The landscape of undergraduate biology education has been shaped by decades of reform efforts calling for instruction to integrate core concepts and scientific skills as a means of helping students become proficient in the discipline. Assessments can be used to make inferences about how these reform efforts have translated into changes in…

Organic chemistry is a class well known to be difficult and necessary for many careers in the sciences, and as a result, has garnered interest in researching ways to improve student learning and comprehension. One potential way involves using eye tracking techniques to understand how students visually examine questions. Organic chemistry involves…

The purpose of this study is to foster socio-emotional learning strategies during standardized assessments season to help students process their feelings of fear, exam anxiety, and academic achievement in urban secondary schools in the Southern region of the United States of America. This qualitative research methodology was conducted as a series…

In US-based postsecondary education, first-year students commonly have their compositional ability consequentially assessed on the basis of standardized tests. As a result, students who score above certain thresholds on ACT, SAT, or AP exams often are placed into honors or remedial courses; receive credit remissions; and/or test out of general…

Social studies education provides unique opportunities for students to learn about the democratic process and, more importantly, how to engage in civic life to become active citizens. It is through meaningful social studies education that students are deliberately helped to understand the world, and are provided space to discuss, deliberate, and…

The study examines the perspectives of using the Desmos calculator of Algebra I students' conceptual understanding and procedural fluency to write, graph, and solve linear equations in Algebra I STAAR. While the students have continuously used technology for mathematics assessment, emergent bilingual students in South Texas still need help passing…

Federal and state legislations continue to mandate high-stakes testing for American students. Consequences of high-stakes testing include but are not limited to, low teacher efficacy, narrow teaching strategies, lack of student motivation, and the feeling of insecurity in classrooms by the students. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper…

In Florida, civic illiteracy among middle and high school students is a pressing concern despite state initiatives to increase civic competence (Florida House of Representatives, 2019; FLDOE, 2023b; Florida Department of State, 2023). Recent scores on state civics and social studies standardized assessments reveal a disheartening fact--an average…

The transition to virtual learning during the pandemic highlighted critical aspects of educational and teacher self-efficacy (TSE). Despite the challenges K-12 students historically faced in digital environments, recent shifts necessitated a deeper exploration of online teacher roles. This study examined the relationship between TSE in virtual…

The COVID-19 global pandemic caused the education world to shift to distance learning. Before then, technology usage in the classroom showed minimal implementation and surfaced level approaches. The shift to distance learning caused students to rely on parents and their home environment to continue learning. For many students, this expands…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if there was a significant relationship between school-wide academic outcomes and the instructional modalities utilized by public schools during the 2019-2022 school years. This study also determined if there was a significant difference in assessment scores earned by public school students…

Performance on the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) is the primary criterion for university admission in South Korea. High-school seniors typically spend 60 hours or more per week preparing for the CSAT. Private tutoring for the CSAT accounts for nearly 2% of the Korean economy. These investments signify the high stakes attached to the CSAT.…

English learners (ELs) in Florida face numerous challenges including low test scores, and high dropout rates, and are typically several years behind their peers when compared to other states. The purpose of this quantitative quasi-experimental ex-post-facto study was to compare the differences between ACCESS 2.0 scores of high school ELs in…

This study examined the lived experiences of New York City educators who are teaching and learning in a high-stakes testing environment to improve students' learning outcomes. The research questions were: (1) What are New York City elementary school educators' experiences teaching in a high-stakes testing environment? (2) What are New York City…

A disconnect exists between the way teacher candidates learn to address the needs of students during teacher training-coursework and the actual teaching expectations in a subject/grade level where students take a standardized exam. Using phenomenological research this study examined novice teachers' perceptions about developing their instruction…