Objective: School activities are demanding for adolescents and activate strategies to manage them, promoting specific behaviours and outcomes in the academic environment. Drawing from the motivational theory of coping, coping included multiple adaptive strategies that are relevant to understand educational outcomes. This study is focused to…

This qualitative study examined the mathematics self-confidence of eight junior high school students who were moved to an above-grade-level mathematics class through a nontraditional process. Teachers were concerned about how this transition may impact students' beliefs about their abilities to succeed in mathematics. Data were collected through…

For many students, the journey from middle school to high school is marked by significant social, emotional, and behavioural changes. Undetected student needs and lack of parental engagement can contribute to a negative transition experience. When students struggle to adapt to new challenges and demands without supports, they are at a greater risk…

Proponents of positive psychology have argued for more comprehensive assessments incorporating positive measures (e.g., student strengths) as well as negative measures (e.g., psychological symptoms). However, few variable-centered studies have addressed the incremental validity of positive assessment data. The authors investigated the incremental…

One portion of a national study of bullying, which surveyed gifted 8th graders regarding bullying during their school years (N = 432), used structured interviews (N = 57) to explore the lived experience of being bullied or being a bully. Qualitative analysis of interview data found that even just one incident was highly distressing for some. Also…

Judgments about the quality of students' experience of school generally focus on their academic performance and indeed this is an important indicator but closer attention needs to be paid to equally important, more broadly based outcomes that include social/emotional adjustment as they also are shown to impact on students' lives at, and beyond…