Learners' foundational math skills obtained in the elementary grades profoundly impact their preparation for learning math in the upper grades. However, there is a deficiency in the foundational math skills necessary to be proficient in math and equivalent with their peers at grade level (Burton, 2018). In the elementary classrooms of kindergarten…

Over the last decade, there has been an explosion of national interest in computer science (CS) education. In response to this, several organizations and initiatives have emerged in recent years to expand the CS pipeline. However, within these broad and laudable efforts, one important area has been largely overlooked--the instruction of CS to…

Due to COVID-19 lockdowns, Arkansas had to implement virtual instruction into a face-to-face education system for the first time in the 2020-2021 school year. This unique situation is the setting for this dissertation. It explores how adding virtual education to face-to-face education affected student engagement as measured by student attendance.…

The problem addressed in this study was a lack of teacher confidence in implementing culturally responsive practice in early childhood classrooms leading to low academic achievement in minority students. Federal regulations, including the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), mandate that all students are given the support needed to succeed. PK-12…

With the increasing use of robotics in education, this study examined the influence of educational robotics on K-12 students' creativity and problem-solving skills by using Meta-analysis on 20 typical studies published from 2011 to 2021. Subsequent results exhibited five major points: 1) The overall effect of educational robotics was at 0.821; 2)…

Most teachers report wanting more training and support to teach autistic students. Individual, autism-focused coaching is a promising approach for improving teacher self-efficacy and autistic student outcomes. Given the high workload demands of coaching, it must be feasible and acceptable. This study considers coaches', teachers', and autistic…

Students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are likely to experience writing challenges that can negatively impact their overall academic, vocational, and social success. The goals of this study were to determine what writing interventions have been used with students with IDD, how their writing skills have been measured, the…

This book presents one possible pathway towards the advancement of translanguaging pedagogies: teacher-researcher partnerships. Although the existing literature alludes to the value of such partnerships, there is a lack of research that explicitly describes the complex processes of designing and implementing translanguaging pedagogies in primary…

Physical programming (PP) is defined as the design of interactive physical systems between the real and virtual worlds using a combination of software and hardware. A physical programming platform (PPP) defines a structure that includes hardware and software where such applications can be made. The aim of this study is to introduce the MIDEP…

An important educational goal for the next generation is the ability to think computationally. Cultivating K-12 students' computational thinking (CT) requires the capacity building of teachers through teacher development programs. However, if students' learning outcomes were not assessed, it is not known whether the enhancement of teacher capacity…

Society's future depends on informed perspectives of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI related skills, a prognosis that greatly impacts K-12 education. To best prepare students to be AI savvy, there is a need to integrate AI tools, skills, and lessons into the K-12 curriculum. In order for teachers to develop the knowledge and skills, and have…

Research on TESOL materials development has focused primarily on instructional materials for contexts in which students are learning English separate from academic content (e.g., science, mathematics). This research could benefit from expansion given the increasing number of contexts in which students are learning content and English language…

Most teachers report wanting more training and support to teach autistic students. Individual, autism-focused coaching is a promising approach for improving teacher self-efficacy and autistic student outcomes. Given the high workload demands of coaching, it must be feasible and acceptable. This study considers coaches', teachers', and autistic…

Recent national reforms focus on learning disciplinary core ideas through engaging in science and engineering practices. These reforms also call for students and teachers to use crosscutting concepts (CCCs), or analytical lenses, that support scientific sensemaking and connections across disciplines. The "Framework for K-12 Science…

California's K-12 funding and instructional policies for English learners (ELs) have changed significantly over the past 2 decades. The major policy shifts held the potential to change student learning outcome patterns for ELs. As a first step in identifying the potential impacts of these policy shifts, this report describes changes over time in…