Automated writing evaluation (AWE) is a cutting-edge technology-based intervention designed to help teachers meet their challenges in writing classrooms and improve students' writing proficiency. The fast development of AWE systems, along with the encouragement of technology use in the U.S. K-12 education system by the Common Core State Standards…

In 2013, the state of Florida passed Senate Bill 1720, which reformed developmental education and gateway courses across the state of Florida. There was a gap in the research regarding how the institutions planned and implemented the changes necessary to comply with the bill. This basic qualitative study examined the strategies used by leaders to…

This study used public policy implementation framework to examine issues of policy implementation at higher educational institutions and the educational change that is required as well as the capacity to carry out the policy and the stakeholders crafting the policy. The theoretical framework is based upon Fullan's Factors affecting the policy…

Students who struggle to read at an early age are likely to continue struggling for not only the rest of their schooling, but the rest of their lives. Schools need to begin adopting research-based reading programs and measuring their effectiveness formatively throughout the school year. Research suggests that effective reading programs need to…

Encouraging the academic growth of every student is an important part of providing a free appropriate public education in America. Each school should be focused on providing the best education for all of our students, including our top performing who will be competing with other students from all over the world for college entry and career…

The newest science standards and national economy demand a committed emphasis to STEM integration in K-12 education. The need for STEM programs in K-12 education continues to grow, specifically in the formative adolescent years. In response, one public school district pursued and was awarded a grant to implement a STEM program. This research study…

More students with High Functioning Autism (HFA) are in inclusive settings than ever before, however, the physical combination of students with HFA and their typical peers alone is insufficient to address the social needs of students with HFA. Students with HFA in inclusive settings require evidence-based practices (EBPs) for social skills to be…

School improvement initiatives rely upon effective leadership and organization at the state, district, and building level. Response to intervention models and similar multitiered systems of support are nationally implemented as frameworks for school improvement. This mixed-methods research focused on elementary principal leadership styles and…

Paraprofessionals spend the most time with the neediest students, but receive the least amount of training and support. All target students in the study had developmental disabilities, were between the ages of three and five, and had a history of challenging behavior. Paraprofessionals in the study were recruited because they had the least…

The use of technology has permeated both our lives and society. It is nearly impossible to overlook the role that technology plays in our everyday lives. Applying instructional technology in the classroom is a vital facet of enhancing students' learning. Both independent school sites and school districts have utilized varying types of professional…

The purpose of this study is to investigate relationships between elementary-level educators' perceptions of their school's implementation of Green's four-dimensional model of educational leadership and the percentage of students proficient in Language Arts and in Mathematics, averaged over three years. Represented by responses to twenty items…

Students with special needs deserve a free and appropriate education. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological research study was to explore factors responsible for creating a sustainable literacy initiative in special education schools and in addition, to analyze the effectiveness of instructional leadership in 10 special education…

Background: Reading instruction begins at the primary level with reading comprehension issues manifesting themselves by the 3rd-grade and becoming more pronounced by fourth-grade. While primary teachers often teach narrative comprehension skills, middle school teachers have the responsibility to teach both narrative and expository comprehension…

This research is a collection of essays that examine various aspects of a performance-based scholarship program designed to build social capital among first-generation community college students located in a large mid-Atlantic city in the United States. First-generation community college students, those whose parents did not attend college make up…

The purpose of the study was to investigate teacher perceptions of the implementation of 1:1 iPad use in the classroom to include technology integration, school level support, and teacher beliefs. The study explored the beliefs, attitudes and perspectives of eight elementary school teachers. Focus group interviews and single interviews were…