This case study examined second language (L2) instructors' use of technology in high school and junior high Spanish classrooms in the state of Texas. Specifically, this work sought to investigate the kinds of technologies teachers employ in their practice and how they apply them in the classroom, and what personal and institutional factors…

Student discipline issues can impact student achievement and disrupt the learning process in the school setting. Behavioral issues among female students have become prevalent in public schools, and disciplinary rates of African American female students are disproportionately high. School administrators have the responsibility to manage student…

This dissertation study investigates the relationship between professional development, school leadership, technology infrastructure and technology use. Three research questions were developed. The first examines the relationship between professional development and technology use, the second examines the relationship between school leadership and…

There are racial/ethnic disparities associated with school punishment practices and academic progress. In addition, research suggests that urban schools have stricter school punishment practices and higher grade retention rates. What remains unknown, however, is the relationship between race/ethnicity, school punishment practices, and retention…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to test the theory of connectivism (Downes, 2012) by comparing Twitter educational followership and no Twitter educational followership in terms of the Texas Teacher Evaluation and Support System (T-TESS) rating scores for elementary, junior high, and high school teachers in a large urban public-school…

School counselors help foster student's academic, social, and career development; yet, school counselors are often neglected in research on school climate and student safety. Framed by the theory of planned behavior, this study examined how 206 school counselors' multicultural counseling competence, multicultural self-efficacy, and perceptions of…

After accepting the principal position at Farmersville (TX) Junior High, the author decided to increase instructional rigor through question mapping because of the success he saw using this instructional practice at his prior campus. Teachers are the number one influence on student achievement (Marzano, 2003), so question mapping provides a…

Because eligibility for Title I funding is dependent on the financial needs of schools' populations, many Title I schools face significant barriers to student achievement. Decades of research have shown that poverty has a strong negative impact on student academic performance (Herbers et al., 2012), and Title I schools frequently serve students…

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study was to investigate the best practices for bullying interventions. The participants for the quantitative data collection were counselors (n = 22) and principals (n = 20) located in elementary and junior high schools; 10 were selected to participate in the qualitative data collection. Method: The…

One thing is certain, accountability is here to stay; accountability exposes the good, the bad, and the ugly. The academic achievement gap between non-White and White students continues to exist in the disaggregated data in individual campuses, within school districts, and within comparison studies across the nation. Thus, school leadership is…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between quality staff development and improved student learning as reflected by increased standardized test scores in reading. The study examined the effect of structured job-embedded staff development on student performance. The causal comparative design was used to examine the linkage…

This article presents an interview with Jeremy Koester, an eighth grade math teacher and football coach at Alamo Heights Junior School in San Antonio, Texas. In this interview, Koester describes his use of technology in his classes and describes his dream of advancing Second Life (SL) as a distance education environment. SL is a "3-D virtual…

Compared scores for Texas eighth graders on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) and National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to study the achievement gap in mathematics in 1996 and 2000. Results show the likelihood of a ceiling effect impacting students' TAAS scores that created the illusion the achievement gap had narrowed.…

The gender gap in administrative public school positions has been a perpetual problem throughout history. Although women have gained a foothold on elementary principalship positions, they have continued to lag behind men in secondary school principalship positions. The purpose of the study was to examine gender demographics and compare the results…

For 25 years, "American School & University" has been publishing a special issue dedicated to the best in education design. Although design has changed dramatically over the years, one will find that the jury criteria for award-winning projects has remained consistent. The first jury was looking for technical innovation, and 1986's…