Game-based learning (GBL) is increasingly recognized as an effective tool for teaching diverse skills, particularly in science education, due to its interactive, engaging, and motivational qualities, along with timely assessments and intelligent feedback. However, more empirical studies are needed to facilitate its wider application in school…

Transition to upper secondary education can represent a challenge for students' wellbeing. In this study, we examined how the social support from guardians, peers, and teachers experienced before transition predicts study engagement, sense of relatedness and overall life satisfaction after transition. Survey data (n = 280) were collected from…

Feedback plays an important role in self-regulated learning. However, little is known about how students' feedback perception affects their self-regulation process in learning. This study adopted the social cognitive perspective to investigate how students' feedback perception is related to their self-regulated learning, along with the mediating…

A growing body of evidence points to increased interest in and positive outcomes of participating in Career and Technical Education (CTE). We examine selection into CTE high schools of choice in Massachusetts, a state that has made large investments in CTE, and CTE-dedicated high schools, where interest in attending the schools regularly exceeds…

Teachers and peers are two influential social agents in students' academic functioning. In the present study, we differentiated perceived social relationships into positive and negative aspects and investigated how these perceptions influence students' motivation and educational outcomes. Results based on 2211 Chinese middle school students…

This research examined parents' restriction of children's peer relationships in the United States and China. American and Chinese children (N = 934; M[subscript age] = 12.67 years) reported on their parents' peer restriction (e.g., limiting children's time with peers) and their behavioral and psychological adjustment 3 times over a year.…

We investigate factors influencing student sign-ups for Washington State's College Bound Scholarship (CBS) program and consider whether there is scope for the program to change college enrollment expectations. We find that student characteristics associated with signing the scholarship closely parallel characteristics of low-income students who…

This study documents the process of implementation of an adolescent reading intervention. Using data from observations of teachers (n=17) during the 2013-14 school year, I conducted a nuanced descriptive analysis of fidelity of implementation (FoI). I also analyzed weekly logs completed by literacy coaches (n=3) to examine variation in quantity…

The authors' purpose was to examine the degree to which low achievement is related to ontogenetic factors (i.e., personal psychological traits expressed as attention and depression) or microsystemic factors (i.e., socioeconomic status, parenting, relationship with peers and teachers), using a total of 721 middle school students in South Korea.…

The period of early adolescence is characterized by dramatic changes, simultaneously affecting physiological, psychological, social, and cognitive development. The physical transition from elementary to middle school can exacerbate the stress and adversity experienced during this critical life stage. Middle school students often struggle to find…

We investigate factors influencing student sign-ups for Washington State's College Bound Scholarship (CBS) program. We find a substantial share of eligible middle school students fail to sign the CBS, forgoing college financial aid. Student characteristics associated with signing the scholarship parallel characteristics of low-income students who…

This study used multiple regression to identify predictors of middle school students' Web 2.0 activities out of school, a construct composed of 15 technology activities. Three middle schools participated, where sixth- and seventh-grade students completed a questionnaire. Independent predictor variables included three demographic and five computer…

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) require students to read grade-level text with "scaffolding as needed." The current study examines the effectiveness of interactional scaffolding, which is responsive in-person support an expert provides to a novice reader in order to support the reader's comprehension during reading instruction,…

Previous research has identified various factors that contribute to readers' comprehension of expository texts, including strategy expertise, language proficiency, prior knowledge, and more recently, readers' beliefs about knowledge. This study addresses the need to understand the relative contributions of these predictors to readers'…

This study presents a subset of factors and their association with students' achievement in school algebra. The participants were students who had enrolled in 2007 at the ninth year of Greek public education (third year of middle school). A total of 735 students participated (aged 14-15 years) from 37 public secondary schools. The sample consisted…