This design case highlights how two instructional designers initiated, designed, and implemented a K-12 novice teacher training program to address three known challenges teachers face when understanding, designing, and implementing project-based learning (PBL). The design framework comprised three areas: trainees, training program design, and…

This study explores the project-based learning (PjbL) of middle school teachers by examining their instructional context and the project design and management strategies they used to implement PjbL. The significance of this study is to provide middle school teachers with greater perception, insight, and strategies about how the quality of their…

Teaching is one of the most stressful occupations in the United States. This is especially true for teachers who are responsible for meeting the complex needs of students with disabilities, particularly those with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). In fact, EBD teachers have a higher risk of experiencing burnout than their special education…

In an increasingly data-driven world, large volumes of fine-grained data are infiltrating all aspects of our lives. The world of education is no exception to this phenomenon: in classrooms, we are witnessing an increasing amount of information being collected on learners and teachers. Because educational practitioners have so much contextual and…

The concept of project-based learning (PBL) has garnered wide support among a number of K-12 education policy advocates and funders. PBL is viewed as an approach that enables students to develop the "21st century competencies"--cognitive and socioemotional skills--needed for success in college and careers. This issue focus, pulling from…

Preparing students for a world that did not exist when they were students themselves can be challenging for many teachers. Engaging students, particularly disinterested ones, in the learning process is no easy task, especially when easy access to information is at an all-time high. How then do educators simultaneously ensure knowledge acquisition…

Promote your students' creativity and get them excited about learning! In the second edition of this popular, practical book, authors Denise Krebs and Gallit Zvi show you how to implement Genius Hour, a time when students can develop their own inquiry-based projects around their passions and take ownership of their work. Brought to you by…

Group work doesn't have to be a classroom management headache. At Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, where collaboration is one of five core values, students regularly participate in group projects. To support productive group work, the staff uses several strategies: apply these strategies to your next group project to ensure students…

For young people who exhibit attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) traits, out-of-school (OST) programming can provide the atmosphere and learning experiences that, by design, sustain attention, engagement, and focus. "Possibility projects" enabled one afterschool practitioner to redefine ADHD in terms of attention-driven,…

This classroom narrative explores how teachers can build and sustain an intellectually and emotionally fulfilling teaching practice while changing the way students experience school. Written by an English and history teacher in a Philadelphia public high school, this book presents a framework of teaching for a living democracy--supporting learners…

Increasing students' awareness of the globalization of English is a daunting task for teachers, especially considering the lack of globally oriented ELT materials available. This study builds on previous research in response to recent calls for more classroom-level research, and reports on the use of a student presentation task to introduce and…

Storytelling is a part of who people are as humans. Melvil Dewey himself saw the need to catalog folktales and stories from the oral tradition in the 390s, a section dedicated to social customs. Stories form a part of the very fabric of who people are and give insight into the past as much, if not more so, than the histories. Teachers can leverage…

In this article, Sarah M. Fine uses portraiture to explore the undertheorized question of what it means to teach in ways that align with the values of the restorative justice framework. The piece centers around the work of Nora, a veteran teacher-leader who explored this question in the context of her own classroom and, as a result, shifted her…

Students love to hate group projects. Not surprisingly, one of the most ubiquitous complaints about college on social media often centers on group projects. Despite the seemingly deep-rooted distaste for group projects, instructors and employers alike agree that students must be equipped with the skills of communication, teamwork, and critical…

This article provides an overview of a classroom project, titled the Priorities Project, which is designed to promote responsible and informed civic engagement on the part of students in upper level political science courses at Drake University. It provides an overview of the Priorities Project, a brief summary highlighting the process and results…