A field study with 16-year-old students in senior general secondary education was undertaken with the following research question: "Do students working in pairs on investigation tasks with the computer attain more conceptual level raising in mathematics when they are supported by a teacher who stimulates their interaction (process help) than when…

Researchers of mathematics learning disability (MLD) commonly use cutoff scores to determine which participants have MLD. Some researchers apply more restrictive cutoffs than others (e.g., performance below the 10th vs. below the 35th percentile). Different cutoffs may lead to groups of children that differ in their profile of math and related…

Number sense development was tracked from the beginning of kindergarten through the middle of first grade, over six time points. Children (n=277) were then assessed on general math achievement at the end of first grade. Number sense performance in kindergarten, as well as number sense growth, accounted for 66 percent of the variance in first-grade…

In 1996, the Kansas City (Kan.) Public Schools, a largely poor, urban system, was facing a crisis. Talk at local and state levels was about closing a number of poor-performing schools. The author discusses how the district took matters in hand to make significant changes. Partnering with the local National Education Association leadership,…

This dissertation investigated three instructional strategies in developmental math classes to determine if instructional strategy had a positive effect on student achievement, attitude towards mathematics, and anxiety level towards mathematics at a college in western Pennsylvania for students majoring in applied arts. The significance of this…

"Perspective" is a monthly e-newsletter presenting news and views from Achieve. This issue contains a report on the highlights of the fifth annual American Diploma Project (ADP) Network Leadership Team Meeting in Washington, D.C. Achieve's most well attended annual meeting, but also its most successful to date. While a variety of topics…

Legislative amendments contained in the most recent reauthorization of IDEA and NCLB have mandated that all students, including those with special needs, be taught by an appropriately certified teacher. Specifically, both of these laws require that teachers of special education students in core academic classes must meet state special education…

This action research project is designed as a music-based intervention to address and overcome some of the risk factors for low achievement in mathematics that research has linked to poverty level. The National Assessment of Educational Progress found that children who are eligible for school lunch programs in 4th grade score on average 13 points…

The utility of value-added estimates of teachers' effects on student test scores depends on whether they can distinguish between high- and low-productivity teachers and predict future teacher performance. This article studies the year-to-year variability in value-added measures for elementary and middle school mathematics teachers from five large…

This paper reports an examination on gender differences in lunar phases understanding of 123 students (70 females and 53 males). Middle-level students interacted with the Moon through observations, sketching, journalling, two-dimensional and three-dimensional modelling, and classroom discussions. These lunar lessons were adapted from the Realistic…

In this article, the author describes how middle schools can prepare young people for the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century. Integrating 21st century skills deliberately and systematically into middle school education will empower educators to accomplish many of the elusive goals they have tried to reach for years. Twenty-first…

Background/Context: A review of the literature demonstrates that grade retention often fails to improve the academic and socioemotional outcomes of retained students. Although little empirical work on peer tutoring has focused specifically on retained students, the literature suggests that those students who act as peer tutors often experience…

When Stephanie Smith became the principal of Seaford (Delaware) Middle School four years ago, she was told to accept the fact that the school would never be able to change its status as a school that needed to improve. She did not accept that. To improve performance levels, she set the expectations high. Her defiance paid off: the school is now…

This article reports that special interest groups opposed to charter schools and high-stakes testing have hijacked Massachusetts's once-independent board of education and stand poised to water down the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests and the accountability system they support. President Barack Obama and Massachusetts…

Background: Although models such as the coordinated school health program (CSHP) are widely available to address student health needs, school professionals have been unconvinced that scarce resources should be allocated to improving student health. Concern that attention may be diverted from meeting academic accountability goals is often seen as a…