Project Tomorrow's Speak Up® Research reports have advocated for a broader definition of the digital divide to include access challenges at home and the obstacles K-12 students face in gaining access to high quality digital tools and resources to support classroom learning. Project Tomorrow, in collaboration with Spectrum Business, is creating a…

Research on the digital divide in sub-Saharan education needs an overview of its conceptual developments and practices since the studies in the field of the digital divide emerged and were established around the mid-1990s. The present systematic literature review fills such a gap by using mixed methods to analyse three aspects of research on the…

Feelings of empowerment among students are crucial prerequisites to their participation in change agency in both educational and non-educational settings. Educators notice a compelling correlation between student empowerment and academic achievement and other positive outcomes in K-12 educational environments. School counselors are optimally…

There is continued concern over the inequitable distribution of highly experienced and effective teachers among historically marginalized student populations. Using longitudinal data from Tennessee, this study assesses whether students of racially/ethnically minoritized and economically disadvantaged backgrounds have unequal exposure to teachers…

With growth in STEM postsecondary programs and careers positioned as a national priority, ensuring that K-12 science classrooms are staffed with highly qualified teachers is an important step towards building student interest in STEM and preparing students for STEM careers. However, previous studies of out-of-field teaching have indicated that…

Background: Across families from all backgrounds, and for all students, when parents and the broader community engage in sustained systematic program improvements, schools and districts are more likely to focus on and maintain improvements. As a result, federal and state lawmakers have implemented engagement mandates. The ways in which these…

Background: This study took place within a policy context in which the state of Ohio, echoing moves across the country, adopted a set of K-12 Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) standards based in the work of the Collaborative for Academic and Social Emotional Learning (CASEL) and its core competencies: self-awareness, self-management, social…

The 2024 National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) represents a significant effort to help states and schools leverage technology to modernize K-12 education in the United States. Because state boards of education critically shape education policy in their states, they can use the NETP to drive substantial improvements in digital access and…

This study was conducted to investigate the impact of school resources on student outcomes in urban K-12 Catholic schools participating in the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program (DC OSP). DC OSP, a K-12 federally-funded voucher program enables economically disadvantaged families to enroll their children in private schools, including Catholic…

This study complements literature on state policymaking by exploring one state's achievement trends and policymaking during a period of remarkable achievement gains. I use mixed methods, drawing on hierarchical linear modeling and semi-structured interviews with policy actors, to explore the case of Tennessee in the post-recession period. Results…

This paper draws on research conducted in four state schools with sixth forms to problematise two flagship 'disadvantage' policy agendas in the English context: the Pupil Premium (focusing on the narrowing of attainment gaps) and widening participation (focusing on fairer university access). While such 'priority' policies necessarily incorporate…

Accountability-era reforms have promulgated a discourse of crisis and a looming threat for public schools. While these threats negatively affect all, this paper focuses on how schools' responses to these threats shape novice Teach for America Corp Members' (CM) socialization. By analyzing nearly 6,000 daily reflections from 38 CMs about their…

Equitably expanding technology access among K-12 students has long been viewed as critical for equalizing educational opportunities. But these interventions may influence students' academic outcomes in unexpected ways. Prior research suggests key technological resources, like broadband Internet, are a double-edged sword, conferring both…

Utilizing qualitative content analyses of two open-ended questions, the study sought to understand the perspectives of 18 in-service educators regarding White student racial privilege and the ways White teachers can use their power to mitigate those privileges. The findings indicate that teachers are aware of the advantages and privileges afforded…

Across Canada, school districts have been confronting a backlash to their equity and social justice initiatives. Critics of public education have been arguing that the solution to these controversies is to increase school choice. Using several examples from the United States, this paper argues that the endgame of these strategies is to undermine…