This dissertation is composed of three studies. The first and second examine the U.S. private tutoring industry which heretofore has gone largely undocumented by academic research. I show that not only has the industry grown precipitously within the last few decades, but that a disproportionate amount of that growth has taken place among areas…

This dissertation measured the impact of the integration of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and historical inquiry on 10 and 11 year old 5th grade charter school students. By using Q methodology, a mixed methodology research tool, this study examined three hypotheses. These include the outcomes of holistic learning, the effect of…

The role of soft skills at school is still debated, but they have emerged as important factors for students' academic achievement and life satisfaction. This study focuses on the combined influence of soft skills (in terms of adaptability, curiosity, leadership, initiative, perseverance, and social awareness), extracurricular activities,…

The forced-choice (FC) item formats used for noncognitive tests typically develop a set of response options that measure different traits and instruct respondents to make judgments among these options in terms of their preference to control the response biases that are commonly observed in normative tests. Diagnostic classification models (DCMs)…

Despite the increasing entry of Latinas into higher education, this group continues to be underrepresented at the level of leadership. Previous studies have indicated Latinas that have achieved academic administrative leadership roles can play an important role in helping others to aspire to and attain such positions by offering guidance based on…

The distinguishing feature of dynamic assessment (DA) is the dialectical integration of assessment and instruction. However, how to design the targeted instruction or mediation has been relatively underexplored. To address this gap, this study proposes the attribute-based mediation model (AMM), an English-as-a-foreign-language listening mediation…

Writing can be challenging to implement in upper elementary classrooms because teachers report needing additional support and students may struggle to meet the academic and developmental demands of emerging adolescence. This was true of one diverse, high-need, under-resourced school that had ambitious writing instruction goals. To meet these…

Utilizing elements of organizational socialization and teacher appraisals, emotions, and labor, the purpose of this study was to explore the ways in which one teacher navigated the process of incorporating the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility model. A qualitative case study approach was applied with one teacher participant, Caroline.…

Justice-centred science pedagogy has been suggested as an effective framework for supporting teachers in bringing in culturally relevant pedagogy to their science classrooms; however, limited instructional tools exist that introduce social dimensions of science in ways teachers feel confident navigating. In this article, we add to the…

Specific to the topic of oxidation-reduction (redox), teachers are obligated by the discipline to prioritise symbolic traditions such as writing equations, documenting oxidation states, and describing changes (e.g., what undergoes oxidation/reduction). Although the chemistry education research community endorses connecting the vertices of…

Self-awareness and self-evaluation are at the heart of both core of self-assessment, self-efficacy, and grit tendencies. Although there is a lot written about self-assessment, self-efficacy, and grit tendencies, academic resilience, and motivation, very little is known about how self-assessment, self-efficacy, and grit tendencies contribute to the…

One of the major contributions of the Catholic school to the formation of people and to the mission of the Church is religious education. In the diversity of school systems in Europe, it is possible to identify three models: the politico-conciliar, the academic-curricular and the ethical-value-based. These models evolve in line with the religious…

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the impact of the Curriculum Design Coherence Model (CDC Model -- Rata, 2019) on the design practice of two music teachers in a middle school music class in New Zealand. The CDC Model proposes that deep learning first requires deep design coherence. This coherence is generated by three interrelated design…

This article focuses on professional development by exploring two faculty education programs that create opportunities for faculty to learn best practices for mentoring students in scholarly work. These programs promote the inclusion of diverse and underrepresented student populations in research experiences; help faculty develop as effective,…

While research unequivocally points to the need to teach the language that supports participation in reading and writing activities in middle-grade classrooms, many educators grapple with how to create the instructional conditions that promote equitable and just opportunities for students to learn the Language of School Literacy (LSL). In this…