Second language literacy development is a significant factor influencing immigrants' opportunities to integrate with the host society. To examine the opportunities that different immigrant groups have had for obtaining both, we selected four published studies that had been originally analyzed through a sociocultural perspective, a prominent…

The aim of the present study is to explore a variety of cognitive and social variables which are most relevant to children's linguistic success in an educational setting. The study examines kindergarten English language outcomes in classrooms containing monolingual English speaking children and bilingual children who speak English and one other…

This study contributes to the literature clarifying teaching practices in elementary classrooms that promote students' social relatedness. The focus on teaching practices reflects the need to understand malleable elements of the classroom, which can then be targeted for professional development. Specifically, this study examines whether children…

Individuals' feelings, beliefs and attitudes toward people with disabilities have an influence on their willingness to engage in the social relationship with people with disabilities such as forming friendship at the workplace or romantic relationship with people with disabilities. This study explored the attitudes of students toward people with…

Art teachers are renowned for their claims that the creative properties of their senior secondary pupils' artworks occur as a result of the realisation of a creative process. Drawing on my recent ethnographic studies in senior art classrooms in Sydney, Australia, and Illinois, USA, I uncover a sociological, rather than a psychological explanation…

In this qualitative study, the authors examine the advisory program of a Horizon Schools to Watch middle grades school. Horizon Schools to Watch is the Illinois affiliate of the National Forum to Accelerate Middle School Reform national Schools to Watch (STW) program, meaning schools with the STW designation have made significant inroads in…

Society's failure to educate proportionate numbers of African American students in mathematics is an ongoing problem. The roots of this problem lie in systemic racism and segregated schools. The overwhelming majority of economically disadvantaged African American high school students at segregated schools receive substandard mathematics education.…

The current investigation examined how homophobic and aggressive social climates of adolescent peer groups accounted for students' use of homophobic epithets and engagement in homophobic banter using multilevel modeling. Results indicated that aggressive peer group social climates accounted for increased use of epithets, over and above…

In this piece, drawing from performance autoethnography, third world feminism, and postcolonial/cultural studies, the author interrogates "how do I play scholar?" The author uses Judith Butler's question "how do I play gender?" and her notions of performativity to dance around, using the voices of the "Thug" and the…

This performance autoethnography shows the author's struggle in finding his place, scholarship, voice, and body, into the academic setting. Mixing together memories of his lived experience with sugar cane workers, notes, and leftovers of different fieldworks, plus 6 years of life as grad student at the University of Illinois, the author looks for…

The long-term goal of this program of research is to clarify how teachers may influence features of peer networks that, in turn, may affect students' perceptions of social support, achievement-related beliefs and academic achievement. As a first step in this process, in this study the authors focus on identifying teaching practices that are…

Although researchers recognize that social contexts shape parenting behaviors, the relationship between neighborhood environment and parenting remains poorly understood. To address this gap, we investigated the associations between compositional and contextual (structural, social, and safety) characteristics of neighborhoods and parental warmth.…

Background/Context: Prior research has investigated differences in course-taking patterns and achievement growth in public and Catholic schools, but the nature of instruction in Catholic schools is currently understudied. One important dimension of instruction that impacts student engagement is the prevalence of developmental or student-centered…

This study investigated children's, adolescents', and adults' references to an actor's goals when explaining interpersonal actions. Participants were presented with eight brief stories containing a variety of social events and were asked to explain why the actor in each story performed the central action. Children, adolescents, and adults…

By probing the micro-level interactions and experiences shaping students' thoughts, behaviors, and decisions during college the authors hope to generate a better picture of how individuals enact the intersection of their own agency with their given social context. Such insights may enable a more accurate and meaningful interpretation of the…