School closures can occur not only during a pandemic, but also during disasters, which can impact students' social and emotional well-being and lead to detrimental behavioral outcomes and trauma-related symptomatology. Such negative impacts can potentially be alleviated by inclusion of effective virtual or blended SEL programming that supports…

Drawing from principles of ethical research derived from our review of national and international policy documents, in this paper we reflect on our research experiences working in partnership with Indigenous educators in a project to support young Indigenous children's oral and written language development through collaborative action research.…

During semester-long courses in inclusive methods and beginning reading instruction, pre-service teacher candidates participate in weekly tutoring sessions with elementary students in grades K-5. We outline principles identified for effective service-learning and describe how to embed them to integrate community service. We discuss…

This report presents the SPARK literacy model, an innovative approach developed by Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee, for addressing the literacy needs of low-income and minority schools in Milwaukee. It also presents the results of a two-year randomized control trial evaluation of the SPARK literacy program's impact on reading…

This case study is one of five publications from the larger study, "Teaching for a Changing World: The Graduates of Bank Street College of Education," that examines the preparation, practices, and effectiveness of graduates of Bank Street College of Education teacher certification programs over the last decade. This case study examines…

This case study is one of five publications from the larger study, "Teaching for a Changing World: The Graduates of Bank Street College of Education." Established in 1989, Midtown West is a New York City public elementary school serving approximately 350 students from kindergarten through grade five. With the support of Tony Alvarado,…

Budget constraints and difficulty raising taxes limit school districts from expanding education programming, even when research shows that additional expenditures would generate economic benefits that are greater than costs. Recently, coalitions of private investors, philanthropists, education practitioners, and government finance analysts have…

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…

River Trails School District 26--a K-8 public school district in Mount Prospect, Illinois, with 1,580 students--developed, implemented, and celebrated a student-centered public relations event that focused on reading and technology. The literacy and technology fair drew hundreds of parents, students, staff, and community members to the district…

There are hundreds of tutoring programs that utilize community volunteers being implemented across the country; however, there are few rigorous efforts to evaluate their effectiveness. This article presents findings on reading achievement from an evaluation of the New York City Experience Corps[R], a program that uses older volunteers to work with…

Parent involvement programs can play an essential role in the academic success of Latino youth. This article reports the effectiveness and evaluation of two new Extension programs that help Latino parents become more involved in their youths' academics. The Latino Parent and Family Advocacy and Support Training (LPFAST) targets parents of K- 8th…

In this essay, we explain the development, implementation, and preliminary findings of an innovative writing program that drew upon a peer collaborative model and a community literacy perspective. Developed as an after school program, this project represented a community-university partnership designed to provide an enjoyable forum for teaching…

Family and community members often look at children's writing from a deficit point of view--seeing only what's "wrong" with it, what needs "fixing." Teachers can take a proactive role as family and community member educators, communicating to them how writing develops in young children and how they can play a positive role in this development.…

FirstSchool is a school reform approach to early schooling for children 3 to 8 years old. It was developed over the past five years through a collaborative partnership among families, schools, communities, and institutions of higher education. The approach responds to the needs of all young children--especially in African American or Latino…

Which comprehensive school reform programs have evidence of positive effects on elementary school achievement? To find out, this review summarizes evidence on comprehensive school reform (CSR) models in elementary schools, grades K-6. Comprehensive school reform models are programs used schoolwide to improve student achievement. They typically…