To foster students' meaningful learning of science, we designed and implemented a unit for five third-grade students that allowed them to understand Carbon Footprint (CF) in a public school in North Texas. The unit lasted seven weeks, where students identified the effects of distance traveled and packaging on the CF of certain consumable products.…

This study explores teachers' use of Spanish in sixth-grade bilingual science classrooms at an urban middle school in Texas. We used a case study approach to study how two Spanish-English bilingual teachers utilized Spanish during instruction in a unit on space exploration and their beliefs on Spanish use in English-dominant science classrooms.…

Due to the increase of English Language Learners (ELLs) in the State of Texas, it is essential that educators are equipped with research-based strategies to ensure students' academic and linguistic growth. The objective of the study was to evaluate pre-service administrators' knowledge of the latest research-based learning strategies and…

A bookmaking project in the pre-kindergarten classroom can teach a multitude of concepts related to literacy, but children can also be learning about themselves, their community, and their connections to the past when they create a book about their own personal history. Although pre-kindergarten-age students are unaware that their work could be…

Smartphones are a common accessory to provide rich user experience due to superior memory, advanced software-hardware support, fast processing, and multimedia capabilities. Responding to this trend, advanced engineering systems tend to integrate mobile devices with their solutions to facilitate usability. With many young students showing interest…

This article presents the results of a study conducted to identify the perceptions of bilingual and ESL pre-service teachers regarding the integration of a collaborative service learning project in a key course of their teacher preparation program. Pre-, process, and final reflective essays were written by participants as they engaged in the…

There have been numerous calls for research that demonstrates how open education resources (OERs) are actually being used. This case study sought to shed light on the users of a well-visited set of modular music-education materials published at Connexions. Respondents to a voluntary survey included teachers, students, self-directed learners, music…

This article describes a unit of study about Colonial America given in Lubbock, Texas, in which fifth grade students learn about the crafts system by becoming apprentices for a time. The students apply to apprentice with a master crafts person, a mentor, and learn some basic methods of a craft. Mentors are typically students' relatives, friends of…

The purpose of this 18-month case study is to highlight the successes and challenges that an ESL/mathematics teacher encountered as she made a shift from traditional mathematics curriculum to a standards-based curriculum as part of a statewide systemic initiative. The study was conducted in an urban, public middle school in Central Texas that…

Intended to be used by teachers of grades 5 and up, this unit deals with Texas. The unit is built around the seven standards of the new Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), an outcome-based social studies curriculum guide for teaching Texas history. The guide includes the following standards: citizenship, economics, geography, history,…

Describes an experienced-based economics program for grades 3-6 composed of two interactive components to learn real-world economics in a meaningful and memorable way. Situations are discussed and positive effects are assessed. (TRS)

This module contains an instructor's guide and student activity packet that are intended to accompany a slide/tape presentation on word processing. The module was developed for use in postsecondary office occupations classes in Texas. The instructor's guide includes general instructions for use in individual or group settings, the narrative for…

These student materials are designed to accompany the Career Opportunities Instructional Guide. Page numbers are consistent with the numbering in that guide. Seventeen units are provided. The materials in Unit 1 concern aspects of locating information about occupations; Unit 2 provides an introduction to the 15 occupational clusters. Each of the…

Secondary vocational-technical education programs in Mississippi are faced with many challenges resulting from sweeping educational reforms at the national and state levels. Schools and teachers are increasingly being held accountable for providing true learning activities to every student in the classroom. This accountability is measured through…

This document is the Spanish language version of the student materials component designed to accompany the Career Opportunities Instructional Guide. Page numbers are consistent with numbering in that guide. Seventeen units are provided. The materials in Unit 1 concern various aspects of locating information about occupations; Unit 2 provides an…