The rural elementary principal has the ultimate responsibility for bringing all stakeholders together to focus and improve student achievement. In doing so, they must be able to provide knowledge of national, state, and local policies that influence achievement. Response to Intervention is a tiered framework for school's to provide…

Using a "grounded theory" approach, this classroom-based empirical research study attempted to understand if using Berlyne's "collative variables" and Bergin's "situational factors" (external variables) in a learning sequence would "catch/trigger" and "hold" situational interest in students. A collative variable is a property of a stimulus that…

The purpose of this study was to conduct an action research project to examine issues pertaining to technology use and implementation in the classroom from the teachers' perspective. The methodology was to examine existing research and compare that to the new data resulting from this study. New findings within this research show that teachers want…

Teachers today are being asked to teach to a broad range of learners (D. Rose, Sethuraman, & Meo, 2000a; Schumm, Vaughn, Haager, McDowell, & et al., 1995) and traditional instruction in not adequate to address students' instructional needs (Coyne, Kameenui, & Carnine, 2007). Universal Design for Learning (UDL) has been suggested…

This study examined how teachers design and implement instructional strategies to enhance students' emergent writing. A case study methodology was used to examine the elements of an emergent writing program of two kindergarten teachers. The study hoped to define a classroom environment that is conducive to literacy and writing using best…

The purpose of this "intrinsic multi-descriptive" case study was to explore how a mathematics curriculum leadership graduate degree program influenced seven participants' views and actions as they transitioned into new mathematics curriculum leadership roles. The mathematics curriculum leadership graduate degree program was a joint…

The purpose of this study was to determine if the implementation of a walkthrough protocol combined with reflective practice had the capacity to influence the sample school's objectives of building staff capacity, strengthening instructional delivery in classrooms, and improving student learning. This study's primary focus is to examine the…

There is evidence in the literature (Komives, Lucas, & McMahon, 2007, Cavico & Mujtaba,2010; NACE, 2010; Garvin and Datar, 2008) suggesting that employers expect that business school graduates who they consider for employment possess foundational leadership content knowledge combined with some application experience. This study was…

As students gain access to personally-owned Mobile Communication Devices (MCDs), schools have begun to embrace MCDs as mobile-learning (m-learning) teaching and learning tools. A research gap currently exists for the innovation of m-learning with student-owned devices, which this study attempts to fill by answering the following Research Question:…

Research has shown that even if students pass a standard introductory statistics course, they often still lack the ability to reason statistically. Many instructional techniques for enhancing the development of statistical reasoning have been discussed, although there is often little to no experimental evidence that they produce effective results…

The purpose of this study was to determine if third grade reading performance of students enrolled in south Mobile County Title I schools improved as a result of the first year implementation of the Scott Foresman "Reading Street" program. Attempts were also made to identify predictors that may improve future reading performance and data…

Geographic inquiry increases higher-order thinking skills which can be supported through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The purpose of this research project examines the effect of using a Collaborative Inquiry Model (CIM) model during professional development on the rate of effective GIS implementation in K-12 classrooms. The…

Many agricultural educators fail to integrate core-subject concepts into their classrooms. Current research addresses the perceptions of agricultural educators regarding core-subject integration, but little research notes the barriers that are identified in these studies or the actions needed by agricultural educators to overcome those barriers.…

The purpose of this study was to examine the social justice principles embedded in California State University (CSU) Educational Administration Preparation Programs. More specifically, this study explored the intended, implemented, and assessed curriculum relative to social justice and critical consciousness, and investigated if differences exist…

Evidence strongly supports shared book-reading (SBR) as an opportune intervention for developing early literacy and language development in at-risk preschool-aged children. Many teachers of high-risk preschoolers, however, lack the instructional skills and evidence-based strategies essential for the most effective storybook experience.…