Ever since the 1983 landmark study, "A Nation at Risk", was released, educators have been examining the effectiveness of instructional time in American schools (Pedersen, 2012). However, school calendars have remained stagnant and seemingly a product of society and economy, tied to agriculture, for over 100 years (Turner & Finch,…

The study reported on here was conducted to explore four Grade 7 mathematics teachers' understanding of the relationship between the objectives indicated in the CAPS for teaching different topics/concepts and instructional time stipulated for doing so. Seven lessons were studied in 4 primary schools in the Vhembe district of the Limpopo province,…

Many children with disabilities engage in less physical activity compared to their peers. This pilot-feasibility study examines the effects of movement-based desk and alternative seating on classroom physical activity, time on task, reading fluency, and reading comprehension scores in fourth/fifth and seventh/eighth-grade children with…

The shift to online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to swiftly develop strategies for virtual settings to ensure students received effective instruction. Antecedent- and consequence-based interventions have been shown to be effective in classrooms; however, to our best knowledge, there have been no reports on the effects of…

When student achievement is assessed, we seek to elicit a student's maximum performance -- a goal requiring the assumption that the student is fully engaged. Otherwise, to the extent that disengagement occurs, test performance is likely to suffer. Effectively managing test-taking disengagement requires an understanding of the testing conditions…

Background: Although many studies have suggested that students' externalizing (aggressive and rule-breaking) behaviour is detrimental to their academic achievement, the underlying mechanisms have rarely been investigated. Aims: We conducted a longitudinal investigation of whether the negative relation between externalizing behaviour and academic…

Background: Many studies document associations between low health literacy (HL) and poor health behaviors and outcomes. Yet, HL is understudied among adolescents, particularly from underserved, rural communities. We targeted rural adolescents in this cross-sectional study and explored relationships between HL and (1) energy-balance-related health…