To meet the demand for STEM-literate workers, elementary and secondary schools are integrating STEM curriculum and pedagogy into their daily routines. According to the National Academy of Engineering and National Research Council (2014), STEM literacy entails understanding the roles of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in modern…

This applied dissertation explored the topic of teachers who participate in social media groups for professional learning. To put their best foot forward, teachers turn to social media platforms for ideas, advice, and support from educators all across the country. This study sought to understand how these educators were using these platforms to…

Purpose: This instrumental case study (Stake, 1995) explores the benefits experienced by mentor teachers who mentored resident teachers in a year-long residency program. Design/methodology/approach: The study was grounded by the Benefits of Being a Mentor conceptual framework, as defined by Ragins and Scandura (1999). The participating mentor…

Prosocial and Active Learning (PAL) Classrooms is a year-long teacher professional development program designed to increase students' prosocial behavior and engagement in 5th grade mathematics and science classrooms that use active, team-based lessons by altering the way that teachers interact with students using research-based strategies. The…

There has been an increase in trauma sensitive children who experience socio-emotional and behavioral delays in the general education classroom. The purpose of this action research study was to investigate and develop classroom interventions for trauma sensitive children in early childhood and primary classrooms. Participants and data collection…

Background/purpose: This study investigates the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into primary education, with a focus on identifying the needs, benefits, and challenges that schools and educators encounter in the adoption process. Materials/methods: A descriptive-analytical approach was employed, utilizing data collected through a…

Classroom Pivotal Response Teaching (CPRT) is a community-partnered adaptation of a naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention identified as an evidence-based practice for autistic children. The current study evaluated student outcomes in a randomized, wait-list controlled implementation trial across classrooms. Participants included…

Throughout the 2021-2022 school year, I implemented the strategies within this Educational Leadership Portfolio with the support of my SEL leadership team in my effort to improve adult understanding of social-emotional learning (SEL) in the elementary school setting. Research shows that not much attention has been given to SEL in pre-service and…

Professional development (PD) is one way to maintain or increase teacher effectiveness in any number of domains. However, PD comes in many formats and with a wide range of evidence on its effectiveness -- both of which can shape teachers' perspectives of the PD even before they participate. The purpose of this research was to examine how…

Teachers of young children with moderate to significant support needs may have insufficient training to implement naturalistic instructional practices such as contingent responding. Naturalistic instructional practices are well researched, but limited studies exist on training teachers to use contingent responses to support children increasing…

The Institute for Multi-Sensory Education's (IMSE) mission of "empowering districts, schools, teachers, and parents to be agents of change toward equitable literacy instruction for all learners that is driven by research" is reflected in the organization's structured literacy approach to the Orton-Gillingham (OG) curriculum and their…

Although there is ample evidence that gamification can engage students in learning, it is less used than one would expect. This raises the question of the difficulties teachers face in planning and implementing gamification in their classes. What enables teachers' implementation of gamification? These questions were addressed through a case study,…

Few longitudinal, mixed methods studies focusing on teachers' views of inclusive teaching have been conducted in primary schools. This article draws attention to a Swedish in-service (K-5) school improvement research project, aiming to contribute to a school's development toward improved inclusive education, where teachers' experiences were…

This article speaks to classroom reality issues that may supersede any ideals, funding and expectations. We document a journey regarding the implementation of arts integration for six teachers in a small rural school in New Zealand. Arts Integration is a pedagogical approach to teaching and learning that employs arts activities to teach concepts…

Optimizing physical education (PE) is a proven approach to increase children's physical activity. Oregon law requires elementary schools to provide PE for [greater than or equal to] 150 minutes/week. One strategy to meet the required minutes is for classroom teachers to deliver PE, which is permissible using curricula aligned to national PE…