Background/Context: Developing strong number sense and additive reasoning in the early grades is a critical foundation for success in school and beyond. Longitudinal studies show that early competence with number and operations predicts later math achievement, reading achievement, high school retention rates, and employability and wages in…

Background/Context: Access to rigorous courses in high school is essential for college success (ACT, 2005), but low-income students and students of color take fewer demanding courses than their white and Asian counterparts (Cowan Pitre, 2014; Theokas & Saaris, 2013). The issue of inequitable access to more advanced courses requires a deeper…

Background: Learning trajectories (LTs) in early mathematics curriculum and teaching have received increasing attention (Baroody et al., 2019; Clements, 2007; Clements & Sarama, 2021; Maloney et al., 2014; Sarama & Clements, 2009). For example, LTs were a core construct in the National Research Council (2009) report on early mathematics…

Background: Data on children's ability to answer assessment questions correctly paints an incomplete portrait of what they know and can do mathematically; yet, it remains a common basis for program evaluation. Indeed, pre-post-assessment correctness is necessary but insufficient evidence for making inferences about learning and program…

Background and Context: Social-emotional skills contribute to psychological well-being and achievement (Durlak, et al. 2011), and also forecast long-term outcomes like high school graduation and earnings (e.g., Dweck, Walton, & Cohen, 2011). A recent national survey of 884 principals in PreK-12 shows that 98% of principals believe that all…

Background/Context: Increasing evidence suggests a connection between racial differences in rates of exclusionary discipline (suspensions/expulsions) and academic achievement by (Losen & Martinez, 2020; Reardon et al., 2018). Black students receive out-of-school suspensions and expulsions at disproportionately higher rates, which is associated…