and compare how middle school special and general educators perceive and respond to teacher evaluation reform, including formal classroom observations, informal walk-throughs, and student growth measures. Our findings reveal that special educators experience conflict between the…

A difficult nexus can arise in positivist research when developing a model or theoretical framework that is then used to underpin the construction of measuring instruments that are subsequently used to test the assumptions underlying the model. This paper explores this nexus through consideration of a study of risk-taking in decision-making for…

Rural schools make up a considerable portion of Oklahoma's public education system. These schools are an integral part of community life for many rural towns. They are also a critical part of Oklahoma's economy, responsible for training the next generation of thinkers, workers, builders, and leaders. Unfortunately, data suggest that many of…

One-hundred-thirty-one southeastern Kentucky public school teachers were surveyed with respect to their preferred mode of professional development. An ANOVA was conducted to determine if there was a difference in teacher perceptions among content related variables. That ANOVA showed no significant difference among the means for new instructional…

Previous research investigating the effectiveness of response to intervention (RTI) has relied on post hoc data analyses and surveys, although few studies have explored interactions among teacher teams. Understanding the synergistic impact of teacher work within the RTI framework may have implications for how school leaders can support teacher…

Purpose: The teaching of cooking is an important aspect of school-based efforts to promote healthy diets among children, and is frequently done by external agencies. Within a limited evidence base relating to cooking interventions in schools, there are important questions about how interventions are integrated within school settings. The purpose…

This study explored the relationship between school level and the psychosocial construct of an academic mindset operationalized on the Likert-style Project for "Educational Research That Scales" (PERTS) instrument; widely used in testing academic mindset interventions at the classroom level. Analyses were conducted using existing school…

In this case, a high school vice-principal encounters tension and anger when she rewrites a staff member's report card comments without his knowledge. The case narrative examines the conflict that arises when, under time constraints and pressures to produce student reports, the vice-principal acts on a decision she believes is ethically correct…

This paper explores the implementation of Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) at a rural, alternative high school in Alabama. Students at the school were atypical from those usually described in the YPAR literature in that they were predominately white, working and middle class, and lived in rural neighborhoods that were geographically…

While the number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) continues to rise, research addressing the unique educational experiences of students with ASD in rural communities remains limited and inconclusive. This study investigates how the rural context influences the educational experiences of students with ASD. The researchers…

"Zhuangang" (literally means "transferring post") English teachers, usually in the primary schools of rural areas in China, refer to the English teachers who used to teach school subjects other than English. Some of them may at the same time still teach other subjects in addition to English. They are a part of the solutions to…

In 2014-15, the high school graduation rate reached a record high of 83 percent (U.S. Department of Education 2016). Despite the gains, over half a million students still drop out of high school each year (U.S. Department of Education 2015). High schools have adopted various strategies designed to keep students who are at risk of not graduating in…

Purpose: In January 2015, the Northwest Board of Cooperative Educational Services (NW BOCES) received a five-year Investing in Innovation (i3) grant to develop and implement the System for Educator Effectiveness Development (SEED) program--an innovative professional development (PD) system designed to provide geographically isolated educators an…

Cooperative learning is one of the most recognized and fruitful research areas in modern education practice. It has been widely used in many countries as an effective teaching strategy to improve class efficiency and students' comprehensive language ability since the 1990's. This paper takes JA Junior High School, a rural junior high school in…