This study served to enhance STEM education in rural areas elementary classrooms, where schools often contend with limited resources. The literature called attention to a gap in students not exposed to STEM instruction until they reached secondary school. This gap was revealed in the literature to show a decline in students pursuing a career in…

The purpose of this research was twofold: (a) to assess educator self-reported knowledge, skills, and perceptions of twice-exceptional children's characteristics for best practices in identification and (b) to develop strong educator competencies through professional development sessions for serving and nurturing twice-exceptional learners in…

Reading instruction is too often grounded in a narrowly defined "science of reading" that focuses exclusively on cognitive skills and strategies. Yet cognition is just one aspect of reading development. This book guides K-8 educators to understand and address other scientifically supported factors that influence each student's literacy…

This qualitative study explored the functions of schools as described by parents of students whose second and third grade school year was disrupted by initial COVID-19 related school closures in the spring of 2020. Current literature expresses five overarching functions of schools--socialization, knowledge, future success, citizenship, and…

It is well-established that being a self-regulated learner is beneficial academically, motivationally and is considered essential for productive life-long learning. Despite this, there is limited evidence examining how different measures of self-regulation for learning (SRL) relate to task performance for young students learning in digital…

As science education shifts toward integrated STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) approaches, guidelines for designing teaching and learning episodes that integrate curricular content and procedures from multiple disciplines become increasingly in demand. The existing plethora of conceptualizations of STEM makes difficult such…

Although writing instruction can positively impact reading for students across grades and levels of literacy, the extent to which these findings generalize to young students with literacy difficulties is unclear due to the dynamic nature of reading-writing relations. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to examine the effects of writing…

Education has always been and will continue to be the key that unlocks doors of opportunity and success for all. Our national test scores, over the last several decades, reveal that a majority of America's students are failing to meet academic benchmarks and standards, thus limiting the possibilities for opportunity. Mathematics, in particular,…

This dissertation consists of two chapters on topics in economics of education. In the first chapter, I develop and estimate an equilibrium model of endogenous instruction and student effort in order to empirically investigate the relationship between instructional choices, classroom composition, and student achievement in elementary school. The…

Polynesian Languages and Culture (PLC) lessons in primary schools focus on, among other things, passing on Tahitian legends and linguistic content that is specific to the Polynesian languages ("Reo ma'ohi"). A co-analysis of the PLC teachers' culture of origin conducted with the teachers to identify the dimensions of their actual…

History teaching from early educational stages not only should assess the student's ability to memorise historical content, but also their ability to think historically. Traditional summative tests do not enable teachers to continuously monitor the progress of students. This study evaluates the effect in history learning of incorporating learning…

In Italy, parents are free to choose the primary school for their children without restrictions imposed by catchment areas. This freedom of choice, inspired by quasi-market mechanisms, aims to foster competition between schools and raise educational standards. Analysing the case of Milan using regression models and administrative data for the…

In response to the ongoing war in Syria, displaced persons fleeing war and persecution transited in neighboring countries before going on to resettle permanently in countries of reception such as Canada. The overall purpose of the study reported on here was to inquire into Syrian refugee background children's early educational experiences in…

Since the first curriculum reform in the 1990s, education reforms in China have aimed at creating a student-centred education model based on creativity. The effectiveness of such strategies is, however, questionable. This paper explores the current level of supportive learning environment at elementary schools. Through empirical research conducted…

Background: Socioeconomic characteristics are persistently and systematically related to academic outcomes, despite long-standing efforts to reduce educational inequality. Ireland has a strong policy focus on alleviating educational disadvantage and has seen significant improvements in mathematics and science performance in recent years. This…