Whether a response to lackluster academic gains in our nation's schools or longstanding beliefs about the wider purposes of schooling, social and emotional learning (SEL) has gained a massive following in education circles. Further, the mental health challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic have strengthened the demand that schools do more to…

Responding to rising social tensions and ongoing theoretical and political changes in the study of geography, we advocate for greater operationalizing of anti-racism pedagogies within the field. Such pedagogies undermine long-standing geographic knowledge systems that marginalize and misrepresent people of color while also distorting and…

Young people who graduate from high school, get a job, and get married before having children, in that order, are far less likely to be in poverty and far more likely to have a solid footing in the middle class later in life. This path to adulthood has been dubbed the "success sequence." The cultural norms and values embedded in the…

As Robin D'Angelo (2018) describes it, white normativity rests on the "definition of whites as the norm or standard for human, and people of color as a deviation from that norm." Consequently, going beyond white normativity is not a simple feat. Racism and normativity have been an entrenched part of many of cultures, societies, and…

Over the past decade, the author and their colleagues have been carrying out research to try to better understand the factors that shape students' engagement with science, as well as their science and career aspirations. The ASPIRES/ASPIRES 2 studies have tracked a cohort of students in England from the age of 10 to 18, combining large-scale…

For many years the need to educate and support our teachers to implement science and mathematics education has been ongoing throughout the world (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019; Mundry et al., 2009). In more recent years, this call has extended to include teaching through integrated science, technology,…

For many years the need to educate and support our teachers to implement science and mathematics education has been ongoing throughout the world (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019; Mundry et al., 2009). In more recent years, this call has extended to include teaching through integrated science, technology,…

More than 50 years after the "Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka" decision, the democratic promises inherent in "Brown" have yet to be fulfilled (Franklin 2005) and educational quality, or lack thereof, continues to be intimately linked with social constructions of race (Baszile 2008; Ladson-Billings 2012).…

The purpose of this study is to explore the validity evidence supporting the high-leverage practices (HLPs) of the ETS® National Observational Teaching Exam (NOTE) assessment series, a kindergarten through 6th grade teacher licensure assessment. HLPs include "tasks and activities that are essential for skillful beginning teachers to…

Thirty-eight countries in Africa regard homosexuality as punishable by law with South Africa remaining a standout country advancing constitutional equality on the basis of sexual orientation. In the context of homophobic violence, however, concerns have been raised about schools' potential to improve the educational, moral and social outcomes for…

The Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) framework, which uses a systems approach to promote school improvement and support all students in improving academics and behavior using data-based problem-solving, is a key part of the Wake County Public Schools System (WCPSS) Strategic Plan. As of 2017-18, MTSS schools were at the initial stages of MTSS…

In social justice education, it is common to establish guidelines for classroom discussions. We examine the limits of these guidelines in achieving the goals of social justice education, arguing that they are not adequately responsive to power relations. Rather than creating a supportive space for dialogue, these guidelines can actually interfere…

A key issue continuing to plague current educational systems is the intransigent racial and socio-economic achievement gaps for students. Using narrative inquiry and Harré and van Langenhove's (1999) six modes of positioning theory, this study considered preservice teachers' construction of socially just pedagogy within their public school…

Serving a working-class suburb of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the Hawthorne School District (HSD) is a small district with 11 schools: seven elementary schools, three middle schools, and one dependent charter high school. HSD's students are predominantly from low-income families (87%). Most students (71%) are Latino/a and about fifth (21%)…

This is a case study of a conflict management intervention in two secondary schools in post-apartheid South Africa. The feature of the intervention that we examine is the use of play as an educational strategy. The literature attests that play can facilitate change by allowing learners freedom to change their behaviour and opportunities to explore…