Background: Optimistic thinking is a facet of social-emotional learning linked to better mental health and problem-solving in children; however, few educational tools exist to improve this important aspect of self-awareness. Objective: To examine the effectiveness of an optimistic thinking tool with diverse students in an elementary school…

In this study, language arts teachers in one middle school participated in ongoing professional development. As part of this professional development, participants engaged in face-to-face professional development sessions, observations/classroom walk-throughs and reflections. Researchers examined the participants' pre- and post- professional…

Among social skills that are core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder, turn-taking plays a fundamental role in regulating social interaction and communication. Our main focus in this study is to investigate the effectiveness of a robot-enhanced intervention on turn-taking abilities. We aim to identify to what degree social robots can improve…

In a prior study (Millett & Kevelson, 2018a), we demonstrated that college access program participants have positive views of the extent to which the program supports the development of their social and emotional skills and related college help-seeking behaviors in college. In this follow-up study, we explore the extent to which participant…

Utilizing a phenomenological approach, this dissertation explores how principals perceive and use their roles in developing and maintaining inclusive special education programs. Specifically, this study has examined principals' beliefs and ideals in decision-making to support inclusion in classrooms. Its goal is to provide insight into principals'…

Social impairments characteristic of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are evident in early childhood and often worsen. There is a paucity of evidence-based interventions explicitly targeting social skill development for young children with ASD and few actively integrate caregivers. The PEERS® program, an evidence-based caregiver-assisted social…

Contribution: A model of tutoring program for the empowerment of engineering students in the information and communication technologies (ICT) area is proposed, as a mean to improve academic performance. Background: ICT students failing to proceed smoothly along their study path, and possibly abandoning university before graduating, is becoming a…

Dialogic teaching has been demonstrated to be conducive to the development of important competencies and skills such as creativity, communication skills and critical thinking skills. Yet, the literature confirms that teacher--student interactions in the classroom are predominantly monologic rather than dialogic across subjects, grades and…

The purposes of the study were 1) to investigate the effectiveness of integrated brain-based learning and skills training on grade 11 students' learning achievement in linear and quadratic functions 2) to compare the achievement of grade 11 students before and after using integrated brain-based learning and skills training, and 3) to study…

Competency in fundamental movement skills (FMS) lays the foundation for developing more complex motor skills and supporting a physically active future. Preschool-aged children are at a crucial window of development, so intervening with motor skill programmes increases the likelihood of future physical activity (PA) participation. Parents/carers…

Successful implementation of formative assessment in classrooms relies on teachers' formative assessment literacy, which is typically supported by professional development programs. This study reports on the impact of a professional development program on a group of in-service primary teachers in Hong Kong. The authors investigated the…

Culturally Responsive Education (CRE) has been found to be an effective method of teaching because it focuses on academic success for all students, cultural competencies, sociopolitical aspects, and has been proven effective among school cultures that are diverse in demographics. The aim of this research is to reveal opinion of primary school…

Policy makers increasingly acknowledge that problems and challenges arising at the school level should be resolved on site. At the same time, the political expectation to delegate more responsibility to the individual school is rather heavily contrasted with the weak knowledge about how this new public management approach can be translated into…

Identity formation is a fundamental developmental process that has significant consequences for youth adjustment during adolescence and beyond. This article presents evidence indicating that ethnic-racial identity, specifically, is an important developmental competency on which prevention science should focus in the interest of promoting positive…

Professional development programs (PDP) are an important tool for achieving educational goals; assessing their effectiveness, however, is complex. The success of PDP depends on teachers' ability to transfer newly gained knowledge and skills into practice. To assess this effectiveness, it is necessary to develop appropriate methodological tools.…