This brief summarizes findings on strategies for helping hard-to-employ populations--especially cash welfare assistance clients and disadvantaged parents with child support obligations--become employed. It begins with an overview of the unique needs of these two groups, followed by a review of strategies that have successfully boosted their…

This Research Brief summarizes the performance of Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) students participating in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program. The IB program was offered at six M-DCPS high schools in 2018-2019. Over 3,000 examinations were taken by M-DCPS students in 26 subject areas in 2018-2019. The number of IB examinations…

This study was an attempt to investigate Iranian EFL learners' private speech across proficiency levels and gender while doing reading comprehension tasks. Moreover, it was an attempt to examine the different forms of private speech produced by Iranian English learners. Six forms of private speech were coded and analyzed: affective markers,…

For agencies that deliver high-stakes Second Language (L2) proficiency exams, a research agenda has been undertaken for years to examine the role of rater, task, and rubric as sources of variability into their performance assessments (Lee, 2006; Sawaki & Sinharay, 2013; Xi, 2007; Xi & Mollaun, 2006). However, these challenges are more…

Metaphors are powerful windows to gain insight into EFL teachers' professional identity constructions. This study examined 33 Chinese EFL student teachers' (STs) self-generated metaphors about teaching before and after their student teaching. Before their teaching practicum experience, they were: (a) optimistic, but had naïve perceptions about…

In this teacher-research study I examine factors influencing willingness to communicate (WTC) on 39 students, grades 1-6, enrolled in after-school English as a foreign language (EFL) classes in Korea. Quantitative data from student surveys, was analyzed to identify student perceptions of their comfort when engaged in various types of communicative…

Success is a concept that is desired by everyone. In the Turkish education system, Anatolian high schools are considered one of the most prestigious schools which accept students via national central exams. The purpose of this study is to reveal indicators explaining the placement into Anatolian high schools, which is an important sign of success,…

This study investigated how the corpus-based teaching approach could enhance L2 acquisition of English infinitive and gerund complements among low English proficiency young Thai learners of English. The students were divided into two groups of 32. One group learned English verbal complements through the corpus approach while the other did through…

Students with complex support needs frequently experience restrictive educational placements such as self-contained and separate school classrooms. Given the need to support students with complex support needs to experience positive outcomes and make progress in the general education curriculum, there is a need to investigate the characteristics…

Students with complex support needs frequently experience restrictive educational placements such as self-contained and separate school classrooms. Given the need to support students with complex support needs to experience positive outcomes and make progress in the general education curriculum, there is a need to investigate the characteristics…

This study employs a potential outcomes modeling approach to estimate the causal effect of the National Math + Science Initiative's College Readiness Program on Advanced Placement test taking and qualifying score earning for three recent cohorts of schools. Results indicate substantial and significant increases in both AP test taking and…

This report provides a summary of the district's gap analyses, Equity Self-Assessment Survey results, current research, and district action steps.

Through a multi-year, national calculus study, researchers have recently identified seven characteristics of successful college calculus programs. We identified these seven characteristics by visiting five doctoral-granting mathematics departments with successful calculus programs and uncovering the common traits among them. These seven traits…

This research explores the role of concept mapping and speech repetition in developing EFL learners' oral fluency. Eighty language learners, after passing an in-house placement test, were randomly assigned into two equal experimental groups. The data analyses demonstrated that both groups' oral fluency significantly improved when they were trained…

Although national legislation and policy call for the use of student assessment data to support instruction, evidence suggests that teachers lack the knowledge and skills required to effectively use data. Previous studies have demonstrated the potential of training for increasing immediate teacher outcomes (i.e., knowledge, skills, and beliefs),…