Undergraduate research is a high-impact practice (HIP), but it can be difficult to implement well. Faculty generally lack training for effectively mentoring students. A semi-autonomous faculty organization at Utah Valley University has maintained a faculty development program, the Mentoring Undergraduate Research Academy (MURA), and other…

How does one overcome the challenges to finding time for meaningful professional learning? The authors asked seven experts in the field, and these practitioners offer powerful strategies for making better use of educator time. An example from Illinois centers student data in school systems as an essential component of a school's overall commitment…

This paper reports the results of a randomized controlled trial evaluating "We Have Skills," a brief curriculum designed to teach early elementary students academic and social skills as well as improve teacher efficacy in classroom management. Intervention efficacy was tested with 127 teachers, randomly assigned to condition, and 2,817…

Professional development (PD) programs do not always reach the teacher or allow for sustained usage of technology. However, recent studies show that teachers are more open to use technology after increased technology dependence during the COVID-19 pandemic. Motivated by that new openness to technology integration, we used interview and survey data…

Vocational and technical education programs continue to play a pivotal role in developing workers' occupational safety and health skills in all industries. The Agricultural Safety Education Initiative was first conducted in the summer of 2017 as a multi-year "Train the Trainer" program to improve teachers' tractor and machinery…

Scholars suggest that culturally responsive instructional supervision (CRIS) is an important component of equitable teaching practices in schools. This fictional case study details the experiences of a fifth-grade team who, along with their principal and their instructional coach, perform a discourse analysis of their own mathematics lessons to…

The Early Literacy Program focuses on the development of early literacy skills, with additional emphasis placed on intervention for students at risk of not meeting grade-based reading benchmarks. Resources available to aid these students include interventions and supports for students in grades kindergarten through third grade, standards and…

Recognizing that the agriculture industry continues to have the highest worker fatality rate, a multi-year teacher professional development was conducted to improve teachers' tractor and machinery safety knowledge. The purpose of this study was to analyze participant knowledge throughout the professional development to better understand the role…

Over the past 50 years, colleges and universities have taken on increasingly important roles as anchor institutions in U.S. cities, partnering with local communities to promote development and well-being. Such community-campus partnerships rely on the work of community engagement professionals (CEPs), staff tasked with administering, coordinating,…

In accordance with Utah State Code 53G-11-304 and as authorized by Board Rule R277-325, the Utah State Board of Education administered an educator engagement survey to Utah educators in the 2023-2024 school year. This survey is administered every other year alternating with the administration of the school climate survey. The information in this…

The pandemic hit the already vulnerable early childhood education (ECE) workforce especially hard, causing almost 40 percent of child care providers to shut their doors and many teachers to lose their jobs. In 2021, enrollment in state-funded preschool also dropped for the first time in 20 years--a nearly 20 percent decline that erased a decade of…

Implementation of blended teaching (BT) practices is in- creasing rapidly in K-12 classrooms. This trend creates an urgent need for professional development to support BT. An understanding of how experienced teachers implement BT can inform teacher educators and professional development leaders as they develop training to support this practice. We…

Today's college and career-ready standards emphasize developing students' ability to interpret and analyze complex texts and to assert and defend claims relating to those texts in extended pieces of writing. By providing secondary English language arts teachers with professional development and instructional materials, the UC Irvine Writing…

The school years touched by the pandemic tested the mettle of school leaders in unprecedented ways. While many had weathered crises of varying magnitudes before it, COVID-19 was the longest, most widespread test of school principals and administrators' skills in managing schools in crisis conditions. When supported in gaining decision-making…

Instruction in prekindergarten through third grade (P-3) lends itself to authentic, project-based and playful experiences that immerse learners in STEM activities and instruction. In an era of increased focus on literacy and math skills, STEM provides an interdisciplinary approach that may prove more effective for young students to acquire skills…