When primary school science teaching is critiqued, much attention is paid to teachers' perceived deficiencies in their specific knowledge and beliefs about science, and about science pedagogical content knowledge. Scant credit is given to teachers' rich contributions derived from their knowledge and beliefs in three more generic domains--namely,…

This paper places classroom discourse and interaction right at the heart of the teaching and learning process. It is built on the argument that high quality talk between the teacher and student(s) provides a fertile ground for an active, highly collaborative and cognitively stimulating learning process leading to improved learning outcomes. High…

This article presents exploratory research into an education-based virtual mentoring provision, the Virtual Professional Learning and Development (VPLD) program, and uses the Elements of Value Pyramid to help frame findings in a way that highlights the participants' (mentors' and mentees') perceived value of working together. Participants were…

This qualitative case study sought to understand the experiences of international college students who were involved in the acquisition of academic literacies (via an English-as-a-Second-Language writing class). Data sources included observation field notes; messages posted in an online discussion forum; transcripts of interviews with five focal…

Although the second language literature on Dynamic Assessment (DA)--the unity of assessment and instruction into a singular activity to promote cognitive development--shows promising results, very little has been written about how to educate teachers to use it. This two-cycle, exploratory action research study aimed to understand and address the…

During recent years, literacy coaching has become a widespread model of professional development for teachers in schools across the United States. However, there is a shortage of research and policy to inform the preparation and ongoing work of literacy coaches. In this article, the researchers use a modified version of Gee's identity framework to…

This paper explores the implementation of Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) at a rural, alternative high school in Alabama. Students at the school were atypical from those usually described in the YPAR literature in that they were predominately white, working and middle class, and lived in rural neighborhoods that were geographically…

This 8-year longitudinal case study of Fabiola, a Spanish-English bilingual, investigated her argumentative writing development, focusing on her use of evidence to support and develop arguments over time from high school through university. Data sources included 36 writing samples. Texts across grade levels and course types were analyzed to…

By analyzing the audio recording and transcription of classroom discourse, this case study focused on the ways in which the instructor used follow-up statements to socialize students into intellectual talk. Four relevant categories of follow-up statements emerged: (a) revoicing, (b) contextualization, (c) parallel elaboration, and (d) assistive…

Helping students generalise mathematical ideas is an essential component of teaching and learning of mathematics (Lannin, Ellis, Elliott & Zbiek, 2011). However, it can be challenging for primary teachers to assess and promote generalisation. Because generalisation is an essential part of mathematics instruction, the authors highlight the…

The present study examines the association of micro- and macrostructural components in narrative retells within and across languages in Spanish-English bilingual Latino kindergarten children. Using a within-subject research design, fourteen Spanish-English speaking Latino kindergarten children were individually read a scripted picture book, after…

We draw on Engeström's (2011a) formative intervention approach to bring together mentor teachers and university supervisors to construct a tool for structuring observations and mentoring student teachers. Data include videos and transcripts from seven meetings where participants discussed mentoring and viewed video records of teaching practice to…

Inquiry Group participation for PDS teachers and teacher candidates is one of the signature programs of the Bowie State University PDS Network and provides PDS teachers and teacher candidates the opportunity to collaborate on teaching strategies and methodologies to use in their classrooms. This article uses self-study methodology to explore the…

This article reports an action research study that examined the Leadership Study Group, one learning activity designed to build knowledge and skills for aspiring school leaders and implemented in a six-credit introductory course for school leader certification. Through analysis of a variety of qualitative data collected over nine semesters, I…

Gender equality and equity has long been a focus area in Tanzanian government, encouraging the increased recruitment of female students in to higher education. This article investigates the effectiveness of affirmative action policy interventions that introduced and designed to increase female students' enrolment at the University of Dar es…