The purpose of this article is to contribute to a critical approach to analysing the new curricula and to outline student-centric approaches through an examination of legislation on educational policy applied by the Greek government in the last five years. After twenty years from the last curricula (2003), the new curricula were published in a…

The Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA) has been the governing legislation for teacher evaluation in Illinois since its inception in 2010. PERA's original purpose was to improve the professional competence of teachers while increasing the academic performance of students. This study explored the perceptions and experiences of a small group of…

Montessori instructional approach closely aligns with The Science of Reading. Standardized test scores and student background data from statewide data sets were reviewed to produce empirical evidence that students instructed in reading in schools using Montessori methods and curriculum achieve results significantly higher than the state average…

The majority of U.S fourth graders are not proficient in reading. With lawmakers in some U.S. states enacting "Read by Grade 3" laws, it is important for teachers to be well prepared to teach reading to their students. The purpose of this study was to explore novice kindergarten through second grade (K-2) teachers' perspectives of their…

The purpose of the qualitative phenomenological study was to explore and understand the impact of standardized testing on educational practice in an urban, Title I school community, and to determine solutions to improve the utility of standardized testing in supporting student learning and achievement. The specific areas of focus are diagnosing…

As a result of federal and state laws, it is necessary to identify an accurate predictor of student achievement before administering the state-mandated test. School districts are increasingly administering "benchmark assessments" throughout the year to measure students' progress and provide teachers with data about adjusting instruction.…

This two-year study examined the impact of Spalding's The Writing Road to Reading literacy program on student achievement across grades K-5 in 14 Arizona schools. Using a quasi-experimental matched design, researchers compared 687 students from three Spalding schools with 1228 students from eleven comparison schools using Fundations. Data from…

Increasingly alarmed by instructional mandates more founded on journalistic rhetoric and popular opinion than on research findings or practitioner expertise, researchers gathered survey data from teachers to better understand the status of K-2 phonics instruction. Data demonstrate that the overwhelming majority of these K-2 teachers teach phonics,…

This dissertation investigated the extent to which five dependent variables were included in the first-grade reading curriculum and whether district size played a role in their inclusion. This study's mixed-methods approach incorporated descriptive statistics, histograms, confidence intervals, and chi-squared analyses to assess curriculum patterns…

Due to COVID-19 lockdowns, Arkansas had to implement virtual instruction into a face-to-face education system for the first time in the 2020-2021 school year. This unique situation is the setting for this dissertation. It explores how adding virtual education to face-to-face education affected student engagement as measured by student attendance.…

As more states pass bills banning critical race theory in schools, it is especially important for teachers to understand what critical race theory is and the implications of such bills. To understand what critical race theory is and intends to do. I look at its origins and how it has been employed in the field of education. Recognizing the legacy…

State leaders have long recognized the value of statewide tests. Many had well-developed testing systems long before the No Child Left Behind Act, signed in 2002, required annual assessments in grades 3-8. Another sign of that recognition is the recent plethora of new state testing requirements for K-3 students. But would states continue to test…

The goal of this quasi-experimental study was to assess the effects of Dual-Coding Theory on domain-specific vocabulary and comprehension in a 5th grade social studies classroom. The pretest/posttest design research was conducted in a rural elementary school (N = 49). Twenty-three students participated in an intervention of dual-coding based…

In 2019, declines in reading achievement across Texas motivated changes for teacher recertification, which required 60-hour professional development in the science of teaching reading (STR). The problem this study addressed was the challenges K-Grade 3 reading teachers encountered when implementing the recently adopted Reading Academy content at a…

Elementary music teachers are required to attend long-term, campus-wide professional development outside their content area. The purpose of this interpretive qualitative study was to better understand how elementary music teachers in a North Texas and a South-Central Colorado school district who have had five or more years of teaching experience…