The present study investigated the role of teacher-rated likeability as a mediator of the relation between low academic competence and depressive symptoms in elementary-aged children. Analyses focused on a sample of children at risk for child maltreatment living in Hawaii (n = 380). Structural equation modeling supported the hypothesized negative…

Career development is a lifelong process that begins in childhood and has been linked to student success in other aspects of their development in childhood and adulthood (Blackhurst, Auger, & Wahl, 2003). This article presents a fifth-grade technology-based career development curriculum that engages students in a 10-week long exploration of…

Several social-emotional learning (SEL) or social-emotional and character development (SECD) programs have been shown to be effective at improving SEL/SECD skills, and some have also provided evidence of effectiveness in improving student behavior and academic achievement (Durlak, Weissberg, Dymnicki, Taylor, & Schellinger, 2011). Very few SEL…

This year's Action Guide examines the need for new ways of measuring student success. Academic test scores are just one method of measuring student progress, offering an incomplete picture of student learning and growth. Educators and state leaders recognize that serving all students well requires focusing on their individual needs, including…

This governing document for the public education system in Hawai'i provides a common foundation of expectations and supports for public education, centering on closing the achievement gap to ensure equity and excellence for each student. The Strategic Plan is a compact between the Board of Education (BoE), the Department of Education (DoE), and…

Conventional theories of student development are often used to explain student persistence, attrition, amd marticulation in education and thus formulate the basis for student retention models. Student development theories fail to consider the diverse set of socioeconomic cultural and academic experiences of Indigenous peoples, in this case…

This study presents case studies of rural elementary schools in Hawaii that examine resource allocation strategies that promote student achievement. The combined frame work of the Evidence Based Model (Odden & Picus, 2008) and the 10 Strategies for Doubling Student Performance (Odden, 2009) were utilized to compare actual school resources and…

Guided by a new framework, the NAEP science assessment was updated in 2009 to keep the content current with key developments in science, curriculum standards, assessments, and research. The 2009 framework organizes science content into three broad content areas. Physical science includes concepts related to properties and changes of matter, forms…

Response to Intervention (RtI) has promise for helping students, particularly ones with disabilities, achieve higher levels of academic and behavioral success in the general education classroom. What does it mean for gifted students or for those who are gifted and have a learning disability, such as twice-exceptional students? How might current…

REL Pacific at McREL, 1 of 10 Regional Educational Laboratories (RELs) funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), serves educators in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia (Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap), Guam, Hawai'i, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic…

Guided by a new framework, the NAEP science assessment was updated in 2009 to keep the content current with key developments in science, curriculum standards, assessments, and research. The 2009 framework organizes science content into three broad content areas. Physical science includes concepts related to properties and changes of matter, forms…

For five years running, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has tracked states' teacher policies, preparing a detailed and thorough compendium of teacher policy in the United States on topics related to teacher preparation, licensure, evaluation, career advancement, tenure, compensation, pensions and dismissal. The 2011 State Teacher…

This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Hawaii's Year 4 Race to the Top implementation. Hawaii made tremendous progress over the course of the grant period in implementing its Strategic Plan and six priority strategies and creating an aligned organization focused on increasing student outcomes. Among some of the other…

"Positive Action," a K-12 program, aims to promote character development, academic achievement, and social-emotional skills and to reduce disruptive and problem behavior. The program is based on the philosophy that you feel good about yourself when you think and do positive actions, and there is always a positive way to do everything.…

"The Learning Principal" is an eight-page newsletter published eight times a year. It focuses on the important and unique work of school principals. This issue includes: (1) Landmark Study Examines U.S. Professional Learning: Findings Point the Way to Improving Student Achievement (Stephanie Hirsh); (2) School Leadership: Q&A:…