While scholars have investigated the impact of school start times on adolescent students, there is limited research on how school start times affect teachers. In addition, recent reports of declining teacher morale emphasize the need for further study on influences of teacher satisfaction. Using secondary analysis of data from the 2017-18 National…

The focus of professional development for teachers is to increase teaching skills and student academic success. Challenges in retaining and hiring teachers are causing local, state, and national organizations that represent teachers to rethink ways to support teachers within the profession. The professional and psychological needs of teachers have…

Although research exists on features of effective professional development surrounding Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK), relatively few studies have examined the relationship of context to the acquisition of TPACK. Despite this framework's dominance in the literature, the role that contextual factors play in the development of…

One of the challenges of understanding the complexity of so-called reform mathematics instruction lies in the observational tools used to capture it. This article introduces a unique tool, drawing from commognitive theory, for describing classroom discussions. The Realization Tree Assessment tool provides an image of a classroom discussion,…

The purpose of this study was to develop a valid and reliable assessment tool to measure music educators' participation in and perceptions of their high-quality professional development (PD) experiences. A sample of 450 in-service music educators across the United States completed a 78-item rating scale embedded within 10 domains reflecting…

Teacher collaborative learning is currently a trending topic within the international fields of school education reform and teachers' professional development. Schools in China have a long history of teacher collaboration, but have also faced problems such as formalism in their activities, excessive administrative overtones, and so on. Drawing on…

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are a growing population within schools. Teachers and staff need to be adequately prepared, as well as confident in working with this unique group of students. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the Colonial School District teachers' perceptions of their preparedness and self-efficacy regarding…

Background: During the middle school years, students frequently show significant declines in motivation toward school in general and mathematics in particular. One way in which researchers have sought to spark students' interests and build their sense of competence in mathematics and in STEM more generally is through the use of technology. Yet…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between factors (internal [personal] and external [environmental]) and teachers' participation in professional development (PD) programs in Turkey. The researcher employed a survey design, using a multiple-stage sampling method, selecting 30 out of 66 elementary schools in the Center…

The nutrition environment in schools can influence the risk for childhood overweight and obesity, which in turn can have life-long implications for risk of chronic disease. This dissertation aimed to examine the nutrition environment in primary public schools in California with regards to the amount of nutrition education provided in the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and validity of a newly developed survey instrument, the "Primary Practices Questionnaire" ("PPQ"), designed to measure first, second, and third grade teachers' perceived use of developmentally appropriate practices. The initial item pool was reviewed for content…