Micro-credentials (MCs) are a rapidly expanding element of modern teacher professional learning. In this brief, we provide a concise review of what is currently known about MCs: how they work, their strengths, their shortcomings, and what we still need to learn. For districts and states that are considering introducing MCs, this brief is designed…

Schools are an essential setting for mental health supports and services for students. To support student well-being, schools engage in universal mental health screening to identify students in need of support and to provide surveillance data for districtwide or statewide policy changes. Mental health data have been collected via anonymous and…

When first studying children's artistic development, many preservice teachers feel amazed as they learn students' artistic capabilities and see how students can thrive under the guidance of effective art educators. Teaching a standards-based art curriculum skillfully and with care requires art educators to be familiar with developmentally…

Although the majority of scientists agree that we are facing unprecedented climate crises, higher education's engagement with environmental and sustainability problems is lacking. While the role of human behavior on climate change has been well established by science, these insights have yet to be adequately applied by citizens, thus exacerbating…

Following a high-quality early care and pre-K experience, the kindergarten-through-third-grade years set the foundation upon which future learning builds; and strengthening this continuum creates opportunities for later success. Key components of a quality experience in K-3 include school readiness and transitions, kindergarten requirements,…

This study examined the benefits and risks associated with tree climbing on child development and resiliency. A mixed method survey instrument was administered to parents of children aged 3-13 years who climbed trees. The survey examined demographics, details of tree climbing activities, and the type of injuries that have resulted from this type…

This articles describes the beginnings of the American Montessori Society (AMS). The AMS was founded in 1960, in Greenwich, CT. Its small office was located above a bakery. Founder Nancy McCormick Rambusch described the stresses of the young organization, one that was "trying to keep ahead of the mounting mail and unanswered telephone calls,…

In this time of climate change, many young children dream about finding ways to save the planet. The curriculum teaches about the problems -- and about the small changes that can be made to slow down global warming. But children need more skills for the jobs of the future and to be taught how to bring their amazing ideas to life.

Interest is an important motivational element for learning in the school environment. However, little research has directly addressed how interest changes over time as knowledge accumulates. To gain a better understanding of how knowledge acquisition influences intraindividual change of interest, we developed a novel paradigm in which participants…

Gayle T. Dow and Katie Kozlowski, researchers at Creativity Research Lab at Christopher Newport University in Virginia, discuss how the brain makes us creative and what teachers can do to encourage creative learning in the classroom.

This study examined the effect of a social-emotional intervention implemented in one St. Petersburg (Russian Federation) institution (called a Baby Home, BH) on the general behavioral development of preterm children (gestational ages of 30-36 weeks) during their first 2 years of life. The intervention consisted of training caregivers and…

Ready for Kindergarten! Survey (R4K!S) is a readiness assessment of children entering kindergarten about students' knowledge and skills within the first six to ten weeks of school. There are many interpretations of what constitutes "readiness." Vermont's concept of children's readiness is multidimensional; it includes social and…

Based on the concept of action competence, the current study introduces an integrated framework of Professional Action Competence in Education for Sustainable Development (PACesd) described by three defining features: willingness, knowledge of pedagogical approaches, and self-efficacy. To validate this framework, we developed a questionnaire…

Demands placed on early childhood teacher development, teacher candidates, and professionals who prepare future teachers, continue to increase. Although inquiry addresses high-stakes teacher development, research on programs in early childhood professional development schools as a pathway to mediate the increased demand is needed. The purpose of…

The purpose of this study was to identify the Argumentation-based Inquiry (ABI) process from the perspective of teachers implementing the approach and determine the impacts of the process on both teachers and students. The researchers conducted the study via qualitative research methods. To this end, three science teachers teaching in three…