The modeling of a modern preschool curriculum is contextually conditioned and represents a complex process. Each kindergarten has its "own identity," its "DNA," just as children, preschool teachers and other participants in the educational process have their "own individual equations." Contextual learning is at the…

This qualitative study examined kindergarten children's responses to their favorite books and their perspectives on reading at home and school. Data included observations, interviews with teachers, parents, and children, and "My Favorite Book" response sheets completed by children. Children's favorite books reflected various genres,…

Collective leadership is increasingly important because collective teacher efficacy, a subset of this type of leadership, is a significant factor in student learning. The purpose of this study is to provide evidence for the structural validity of a collective leadership instrument across public and private school settings using the multigroup…

In this research, it is aimed to plan concrete and new arrangements that will encourage participation right and evaluate how these arrangements contribute to children's participation. The participants of the study are comprised of 41 5-year-old children attending the kindergarten in a province in Turkey's inner Aegean region. In the research,…

This article presents a case study on changing food practices from traditional cold sandwich meals to hot meals in a Norwegian kindergarten. Data were sourced from interviews, complemented by non-participatory video observation and observational notes. Building on Fullan's model for understanding a change process, this paper presents the…

The current study examined the unofficial implementation of direct-democratic decision-making assemblies in three typical public (state) schools of consecutive educational levels (kindergarten, primary and middle school) in a village in Greece. The study drew on Michel Foucault's analysis of "power technologies" and "power…

The voices of students of color often are left out of discussions of urban school reform conversations when they should be central to reform efforts. Jonathan Collins suggests looking at democratic reform as an avenue to bring those voices forward. Participatory budgeting, for example, introduces students to the idea that they could decide how…

This qualitative case study investigated the processes by which an elementary school principal uses Distributed Leadership to accomplish leadership tasks and progress toward organizational goals. It aimed to provide a thick description of the practices, behaviors, perspectives, and experiences of the participants of Distributed Leadership. The…

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the perceptions of pre-school educators for the application of total quality philosophy in kindergartens in the prefecture of Corinthia, Greece. Dimensions, such as the adoption of quality philosophy in the pre-school unit by the superiors, the active participation of teachers in decision-making and human…

There has been little discussion about distributed leadership through the lens of beliefs. Principals and head teachers of two case-study kindergartens in Hong Kong were invited to be participants to examine how leaders think and act. Semi-structured interviews and shadowing were employed to collect data. The findings suggest that leaders' beliefs…

Get an inside look at the discourse interactions of third- and fourth-grade students as they consider various design proposals to solve an engineering problem and negotiate a group decision. The authors present possible factors that impact student teamwork and provide recommendations for teachers to develop students' skills for group engineering…

Walking, reading, and storying the land has been embedded in Indigenous ways of knowing for generations (Bang & Marin 2015; Durie, 2004; Penetito, 2009). In formal education settings, these processes have been used to generate children's understandings about history, science, and the natural world (e.g., Bang & Marin, 2015) and to foster…

Teacher retention is a global crisis in need of attention specifically through a leadership focus. The crisis has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic encompassing the Great Resignation in the field of teaching and education. The purpose of the study was to explore the relationships between school principals with servant leader behaviors and…

The COVID-19 pandemic widened existing educational inequities for Black and Latino students, students who are English learners, and students with disabilities. Research shows that family engagement has a positive impact on student outcomes; therefore, forging connections between schools and families as enrollment rebounds will be especially…

Across the U.S., educators face a common challenge: How can we help all students become strong readers and writers? In the author's state of Tennessee, many educators believe they have a reading crisis. Two-thirds of 3rd graders do not read and write on grade level as measured by the statewide assessment (Tennessee Department of Education, 2019a).…