This report, from researchers at ChildObesity180, an initiative of the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, explores the impact of the Boston Foundation's investment in four nonprofits that provide structured physical activity to students. The report finds that investments in "Build Our…

Background/Context: Prior research has linked social engagement, such as peer interaction and participation in school activities, to a host of positive outcomes for youth and adolescents. However, little research considers patterns of social engagement among racial/ethnic minority and immigrant adolescents, despite prior research suggesting…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015 includes several provisions that support state and district efforts to prevent students from dropping out of high school and reengage out-of-school youth. Under ESSA, state plans must describe how the state will work with school districts to transition students from middle school to high school and…

Barnes, Mullen, and Lieb (2013) suggested that the effective implementation of the freshman academy promoted positive achievement outcomes for students of color. From a sociocultural perspective through the theoretical framework of Critical Race Theory (CRT), understanding the existence of racism is crucial to a positive academic environment…

School-related problems such as poor academic performance, truancy, frequent suspensions, and grade repeating have been identified as risk factors for adolescent behavior problems. The purpose of the current study was to examine the effect of school-related factors on violent criminality in adulthood, based on data from the National Longitudinal…

Family, school, and community partnerships are a critical part of student achievement, but the successful establishment of meaningful partnerships with low-income and minority populations remains elusive. In 1994, legislators in the United States passed a version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) that seeks to address this…

Making stronger and more meaningful connections among curriculum, instruction, and assessment results in higher levels of student achievement. That is easy to say but challenging to implement. Such connections were largely missing from the High School for Law, Advocacy and Community Justice, a small public high school (500 students) in New York…

What if this nation could solve the college graduation gap between whites and many minority and low-income students? Not only would this positively affect the lives of low-income students, minority students, and those first in their families to go to college, it would better prepare everyone to meet the economic and global challenges that threaten…

Asthma is the most prevalent chronic illness in childhood affecting 7 million youth. Many youth with asthma face another risk factor in obesity. Obesity, in turn, increases disorders such as asthma. Studies have recommended that asthma programs also address weight management in youth. Taking this into consideration, the I Can Control Asthma and…

Mater Academy Charter Middle/High School is located in what was once a big box store in a commercial and industrial area of Hialeah Gardens, FL. The same energy that transformed a vacant store into a thriving campus for a grades 6-12 school is apparent in every classroom. Even the mayor of Hialeah Gardens credits the school with helping to…

Teacher quality is the school factor which makes the greatest impact on student achievement and consistent exposure to effective teachers can overcome obstacles to learning and even close achievement gaps. These facts were the driving force behind the development of federal law, in the No Child Left Behind Act, mandating that states ensure that 1)…

Mathematics education aimed at empowering students for economic and democratic participation must address two critical issues: the long-standing function of mathematics as a gatekeeper, and the complicated nature of designing and implementing systematic reform at the school department level. The study reported here examines a curricular redesign…

For a decade, at least since the passage of No Child Left Behind, the nation's foremost education goal has been to erase achievement "gaps" in which African American, Latino, and low-income students dramatically lag behind their peers. This emphasis has enjoyed broad support through the Bush and Obama administrations, and from major…

In the USA, the number of school age children who represent minority backgrounds is rapidly growing. However, despite several efforts, the teaching force remains primarily White. The purpose of this paper is to describe a residential future teachers program in Connecticut which recruits minority rising juniors and seniors from high schools across…

This article illustrates the application of critical literacy (Freire & Macedo, 1987; Gutierrez, 2008; Morrell, 2007) pedagogies that draw from young people's funds of knowledge (Moll, Amanti, Neff, & Gonzalez, 1992) to actively nurture personally, authentically, and culturally caring relationships (Howard, 2002; Noddings, 1992;…