This article examines how 3 sixth-grade social studies teachers increased struggling readers' participation in text-based discussions and changed how they applied reading comprehension strategies. Students worked in small groups with peers who read above, on, or below grade level but shared similar beliefs about themselves as readers. Discussion…

Stavros Demetriadis is currently an Assistant Professor with the Department of Informatics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh) in Greece. He also earned his Bachelor's degree in Physics and a Master Diploma in Electronic Physics from AUTh. He became interested in information and communications technologies when he was a high school…

The 2013 Thought Leaders Symposium, sponsored in part by DTZ, a UGL company, and Jacobs, focused on the topic of the rising cost of higher education. More than three dozen higher education leaders--including presidents, provosts, business officers, consultants, association executives, and facilities professionals--participated in a facilitated…

There has been an increased emphasis for college instruction to incorporate more active and collaborative involvement of students in the learning process. These views have been asserted by The Association of American Colleges (AAC), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and The National Research Counsel (NRC), which are advocating for the…

It is now nearly thirty years since sociocultural theories of learning created great excitement and debate amongst those concerned with learning in diverse contexts. Since that time significant advances have been made in sociocultural theory and research. Various sociocultural approaches to the understanding of learning (for example, sociocultural…

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to (a) compare Tier 2 evidence-based intensive reading instruction to business-as-usual instruction for sixth graders with and without learning disabilities who were "far below" or "below" basic level in literacy and (b) explore the development of a response-to-intervention model…

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effect of small-group instruction on the vocabulary and comprehension of first-grade students identified with low language and low vocabulary skills. Overall, 102 first-grade students scoring below the 50th percentile on relational vocabulary were blocked by classroom, matched according to…

The purpose of this research was to determine if reading specialist candidates improve the reading proficiency of their students through the use of digital, technology-based teaching techniques and materials. The candidates were certified teachers who provided individualized and small-group instruction to K-6 children while the candidates were…

With the changing cultural demographics in U.S. classrooms, school counselors must develop innovative approaches to promote culturally responsive school climates and organizational change. A vision is offered of systemic cultural responsiveness and culturally relevant teaching practices that nurture and engage all learners. The role of the school…

Today, English language learners (ELLs)--students whose primary language is other than English--are the fastest-growing major school population in the United States. Between 2000-01 and 2010-11, the number of these students, whose level of English proficiency is not sufficient to support learning in a regular English language classroom, rose 18…

This study examined the effectiveness of a Blended Learning (BL) environment designed to facilitate the learning of study skills with a large (over 200) and diverse undergraduate student cohort in a Higher Education (HE) institution in the UK. A BL environment was designed using the model provided by Kerres & De Witt (2003), and was also…

This study examined dimensions of treatment integrity, specifically program differentiation, within the context of a kindergarten reading intervention study. The study explored the relationship between program differentiation and student outcomes. The study was conducted within the context of Project Early Reading Intervention (ERI), a four-year…

This review examines the effectiveness of educational technology applications in improving the reading achievement of struggling readers in elementary schools. The review applies consistent inclusion standards to focus on studies that met high methodological standards. A total of 20 studies based on about 7,000 students in grades K-6 were included…

Surely "massive open online course" (MOOC) has one of the ugliest acronyms of recent years, lacking the deliberate playfulness of Yahoo (Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle) or the droll shoulder shrug suggested by the word "snafu" (Situation Normal, All Fouled Up). The author is not a complete neophyte to online…

This study used a randomized experimental design to examine the relationship between teacher-student ratio and literacy learning outcomes for experienced intervention teachers working with the most at-risk first-grade students. Eighty-five Reading Recovery teachers, working with 170 students, each taught in a 1:1 and a small-group instructional…