Effective professional development (PD) interventions that promote high quality teacher-child interactions are important mechanisms to support social-emotional and cognitive development in early childhood. One PD intervention that has shown to be effective is MyTeachingPartner (MTP); however, previous research has suggested that both teacher and…

What influences children's normative judgments of conventional rules at different points in development? The current study explored the effects of two contextual factors on children's normative reasoning: the way in which the rules were learned and whether the rules apply to the self or others. Peer dyads practiced a novel collaborative board game…

Students' thinking about the relation between effort and ability can influence their motivation, affect, and academic achievement. Students sometimes think of effort as inversely related to ability (such that people with low ability must work harder than people with high ability) and other times think of effort as positively related to ability…

Students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are being included more frequently in the general educational setting, and are therefore increasingly expected to access and master core curricular content, including mathematics. However, mathematics often presents challenges to students with ASD. Interventions to improve the mathematics skills of…

This paper builds upon a foundational paper (under review) which explores the rudiments of the quantum perspective of learning. The quantum perspective of learning uses the principles of exchange theory or borrowed theory from the field of quantum holism pioneered by quantum physicist David Bohm (1971, 1973) to understand learning in a new way.…

Children's participation in cultural activities within the community, and the particular cognitive and socioemotional skills that they gain as a result of their participation, have been thoroughly studied (Cole, 1990; Gallimore & Tharp, 1990; Moll et al., 2005; Scribner & Cole, 1981). However, the connection of these skills to school learning or…

This dissertation is an empirical investigation of educational policies, practices and organizational settings that shape the schooling experiences of Chicago Public School (CPS) students. The first chapter, "Educational Choice and Student Participation: The Case of the Supplemental Educational Services Provision in Chicago Public…

Maintains that Rogoff's work has implications for supporting the development of a well-designed "Practical Life" environment in Montessori schools. Questions the appropriateness of the concept of proximal development for the Montessori approach. Concludes that the book reaffirms one's commitment to the Montessori perspective. (KB)