This study involved a pilot implementation of an evidence based school readiness intervention in new community contexts. The Head Start Research Based, Developmentally Informed (REDI) program was implemented in preschools on and near a Native American reservation with both indigenous and non-indigenous students and teachers. The REDI curriculum…

The years from birth to five are critical for building the emergent literacy skills that precede learning to read and write. Early childhood education and care services are in a unique position to support emergent literacy development, particularly for children in socio-economically disadvantaged communities. This article reports the findings of a…

This paper reports on a quasi-experimental pilot study of the impacts of a high school teacher professional development (PD) series. The 10-session series, "Engaging High School Students in Academic Work," was designed to equip teachers to deepen students' learning and engagement and thereby increase course-passing rates. The study took…

For more than 20 years, United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey (United Way) has made high-quality early care and education a cornerstone priority of its investment strategy. United Way has also been a longtime champion of school readiness for the youngest children in southeastern Pennsylvania. In 1996, the organization joined…

School-wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS) has a large evidence base for preventing and addressing externalizing problem behavior, but there is little research examining its effects on internalizing problems, such as anxiety and depression. Given the prevalence of internalizing problems in today's children and youth, it is worthwhile to examine…

Learning communities are best defined as "ongoing groups who meet regularly for the purposes of increasing their own learning and that of their students." Although learning communities vary in form and context, they share some fundamental core beliefs and values. Based on the idea that educators can learn from each other, learning communities…

This study examined the effectiveness of a professional development (PD) experience on preschool teachers' instructional strategy development. Focusing on supporting young children's peer social competence as a common interest, preschool teachers were guided to design the specific contents of the PD workshops and were offered an on-site…

A qualitative case study was conducted to investigate the classroom experiences of three sixth-grade teachers and their mathematics coach as they worked with new instructional materials during the implementation of a new state-mandated curriculum based on performance standards in mathematics. Teachers' collective participation in the exploration…

"Growing a nurturing classroom" is an awareness training programme presented by educational psychologists in Leicestershire for professionals working in primary schools with the aim of promoting an optimal environment for learning and emotional well-being. The training helps primary school staff to take a holistic approach to education;…

Classroom management is often noted as one of the most influential factors in determining success for first-year teachers and as the most influential factor in students' academic success (Marzano & Marzano, 2003). However, according to Haycock (2006), nearly half of this country's new teachers leave the classroom within their first five years,…

Six primary classrooms in an elementary professional development school were involved in this research, each characterized by high mobility and a diverse student population from economically disadvantaged families. Questions included the following: First, what approaches are found in a professional development school with diverse learners? Second,…

The paper reports results of three studies that used a formative assessment (FA) framework to compare schools that vary in their level of functioning as professional learning communities with respect to three processes: classroom assessment (study 1), development and implementation of school-based curriculum (study 2), and pedagogical…

This article examines how laptop computing technology, teacher professional development, and systematic support resulted in changed teaching practices and increased student achievement in 47 K-12 schools in 11 Florida school districts. The overview of a large-scale study documents the type and magnitude of change in student-centered teaching,…

A primary purpose of early childhood education and interventions is to promote children's acquisition of knowledge and skills linked to later social competence and academic success. In this report, special attention is given to summarizing what has been learned about early childhood classrooms as contexts for development and learning, the kinds of…

Literature has shown that on-the-job professional development programs are most beneficial when they are long-term, focused on students' learning, and linked to the curricula. We hypothesized that the higher the control teachers have over job professional development processes, and the greater the resemblance of these processes to the typical…