Effective transitions to kindergarten engage families and ease children into new environments. Countdown to Kindergarten (CTK), a program in a southeastern U.S. state that serves more than 1,000 children each year and is grounded in Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory, partners kindergarten teachers and families to facilitate effective…

Meeting the needs of students in schools has been challenging for many years. Consequently, some schools have responded with comprehensive, multi-tiered intervention systems (e.g., MTSS) aimed at addressing students' academic, behavioral, and social-emotional needs. However, most educators have a rudimentary understanding of these systems and the…

Prior research has identified five in-school factors that impact teacher retention: positive school culture, supportive administration, strong professional development, mentoring programs, and classroom autonomy. While much of the national attention is focused on state or district-level policies to address the teacher retention crisis, this study…

Critical thinking, creativity, communication, teamwork, emotional intelligence, problem-solving, empathy, resilience, ambition, grit, and innovation (Heckman & Kautz, 2012). These skills, often referred to as 'soft' skills, are considered a requirement for employment and advancement for the 21st-century graduate (Carnevale & Smith, 2013).…

Higher Education and its evolution in the twentieth century has seen a paradigm shift and an increased focus on the disconnect of the classroom with the employment field and market. Higher education has been presented with the challenge of not only understanding how one behaves and adapts to transitions but the approach and how to analyze a change…

The Department for Education (DfE) is committed to minimising the use of reasonable force, including physical restraint and other restrictive practices in all schools in England, including special schools and alternative provision. This work programme will include updating the 'Use of reasonable force' guidance (2013) to provide school staff with…

As virtual platforms for secondary education have grown, the performing arts have faced various difficulties in moving to these platforms effectively. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the experiences of five secondary theatre educators transitioning to virtual teaching. This exploration included theatre educators'…

During the COVID-19 pandemic there were many changes in arts and design alumni's paid work, creative work, income and in the skills that they needed to be successful in their careers. Given the documented impact of the pandemic on the arts and culture sector, on arts and creative workers, and on institutions of higher education, the authors turn…

This qualitative action research study sought to explore and enhance the academic self-efficacy of Black and Hispanic students in urban high schools. The study aimed to uncover the factors contributing to low academic self-efficacy among Black and Hispanic STEM students and develop an actionable plan to address these issues. In Cycle 1, high…

The purpose of this study was to investigate undergraduate students' conceptions of Earth scientists, using drawing as a tool, during introductory Earth science courses. We explored two research questions: 1) What student conceptions are evident in undergraduate students' drawings of Earth scientists? and 2) How do undergraduate students'…

Academic libraries are experiencing drastic changes due to unprecedented advancements in technology. This advancement has caused changes in users' information-seeking behavior, increased information competitors, and easy access and availability to free information on the internet. It is unfortunate that all this is happening amidst the dwindling…

Purpose: Recent scholarship has explored higher education institutions' (HEIs) role in transitioning to a sustainable society, but empirically, questions remain regarding their impact on the sustainability of surrounding areas. This study aims to examine the correlation between HEIs' sustainability actions and local sustainability performance.…

Work integrated learning (WIL) encompasses educational experiences that merge academic knowledge and practical application in a professional setting, benefiting both students and the existing workforce. The objective of incorporating WIL into education is to foster the integration of theoretical understanding by engaging students in a combination…

Work placement has been regarded as one of the most effective ways of developing vocational teachers' occupational expertise. Guided by expectancy-value theory, we aim to explore how vocational teachers' motivation towards professional learning shapes to their engagement when on work placement. Two research questions were addressed: 1) What is the…

This paper highlights the transformative potential of place-based community organizing as a theory and practice of progressive social change and as a critical approach to the social purpose of community engagement in Higher Education Institutions. The aim is to expose power asymmetries and civic renewal "from below" through a focus on…