Designed to strengthen the teaching of mathematics in the elementary grades, this book focuses on helping teachers engage in instruction based on learning trajectories (LTs). The authors bring together the experiences and key research-based findings of four different groups of teacher educators that created effective professional development…

Research Findings: The present study investigates both the proximal processes and contextual influences on children's oral language development in preschool. We examine whether teacher language practices vary across activity settings and program type, which teacher language practices predict children's oral language skills, and potential…

This study explored how experienced faculty are using social media to support student learning. It analyzed the types of social media learning activities (SMLAs), their design, the cognitive processes that they support, and the types of knowledge that students engage in when completing SMLAs. Data gathered from five different cases of six faculty…

A capstone experience, as an exit degree requirement, allows Master of Public Administration (MPA) students to build quasi-experimental practices by applying learned knowledge and skills throughout their curriculum in the United States. Accredited MPA programs have implemented their capstone courses differently to achieve required standards. Small…

The purpose of this two cycles design-based research study is to explore the approaches with response to and perceptions of teachers towards a professional development programme (PDP) for enabling them to design, develop, and implement technology enhanced learning (TEL) activities for teaching Arabic as a foreign language (AFL). The PDP was…

A Family Geography Night (FGN) kit can be used to bring families together, teach about the world, give parents the opportunity to share their beliefs, and participate in the educational system while having fun! Geography is an essential element of twenty-first-century education. More than just maps, geography is the interaction of cultures,…

The symposium provides an overview of the Early Years STEM Australia (ELSA) program. The conceptual underpinnings of the program are framed within STEM practices, rather than traditional thinking concerning the integration of discipline content knowledge. We will argue that our focus on practices is more aligned with the play-based and intentional…

As a fine art collection founded by a scientist with a passion for art and a vested interest in education, the Barnes Foundation is in an exciting and unique position to explore and develop educational programming around science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM). The education staff determined that using science and math in the…

College and University faculty members have increasingly adopted experiential learning teaching methods that are designed to engage students in the learning process. Experiential learning is simply defined as "hands-on" learning and may involve any of the following activities: service learning, applied learning in the discipline,…

"Making and Tinkering" links science, technology, engineering and mathematics learning (STEM) to the do-it-yourself "maker" movement, where people of all ages "create and share things in both the digital and physical world" (Resnick & Rosenbaum, 2013). This paper examines designing what Resnick and Rosenbaum…

In this paper we explore an approach to developing and implementing service-learning and community-based research in a study-abroad program in Cape Town, South Africa. Drawing on a notion of partnerships reflecting the values of accompaniment and transparency, and influenced by the importance of learning service, we outline an intentional, engaged…

In this piece, we put forth a Deweyian framework for youth development activities in outdoor and adventure education programs, and we show how such a framework may be exemplified by activities in sail training and sailing instruction. The paper begins with a discussion of the theoretical features of Deweyian educational experiences and makes…

Out-of-school time (OST) is a growing field that includes afterschool, evening, weekend, summer, school-age care, childcare, positive youth development, and workforce development programs (NIOST, 2000). Research demonstrates that OST professional development is critical to program quality and student impact (Weiss, 2005/2006). In an effort to…

Following a review of the online delivery of distance education programs within the School of Information Studies (SIS) program at Charles Sturt University, a team of academics worked with an external consultant to design a purpose built SIS Learning Centre in Second Life (SL), a 3D virtual world environment in which people (via their avatars) may…

This qualitative study explores how using Peer Learning Forums (PLF) in an online asynchronous computer programming course can be analyzed to derive information about Student Activity Focus (SAF) for adult Information Technology students. Three instruments are proposed to assist instructors classify questions posted by students on these forums,…