Having reviewed several bodies of research, the authors provide 14 guidelines for educators to help English learners (ELs) make greater strides in learning English. These guidelines are: (1) Providing English Language Development (ELD) instruction is better than not providing it; (2) ELD instruction should continue at least until ELs attain…

Today's college students are significantly different from previous generations. On average, they are overconfident, have high expectations, report higher narcissism, are lower in creativity, are less interested in civic issues, and are less inclined to read long passages of text. They are highly confident of their abilities and received…

The challenges of learning statistics, particularly distributions and their characteristics, can be potentially monumental for vision impaired and blind students. The authors provide some practical advice for teaching these students.

Twenty-first-century biology is inherently interdisciplinary. Every aspect of biology, from molecules to organisms to ecosystems, is richly informed by the physical, mathematical, and computational sciences. It is both an exciting and daunting time for biology educators--exciting because of the vast opportunity for important new discoveries that…

This article is the result of years of study, both formal and informal; hundreds of hours of traditional and Montessori classroom observations; reading and digesting articles and books on secondary education, Montessori education, adolescent brain research, leadership, and best practices in education; and most enlightening of all, 20 years of…

A few years ago, the author saw a video of a pop concert. It looked just like concerts of his youth: a well-lit stage amid a darkened crowd flecked with small wavering lights. He laughed when he realized, however, that the swaying glow was coming not from cigarette lighters but from LCD screens. This juxtaposition of old flames and new beacons…

The notion that everyone who is impacted by a crime has an investment in the process of how the offender is dealt with is gaining acceptance in diverse contexts around the world. This notion, called restorative justice, is an approach that brings together the offender and individuals impacted by the offender's behavior in a problem-solving process…

The purpose of this collective case study was to explore the best practices in beginning group-piano instruction. Four beginning and intermediate groups of piano students (N =20) were observed. Data were triangulated through in-class observation of students and teachers, teacher interviews and student questionnaires. The master teachers…

Researchers and advocates who argue for increased recognition of gifted students with learning disabilities (G/LD students) often frame their arguments in terms of the need to increase the diversity and inclusiveness of gifted education. However, the criteria used to identify G/LD students are sufficiently vague and fluid that the G/LD category…

The prominent use of DIBELS as a screening and placement tool has provided schools and districts the ability to implement interventions and best practices for students, particularly in the primary grades. Although many studies have highlighted the predictive validity of oral reading fluency (ORF) to anticipate reading performance, few have…

This study examines the impact the California School Boards Association's (CSBA) Masters in Governance (MIG) training program has on effective school board governance practice. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a relationship exists between effective school boards and a commitment to seek and attend school board training. This…

The American Heart Association's HeartCode[TM] Healthcare Provider (HCP) Basic Life Support (BLS) e-learning program with voice-advisory manikins was implemented in an acute care hospital as the only teaching method offered for BLS certification. On course evaluations, healthcare provider staff commented that the VAM technology for skills practice…

As one-to-one laptop environments are becoming more commonplace in the educational system, teachers are often expected to provide a student-centered environment that incorporates 21st century skills in effort to better prepare students for the future. Teaching in this type of environment is a difficult pedagogical shift for classroom educators.…

This article invites teachers to consider how to strengthen links between English, music, arts, and acting, maximizing the potential for children to become successful language learners at a young age. It will show how children's opera can act as a catalyst for learning and using the language. The findings demonstrate that teaching English with a…

A review of the research on teacher professional development identified an emerging consensus on important contextual and implementation characteristics that can promote or inhibit teachers' use of new knowledge and skills in their classroom practice. Findings suggest that professional development is best viewed as one component in an overall…