The "IDRA Newsletter" serves as a vehicle for communication with educators, school board members, decision-makers, parents, and the general public concerning the educational needs of all children across the United States. The focus of this issue is "Opportunity." Contents include: (1) Students Deserve to Read Diverse Books --…

Professional development is a necessary component for effectively integrating technology into classrooms. Unfortunately, the evaluation of technology integration professional development (TIPD) rarely moves beyond participation satisfaction surveys, nor does it reflect the concerns of the multiple stakeholders participating in technology…

Correlational analysis of two years of classroom observation indicates relationships between technology use and various classroom characteristics, including teacher roles and instructional strategies. Three observers used the ISTE Classroom Observation Tool (ICOT) to record 144 observations of classrooms participating in a variety of educational…

The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the impact of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) grant programs of 5 federal agencies National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), U.S. Department of Education (USDE), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and…

Objective: To evaluate recall and usage of the Food Stamp Office Resource Kit (FSORK), a set of nutrition education materials designed for use in food stamp offices. Design: Client intercept exit surveys, an environmental scan, and individual observations of clients in the food stamp office. Setting: Four food stamp offices in California.…

To conduct evaluations that can benefit individual programs as well as the field as a whole, environmental educators must have the necessary evaluation competencies. This exploratory study was conducted to determine to what extent a self-directed learning resource entitled "My Environmental Education Evaluation Resource Assistant" (MEERA) can…

This article uses the framework of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK; Mishra & Koehler, 2006) to analyze findings across projects from the U.S. Department of Education's Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) initiative. Approaches such as mentoring methods course faculty, teachers, and creating technology-rich…

The use of educational technology in K-12 classrooms has been gaining tremendous momentum across the country since the 1990s. Many school districts have been investing heavily in various types of technology, such as computers, mobile devices, internet access, and interactive whiteboards. Almost all public schools have access to the internet and…

The present review examines research on the effects of technology use on reading achievement in K-12 classrooms. Unlike previous reviews, this review applies consistent inclusion standards to focus on studies that met high methodological standards. In addition, methodological and substantive features of the studies are investigated to examine the…

The Rural and Low-Income School (RLIS) program is part of the Rural Education Achievement Program (REAP) that was authorized under Title VI, Part B of the "Elementary and Secondary Act of 1965" ("ESEA"), as amended by the "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" ("NCLB"). The RLIS program provides additional funds…

This data summary presents data from the U.S. Department of Education's National Educational Technology Trends Study (NETTS). NETTS is a multi-year evaluation that documents the implementation of the Enhancing Education through Technology (EETT) program from fiscal year (FY) 2002 to FY 2007. This summary reviews the methods used to collect and…

Accessing Curriculum through Technology Tools (ACTTT), a model development project, was developed and tested by staff of the Center for Best Practices in Early Childhood (the Center), a research and development unit within the College of Education and Human Services at Western Illinois University. The major goal of ACTTT was to develop,…

The Early Childhood Technology Integrated Instructional System 3 (EC-TIIS 3), housed in the Center for Best Practices in Early Childhood (the Center) within the College of Education and Human Services at Western Illinois University (WIU), was funded in 2004 by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) as a…

Two schools in Idaho received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Jefferson Middle School; and (2) Lakeside Elementary School. The experiences of this non-recipient school is…

Two schools in Michigan received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement their improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Phoenix Elementary-Middle School; and (2) Arthur Hill High School. The experiences of these…