Automated Essay Scoring (AES) can reliably grade essays at scale and reduce human effort in both classroom and commercial settings. There are currently three dominant supervised learning paradigms for building AES models: feature-based, neural, and hybrid. While feature-based models are more explainable, neural network models often outperform…

This study investigated the impact of a computer-adaptive reading program, Waterford Early Learning (WEL), in an elementary school in Indiana. The study investigated how educational technology, specifically computer-assisted instruction (CAI), would impact the literacy scores of kindergarten students when paired with traditional instruction:…

Purpose: The aims of the current project were twofold: (a) to describe the use of academic words in written language samples by fifth-grade students and (b) to examine the predictive relation between academic word use in academic writing and reading comprehension. Method: Investigators utilized written expository responses of 1,128 students in…

This study examined differences in grade school students' BMI percentiles before and after the "Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act" of 2012 and factors that may have influenced those differences. Using publically available data from the Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Education, a comparative analysis of BMI percentiles, ethnicity,…

Growing up in poverty increases youth risk for developing aggressive behavior problems which, in turn, are associated with a host of problematic outcomes, including school drop-out, substance use, mental health problems, and delinquency. In part, this may be due to exposure to adverse school contexts that create socialization influences supporting…

This study uses an organizational perspective to examine whether school closings and the accompanying redistribution of resources (students and programs) has implications for surviving schools in the surrounding school boundary. I use school-level data from the National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and School Attendance…

Purpose/Objectives: The purposes of this study were to: 1) analyze beverage selections of elementary students consuming National School Lunch Program meals (NSLP) and lunches brought from home (LBFH), 2) compare overall meal quality (MQ) of NSLP and LBFH by food components using Healthy Eating Index 2010 (HEI-2010), and 3) investigate the impact…

Purpose/Objectives: Recent US Department of Agriculture regulations increased the amount and variety of vegetables required for school lunches. Vegetables are the most wasted components of lunch while entrées are selected and consumed by the majority of children. This study examined how adding vegetable purée to an elementary school lunch entrée…

Purpose/Objectives: This study compares the mean nutrients selected and consumed in National School Lunch Program (NSLP) meals before and after implementation of the new nutrition standards mandated by the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) in July 2012. Four elementary schools achieving Healthier US Schools Challenge awards serving…

Background: Education has much in common with professions that are using positive psychology and positive organizational scholarship to transform practice, yet the science behind peak human and group functioning has been slow to displace deficit-based framing of reform policies and improvement strategies in education. Purpose of the Study: This…

Purpose/Objectives: This study investigates the effect of meal component changes by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) on school lunch quality and consumption in elementary school students, grade 2-5 before and after the HHFKA guidelines were implemented in July 2012 using the Healthy Eating Index. Methods: In Spring 2012, before…

Purpose/Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the nutrient content of National School Lunch Program (NSLP) lunches and lunches brought from home (LBFH) lunches in elementary schools participating in the HealthierUS School Challenge (HUSSC). Methods: Participants included students in grades 2-5 in four Washington state HUSSC…

Purpose/Objectives: The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 includes pulses as a required component of the school lunch menu standard. Pulses are nutritionally important staple food crops, and include dry beans, dry peas, garbanzo beans, and lentils. This current study examined the short-term effectiveness of a Science, Technology, Engineering,…

Purpose/Objectives: Increasing children's fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption is an important goal for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). In 2012 the NSLP began requiring students to select a FV. The objective of this study was to compare children's FV choices in two school cafeteria environments a year before these new USDA regulations…

Children's University (CU) aims to improve the aspirations, attainment, and skills of pupils aged 5-14 by providing learning activities beyond the normal school day. This trial focused on pupils in Years 5 and 6 (aged 9-11), and activities included after-school clubs, visits to universities, museums, and libraries, and 'social action'…