This study explores the outcomes of policy implementation from the perspective of the policy makers and the educators who are charged with implementation, specifically examining the decision-making process for district leaders during implementation. The study identifies the outcomes from the perspective of the policy-maker utilizing accountability…

This case study examined competence in two third-grade classrooms where teachers centered children's mathematical thinking in instructional decision-making. Offering a synthesis of sociocultural characterizations of competence, and drawing from a variety of data sources including classroom video, student work and assessments, and teacher…

This study was conducted to describe the moral judgment of 12 third- through fifth-grade children with and without emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) and to explore how feelings affected their thought processes. Data were gathered via three individually conducted moral dilemma interviews with each child participant. These procedures produced…

This mixed methods study examines factors associated with student learning outcomes for Mexican American students in the public elementary schools. The problem of disproportionate identification of cultural and linguistically diverse students in special education is addressed. This study looks at 23 third and fourth grade students by means of a…

For over 100 years, retention has been an intervention used with students who are not performing at expected levels. Despite the lack of evidence that retention is an effective means of improving academic outcomes, retention continues to be used today. Response to Intervention (RTI) is a strategy to provide support to struggling students in an…

This study investigated children's judgments of the epistemic status of justifications for causal claims. Twenty-six children (14 boys, 12 girls) between the ages of 8 and 10 were asked to help two story characters choose the "best reason" for believing a claim. The reasons included appeals to an authority, to a plausible causal mechanism, or to…

Since the 2008 implementation of Response to Intervention (RtI) plans in Illinois, rural schools in southern Illinois with a high percentage of low-income students have been compelled to implement school-wide reforms of their reading programs. Often, limited funding makes it difficult to sustain growth trends in Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).…

The purpose of this mixed methods phenomenological study was to explore the data-driven instructional decisions that elementary teachers make in literacy. Educators have moved towards a culture of being data-driven, and have declared data use in schools to be significant to school improvement and accountability (Marsh, Pane, & Hamilton, 2006).…

Service-learning is a teaching strategy used to engage students in organized service while enhancing academic curriculum. Service-learning is often employed to encourage the development of reflective and critical thinking skills. What was not known is the specific evidence of critical thinking that students may exhibit in the context of an…

This study investigated how the context of a Primary 3 (P3) teacher of Luganda in Uganda influenced the teacher's literacy instructional decision-making, beliefs, pedagogy, and practices before and after she was provided with supplies and literacy instructional procedures that helped produce reading materials for her students. The contextual…