Concern exists regarding civic education and involvement among youth in the United States. Where civic education is still given priority, instructional methods do not necessarily focus on the application of the knowledge gained in real and meaningful ways, which research has shown is critical to develop civic literacy and efficacy. This study…

Service-learning has been shown to have benefits for both students and faculty, however, it is quite rare in the mathematics classroom. At Concordia University Irvine we have established a relationship with the Village of Hope--a local non-profit organization designed to help homeless families transition to a self-sufficient status via temporary…

With all of the pressures placed on public schools today including competition from school choice, charter schools, and vouchers, as well as achievement gaps, state testing, sanctions, growing negative press, changing demographics, social demands placed on schools, etc., one might wonder why anyone would choose school leadership as a career.…

This study examines a "small moments" writing strategy to nurture reflection in undergraduate college students participating in a course-based service-learning activity. Using grounded theory methodology to analyze reflection journal entries, the authors identified themes that indicate that, by writing "small moments"…

Informal "teacher talk" about students is ubiquitous, but it remains largely unexamined. This study critically examines casual, everyday teacher discourse about students perceived to be racially or culturally "different." Data were collected through participants' journal entries, group discussion, and interviews. Findings…

In the past, nativists opposed immigration, period. The sharp distinction between "legal" and "illegal" immigrants emerged fairly recently, according to immigration historian David Reimers, a professor of history at New York University. "Basically, by the mid-90s 'legal' immigration was no longer an issue," he says.…

Science education blogs can serve as powerful digital lab notebooks that contain text, images, and videos. Each blog entry documents a moment in time, but becomes interactive with the addition of readers' comments. Blogs can provide a realistic experience of the peer-review process and generate evolving descriptions of observations through time.…

Critical thinking is an important outcome of a college education. Assessment techniques that require students to demonstrate their understanding of course concepts are referred to as authentic assessment and promote the development of critical thinking. Little research exists on the types of assessment and grading practices utilized by community…

As we enter deeper into the 21st Century, there is a more urgent need to transform our educational system in the United States to better prepare our youth for the careers and technology of the future. This study examines how improving technology education at the high school level can improve the learning and college readiness of urban youth. It…

Although much is known about how students perform on standardized tests, little research exists concerning how students think and process while taking such tests. This mixed methods action research study was designed to investigate if a constructivist approach to test preparation could yield improved results for 37 English language arts freshmen…

Overview: This research explores using a teaching approach that attempts to balance test preparation with creating "teachable moments" for students. This approach involves the use of a sequence of assessments to introduce topics through formative assessment in order to identify students' understanding, and beginning instruction based on…

Approaching reflection from the perspective of a teachable skill set implies that research may inform how to help students reflect. Employing a framework of making connections often used in reading comprehension, this study aimed to characterize how making connections between the service-learning experience (SLE) and prior experiences in similar…

A major influence this generation of high school digital natives has had on the curriculum is their natural focus on visuals to convey information. They are driving the move toward visual information. In this article, one high school expands the learning environment from handhelds to videoconferencing. Sacred Heart has found that mixing the…

The report, based on a study of journal entries written by English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students in San Diego Community Colleges (California), examines the value of journal writing for ESL learning and acculturation and offers classroom techniques for its use. An introductory section describes the study and its outcomes. Chapter 1 looks at…

This case study investigates the development of the understanding of constructivist theory among students in a Masters level elementary teacher education program within a particular course. The focus of the study is a seminar entitled "Advanced Seminar in Child Development". The questions explored include: How do students' ideas of…