The purpose of this Action Research study was to understand and enhance the perceived efficacy of micro-credentialing and digital badging for K-12 educators within a large urban school district. Cycle 1 of this research engaged over 150 educators and included 14 semi-structured interviews, seeking to identify the primary reasons for engaging…

This report demonstrates the impact of a two-way multilingual family engagement communication platform, TalkingPoints, on student outcomes at a large, urban, K-12 school district. The study used a difference-in-differences model to examine how the introduction of TalkingPoints influenced attendance, behavior, course proficiency, and state…

Students with complex communication needs require well-designed supports to communicate effectively in school settings. Although paraprofessionals are often charged with supporting these students, they are rarely trained in how to promote communication, and there is limited research on how they might be trained. In this study, we used a multiple…

Mathematical reasoning is important in conceptual understanding and problem solving. In current reform-based, discourse-oriented mathematics classrooms, students with learning disabilities (LD) encounter challenges articulating or explaining their reasoning processes. Enlightened by the concept of conversational repair borrowed from the field of…

Children with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder may find the social aspects of learning particularly challenging because of the traits of diffculty with social communication and interaction. This paper evaluates the impact of an interactive model designed to support social communication and interaction for twelve students with ASD, who…

The purpose of this study was to understand the decisions elementary principals have made during the Common Core State Standards reform. Specifically, (a) what decisions principals have made to support Common Core implementation, (b) what strategies elementary principals have employed to communicate with stakeholders about Common Core State…

There is a need to address behavior discipline problems in special and general education setting classrooms. Disruptive behaviors are a major concern as they create excessive stress and demands for classroom teachers and school administrators to address them. Effective interventions are needed to properly address them. Moreover, classroom…

This action research study addressed the need to increase student attendance at an elementary school. Previously, this school's Average Daily Attendance (ADA) has been 92%. With having nearly 900 students, there are approximately 70 daily absences, 1,400 monthly absences, and 13,000 yearly absences. To address the challenge, the researcher…

Background: School nurses play a central role in assisting elementary school children in managing their asthma, especially those in higher-risk school districts that are at increased risk of uncontrolled asthma. Study purposes are to (1) identify barriers to asthma management by school nurses in higher-risk school districts; and (2) assess the…

The authors supervised and trained pre-service teachers while conducting extended school year (ESY) services for pre-kindergarten and elementary students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disabilities (DD). Each classroom was responsible for conducting communication assessments and developing interventions focused on…

The Office of Special Education and Student Services asked the Office of Shared Accountability to evaluate the "Facilitated Communication Pilot." In facilitated communication (FC), people with communication impairments express themselves by typing with the aid of a communication partner, called a facilitator, who provides physical (and…

A diverse sample of kindergarten and 1st grade students participated in a social-emotional literacy and problem solving program. Students and their teachers participated in seven one-hour training sessions which included concrete activities designed to increase affective vocabulary and social problem-solving. Effective communication strategies…

The transition to primary school is one of the greatest challenges of early childhood. Handled well, it can set children into virtuous cycle of learning. But how can transitions be made more effective? Based on a background paper for UNESCO's Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007, this paper assesses the literature and draws lessons…