The purpose of this study was to examine preK certification requirements for literacy and mathematics coursework to understand policy trends across the United States. We were interested in examining whether teacher certification requirements in these content areas align with expectations for child outcomes in early literacy and math. We completed…

The hierarchal status of academic disciplines, what defines valuable or legitimate knowledge and what should we teach our children is a topic of much debate. Amidst concerns of an academic decline, tackling the culture of low expectation and anti-intellectualism, the need to address social justice, and its by-product of cultural reproduction, is…

Teacher education programs play a crucial role in developing teachers' equity/social justice mindsets and technology integration knowledge and expertise. Scholars have advocated for merging these two areas to support common curricular goals and access unique learning benefits. However, little is known about how equity pedagogy and technology…

This chapter focuses on situated learning theories, specifically a critique of Wenger's (Communities of practice. Learning, meaning and identity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998) notion of 'communities of practice'. The review of literature associated with communities of practice highlights the complexity of this framework but…

The paper investigates two -- often disconnected -- policy questions: how can we scale the use of evidence in teaching practice, and how can we generate and scale innovation? Both questions necessitate understanding how teachers and schools connect with each other, and with other organisations and professionals. The paper thus explores the role of…

Concerns about inadequate development of subject expertise for American elementary school teachers have been well documented. There are many exceptions to this narrative, and there are many exemplary U.S. teacher preparation programs. However, it is clear that, overall, the preparation of elementary teachers in the United States in key subject…

Investigating the content presented at annual national conferences is regarded by many as a valid means for revealing patterns within a given professional organization concerning their interests, issues, concerns, priorities, and research foci, which collectively present an opportunity to provide future direction for the organization. As a result,…

The school-aged population in the United States is becoming more culturally and linguistically diverse, while achievement gaps across content areas persist. At the same time, more rigorous academic demands are being placed on all students, including English language learners (ELLs). Teachers of ELLs face the double challenge of promoting English…

The purpose of this report is to review the body of literature concerned with reducing school failure by improving equity in schools and classrooms. The literature review will be used to inform the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Project "Overcoming School Failure: Policies that Work" and hopefully, future educational…

This paper begins with a review of an emerging set of studies, combining a critical focus on reflective teacher development in developing educational contexts, and a greater level of authorial identification (as compared with previous studies) with the contexts being researched. Next, the paper adds to this emerging literature an analysis of a…

The middle grades are in crisis. By state and national measures, student achievement gains realized in the elementary grades all too often diminish by grade 8. In most states, the considerable policy focus on high schools in recent years has not trickled down to a focus on the middle grades --yet preparation for "college- and work-ready standards"…

This article examines the relationship between the mathematical knowledge of 438 K-8 California teachers and the demographics of the schools in which they work. To measure mathematical knowledge, we used a series of multiple-choice problems meant to represent both the content teachers teach and the specialized knowledge of mathematics that…