Response to Intervention (RTI) has emerged as a leading framework for closing achievement gaps--a priority in education to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have equal access to quality education and the opportunity to succeed academically. Nonetheless, the extent to which RTI is effectively implemented can vary…

Since the 1960s, business leaders and educators used the idea of "goal setting theory" as a guide to success. Teachers who implemented goal setting strategies contributed to student success and achievement. During my study, I found little existing literature focused on academic goal setting implementation for students in Tennessee rural…

Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) is a framework that incorporates assessments and interventions to reduce behavior issues and increase student achievement. Schools utilize Response-to-Intervention (RTI), a multi-tiered approach, to support students with academic and behavioral needs. School and district leaders in rural contexts face…

This study used a convergent mixed-method design and a pragmatic approach to examine how professional development (PD) affected teachers' confidence in their abilities to use the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) framework in a rural Mississippi middle school. Grounded in Bandura's self-efficacy theory, the study aimed to answer two research…

A qualitative case study explored teachers' perceptions and beliefs about a mandated literacy instruction program at a mid-western rural middle school. This study used the implementation of a mandated reading and writing program as a basis for learning how programs can be sustainable and provide teachers with self-efficacy. This study used…

This study is a qualitative case study of middle schools located in a rural public school district in a southern state in the United States that has implemented the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) which explored the roles of education leaders in the implementation of NGSS. Participants included teachers, instructional coaches, and…

This study examined whether the intensive reading intervention affects annual reading level growth in middle school students to mitigate reading loss from the COVID19 school closures. Participants included struggling middle school readers (N = 101) from a rural district in east Texas. Student participant Measures of Academic Progress (MAP)…

A STEM education program entitled "Come rain or shine" implemented in a primary rural school in southern Greece as part of the "Diffusion of STEM (DI-STEM)" project and the results of its implementation are presented in this paper. The educational program deepened in weather education and intended to develop eight scientific…

Although there have been efforts to broaden the participation of underrepresented students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), few studies have focused on how Latine bilingual students in rural contexts can access computer programming. The purpose of this case study is to examine how translanguaging facilitates…

To enhance partnerships in two rural schools, our college of education initiated a faculty-in-residence program. A group of faculty members visited two other colleges of education with established faculty-in-residence programs to learn from others and to discern a direction for our own work. Two teacher educators, each at a different partner…

For many schools, the opportunity for more time to teach health continues to be a struggle. School gardening programs come as a result of farm-to-fresh initiatives that aim to link students with food production, increase access to healthy and local foods, and serve as an educational opportunity. The purpose of this study was to examine how one…

This article describes the challenge of engaging educators in professional development (PD) that is timely and relevant to their work, and effective in stimulating instructional changes to improve student learning. The authors highlight the competing needs and goals for PD that create tensions among the external accountability demands, school…

To better understand the supports needed to positively impact student outcomes, the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) has been examining several model demonstrations of PBIS implementation in schools residing within high need Local Education Agencies (LEAs). In particular, this brief provides an initial examination on…

This qualitative study explored the experiences of administrators while implementing Response to Intervention (RTI) in early/middle years schools in rural Manitoba. Six principals were interviewed to discover how they experienced the implementation process and to glean advice for other administrators who were beginning the process of implementing…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the implementation phase of the DuFour model of professional learning communities (PLCs) and students' achievement. A survey was emailed via Qualtrics to elementary principals throughout the Minnesota Elementary Principals' Association's (MESPA) central, northern, northeast, west,…