Background: Children residing in households with very low food sufficiency (VLFS), where there is "often" not enough to eat, are more likely to experience academic, health, and psychological challenges. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a temporary universal free school meals (UFSM) policy was implemented, improving food access for children…

The purpose of the study was to explore the challenges experienced by teachers in their role in implementing the National School Nutrition Program in schools within the Harry Gwala District of KwaZulu-Natal. This article is extracted from a Ph.D. thesis that employed a qualitative research design, utilizing a sample of teachers who participate in…

Inappropriate behaviors often occur in non-classroom settings, such as lunchrooms, due to the increased volume of students with fewer supervising adults. As such, there is a need for effective and efficient behavior management interventions that can be implemented in these environments. To address frequent disruptions in an urban elementary…

Schools implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) with fidelity demonstrate a wealth of student and school benefits. At the same time, there exists limited research from an inclusive innovation perspective: examining whether schools and communities have equitable access to PBIS based on sociodemographic school and…

Purpose: Maintaining the success of educational institutions largely depends on the teacher. It is the teacher whose main efforts and contribution help in achieving the goals in education. The purpose of this paper is to examine the current state of the programme delivery and how involving the active participation of the teacher will help enhance…

California is on the cusp of implementing universal preschool--a step that could help level the playing eld for young children. Over the next few years, all four-year-olds will become eligible for Transitional Kindergarten (TK), which has been part of the state's early learning programs since 2012. In this report, the authors examine the…

Elevate [Math] is a 19-day (76-hour) in-person summer math program created by the Silicon Valley Education Foundation to help middle school students who are struggling in math to achieve math proficiency, increase their interest in math, and develop a growth mindset. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the in-person summer program was adapted to a…

Background: In this study, we describe state agency strategies to support weight-related policy implementation in schools, and examine the association among state support, obesity prevalence, and strength of state policies governing school nutrition and physical education. Methods: The 2012 School Health Policies and Practices Study describes…

Purpose/Objectives: The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) new school meals regulations went into effect in July 2012. The purpose of this research was to explore school nutrition director's (SNDs) perspectives and attitudes about the new regulations and to identify strategies used to prepare for and subsequently implement the regulations.…

There is growing awareness of the importance of implementation fidelity and the supports, such as coaching, to optimize it. This study examined how coaching activities (i.e., check-ins, needs assessment, modeling, and technical assistance) related directly and indirectly to implementation dosage and quality of the PAX Good Behavior Game, via a…

Background: In 2004, Congress passed legislation mandating that all public school districts participating in federal school meal programs develop a school wellness policy (SWP) to direct efforts related to nutrition and physical activity. We examined the extent to which SWPs varied in comprehensiveness and strength in a representative sample of…

Purpose/Objectives: The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 resulted in updated National School Lunch Program (NSLP) regulations from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The purpose of this research was to investigate the approaches used by school foodservice managers and directors in Indiana in complying with the new regulations and to identify…

Background: Many scholars have espoused the use of culturally responsive instruction (CRI) for closing achievement gaps, yet there is a paucity of research supporting its effectiveness. In this article, we share results of a mixed methods study that examined the use of the Culturally Responsive Instruction Observation Protocol (CRIOP) as a…

This article describes findings from a survey completed by 250 K-12th grade teachers from eight states (i.e., Kentucky, Minnesota, Michigan, Maine, Delaware, North Carolina, Georgia, and Mississippi) that had fully implemented the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) by spring 2013. The survey was designed to examine teachers' perceptions about…

The authors conducted a cluster-randomized trial to examine the effectiveness of structured teacher adaptations to the implementation of an evidence-based summer literacy program that provided students with (a) books matched to their reading level and interests and (b) teacher scaffolding for summer reading in the form of end-of-year comprehension…