People often think that power only flows downhill in school. The author draws on his own research observations, as well as the philosophy of Michel Foucault, to offer more nuanced insights. He explains that power is not a "thing" people can possess and that it flows in multiple directions, forming a web of influence. These insights…

Despite a growing body of research on data use in education, there has been relatively little focus on the role of students. This article begins to fill this gap by exploring teacher and administrator reports on engaging students in data use at six middle schools. Even though teachers expressed a belief that involving students in data use would…

Peer-led health promotion strategies in schools have been found to be effective in promoting healthy behaviours amongst youth. This study aimed to evaluate the views of the peer educators in implementing a health education programme using a qualitative approach. Informal discussions and eight in-depth interviews were used to explore the views of…

This paper examines the potential of culturally-responsive environmental education to engage immigrant early adolescents. Our study suggests that environmental involvement can become a means and an end for children to bridge their school and home in agential ways. Drawing from a multi-phase study involving focus groups with children, parents, and…

The purpose of this study was to interpret students' participation in terms of social and argumentation norms to improve understanding of social interaction in scientific argumentation. Therefore, the study sought to identify social and argumentation norms formed in group argumentation and to explore changes in students' participation as lessons…

In this paper, we discuss the individuals' "roles", "responsibilities", and "routine activities", along with their "goals" and "intentions" in two different contexts--a school science context and a university research context--using sociological lenses. We highlight the distinct characteristics of…

Twelve seventh- and eighth-grade students with emotional disturbance participated in a multiple probe, multiple baseline design two-phase intervention study to improve persuasive writing skills. The first phase after baseline taught students to plan and write persuasive essays including counterarguments. In the second phase, students were taught…

This study addresses the problem of mathematics teachers' resistance to problem-solving models that align with constructivist perspectives because they feel pressure to utilize more teaching approaches that focus on preparing students for high-stakes tests. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explain how ninth grade mathematics students…

The purpose of this study was to explore middle school and high school band students' perceptions of two ongoing school-university partnerships. Interviews and focus group interviews were conducted with school students to capture their unique perspectives and to support the tenets of formative and action research designs. Findings indicated that…

The purpose of this study was to provide insight into the caring student-teacher relationships between students with disabilities and their teachers. Specifically, this study examined two different, yet related ideas. The first research question addresses how middle school students with emotional disabilities and their teachers described and…

Despite popular beliefs about social mobility in American society, research consistently shows that inequalities are reproduced across generations. And yet, while social reproduction hinges on the transmission of advantages from parents to children, scholars take for granted children's role in this process. We do not know whether children…

Social media has permeated almost every aspect of the lives of anyone who utilizes the internet. Teachers and students are no exception. Students are most likely to use social media sites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. This research focuses on best practices related to augmenting school curriculum to utilize these tools to increase student…

The literature on the use of problem-based learning in K-12 settings has traditionally focused on gifted and average students. However, mainstreaming is placing increasing numbers of students with special needs in general education classrooms. This case study examined how members of a small group in a mainstreamed seventh grade science class…

Weick's theory of sensemaking is used to analyze findings from a qualitative study of the implementation of a district-initiated adolescent intervention literacy course in two urban secondary schools. The authors concluded that implementation of the literacy course was hampered because district administrators, building leaders, teachers, and…