The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) were designed to address poor science and math performance in United States schools by inculcating globally competitive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics literacies relevant to participation in future society. Considering the complex network of influences involved in the development of…

When implementing environmental education and interventions to promote one pro-environmental behavior, it is seldom asked if and how non-target pro-environmental behaviors are affected. The spillover effect proposes that engaging in one behavior affects the probability of engagement or disengaging in a second behavior. Therefore, the positive…

Textbooks in applied mathematics often use graphs to explain the meaning of formulae, even though their benefit is still not fully explored. To test processes underlying this assumed multimedia effect we collected performance scores, eye movements, and think-aloud protocols from students solving problems in vector calculus with and without graphs.…

Unlike other animals, humans have the unique ability to share and use verbal instructions to prepare for upcoming tasks. Recent research showed that instructions are sufficient for the automatic, reflex-like activation of responses. However, systematic studies into the limits of these automatic effects of task instructions remain relatively…

Handwriting is commonly identified as an area of weakness in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but precise deficits have not been fully characterised. Boys with ASD (n = 23) and matched controls (n = 20) aged 8-12 years completed a simple, digitised task to objectively assess handwriting performance using advanced descriptive measures.…

Early childhood intervention practitioners (N = 42) reviewed three early intervention performance checklists and three intervention practice guides and made social validity judgments of the acceptability and importance of the products. Both the checklists and practice guides included evidence-based characteristics and indicators that are known to…

The following study provides a unique internal perspective on changes made in schools that "turned around" versus schools that are in the process of "turning around" versus schools that are "stuck." After comparing and contrasting these three groupings of schools who received similar state-level support, we learned…

The teachers in this study identified the experiences related to increases in the intensity of teachers' work to be a misunderstood and under-discussed aspect of the profession. During research conversations that took place in the context of a year-long narrative inquiry, the term heavy hours was coined to describe these experiences. The salient…

A broad view of assessment development and design procedures portrays existing theories and methodologies as not fully representative of the knowledge, skills, and abilities students need to perform in the 21st century. Acknowledgement of these inadequacies has led to developments in assessment research attempting to meet contemporary expectations…

Analysis of student-level data to inform policy and promote student success is a core function of executive higher education agencies. Postsecondary data systems have expanded their collection of data elements for use by policymakers, institutional staff and the general public. State coordinating and governing boards use these data systems for…

The use of face-to-face and virtual teams has become a popular method of instruction in higher education. The popularity of working in teams has increased because effective teams are associated with positive learning outcomes. However, as students have different values and backgrounds, communication issues or conflict among team members may occur.…

This issue brief discusses opportunities for states under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to redesign systems of assessments to support student-centered learning. In addition, this brief introduces "balanced systems of assessments" and "assessment literacy" as two key concepts required for long-term sustainable systems…

The March 2017 American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) 60-Second Survey focused on the concepts of managerial coaching and mentoring (Appendix A). This survey was open to all AACRAO members instead of the more common model limiting responses to just one per institution. The purpose of this survey was…

Online student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are commonly used by students to provide anonymous feedback concerning their overall experience with the course content and their instructors. However, concerns have been raised that the gender of the instructor and student may interact causing more effective instructors to receive lower ratings. At a…

The Research and Planning Group for California Community Colleges (RP Group) launched Leading from the Middle (LFM) Academy in 2013 to support the professional development of middle leaders. This is an executive summary to the full report that captures reflections from both leaders of and participants in the 2016 LFM Academy, with the goal of…