The first year of college or university is a crucial phase which significantly influences students' persistence, academic achievement, and degree completion. The challenges associated with transitioning to college are often amplified for students who are the first in their families to attend college and may be less familiar with the norms and…

Parents are recognized as having a significant impact on their young child's learning and development. Parent-implemented intervention (PII) is an evidence-based practice that provides parents with ample opportunities to learn and implement new strategies that support their child's development. However, implementation of these training programs in…

Digital safety involves protecting oneself, and one's personal information to mitigate the risks that are inherently associated with using digital technologies. This study employed a multi-method design to explore 26 inservice and preservice elementary teacher experiences from attending a professional development on digital safety and facilitating…

This study explored the long-term academic impact of Two-Way Dual Language (TWDL) programs on both English-dominant and Spanish-dominant Hispanic students in a high-density Hispanic area. Specifically, it compared their academic performance in English Language Arts (ELA) and Math over a 3-year period to that of students enrolled in traditional…

The purpose of this research project was to design, deliver, and informally assess the content and methodology of an introductory online course for the educators of Deaf and Hard of Hearing students (N=20) that focused on the block-based coding language, Scratch. Prior work by The Playful Learning Lab examined various STEM resources and their…

As part of its evaluation of the Illinois State Board of Education's Preschool Development Birth through Five Planning Grant (PDG B-5), Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative (IWERC) completed an overview and evaluation of strengths and weaknesses in the current early childhood data systems. To complete this review, IWERC examined…

Numerous dual enrollment programs have recently emerged due to the ongoing push for pursuing higher education in the United States. In South Texas, dual enrollment programs are prevalent in almost every high school campus and collaborating colleges and universities. This begs the question, Are students being adequately prepared for college in high…

Many students who enter college do not finish, reflecting numerous academic, financial, and social barriers to postsecondary completion. Success Boston Coaching (SBC) provides students in the Greater Boston area with coaching during their first 2 years of college to help them overcome barriers to postsecondary completion and connect them to…

Adler emphasized social interest as a social adaptive lifestyle. The study used a nudge strategy to generate social interest in middle school students through a volunteer program. If student gets a good reward for volunteering, it can be a nudge naturally toward social interest. The dependent variables for the volunteer program as a nudge are…

This paper evaluates the Jumpstart Program (JSP), a parenting intervention implemented by a school district in the Houston area to enhance school readiness among economically disadvantaged three-year-old children. Unlike many early childhood programs typically tested in controlled research settings, JSP leverages existing school district resources…

Background: Although research-to-policy (R2P) fellowships are increasingly used to facilitate mobility, promote knowledge-exchange, and support evidence-based policy making, the evaluation of these initiatives in terms of (multi-level) impacts and broader 'ecosystem effects' remains under-researched. Aims and objectives: The aim of this article is…

This article reports on the impacts of a nudge intervention designed to narrow the gender gap in technology education. I randomly assigned approximately 4,000 college freshmen to one of three advising interventions during new student orientation. Students in the treatment group received a brochure containing information about technology courses…

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are secular trainings shown to enhance cognitive function, but their effectiveness among tertiary students has not been critically evaluated. This review synthesized evidence from randomized controlled trials on the impact of MBIs on cognitive improvement in tertiary students. Databases including Medline and…

Background: Toddlers spend a significant portion of their time within the childcare setting being sedentary. Therefore, interventions are needed to improve toddlers' physical activity (PA) within this setting. The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a 10-week activity program on toddlers' time…

Background: In the digital age, fostering young children's computational thinking (CT) and executive functions (EFs) through programming has emerged as a significant research issue. While unplugged programming activities are commonly adopted in preschools, robot programming activities have recently gained attention for the potential to enhance…