This article discusses the use of digital storytelling, a pedagogical tool, to enhance student learning and meaning-making. During the process of creating and sharing their digital stories, students engaged in self-reflexivity and demonstrated the ability to apply theories of student development to their personal experiences. Findings have…

This paper reports on results from a recently completed research study conducted with pre-service teachers from Nova Scotia, Canada who completed their final student teacher practicum in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. With our attention directed towards a primary research question related to pre-service teachers' own development, data were…

This study focused on discovering what instructors' experiences help elementary school students develop not only academically but also socially. This qualitative multiple case study method was guided by Yin, and the purpose of the study was to investigate effective instruction strategies from the perspective of instructors who worked in an…

Over thirty years ago, the document, "A Nation at Risk," put to the forefront concerns about the achievement of American students falling behind in comparison to international students. This led many to question the state of American education. In recent years, the focus and commentary have been placed on the preparedness of teachers.…

Sports participation in high school has positive effects on students' later civic engagement. But that is true of nearly all forms of extracurricular participation in high school--whether a group is explicitly civic (student government or a service club) or far removed from civic life (an academic club or a music group). Indeed, the civic…

In order to sustain a thriving democracy, civic action must be infused into the day-to-day practice and methods of teachers and professors (Giroux, 2011). Unfortunately, many public education institutions are sorely lacking when it comes to fostering civic action in their curriculum and practice (Giroux, 2011; Reason, 2013). If higher education…

This article explores the impact of sexual and religious identity on college student development, examining developmental models and discussing how counselors can assist gay and lesbian students with integrating these 2 personal identities. Treatment approaches are presented, and the article concludes with an examination of ethical and…

This chapter explores how digital and social technologies may be impacting the developmental journeys of traditionally aged college students. It provides important conceptual distinctions and explores the application of college student development theory in digital spaces along with implications for practice and inquiry.

Life skills are the competencies that an individual must have in order to be able to carry on his/her existence effectively in the process of change. By means of life skills, the individual is aimed to facilitate his/her life by using all his/her achievements in the education process. In this study, a program covering the dimensions of…

Efforts to promote college for all for all has opened college doors to a broad range of students. But college--and career success after college--doesn't have to mean a bachelor's degree. Community college credentials, such as associate's degrees and one-year certificates, can lead to further degrees or jobs that offer more benefits than students…

This study explored how interpersonal relationships may affect the development of interest in science from college students' perspectives. Semi-structured interviews with 24 college students were conducted and analyzed. The findings indicated that interpersonal relationships could start and sustain students' interest in science; negative…

States in the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Central region serve a largely rural population with many states enrolling fewer than 350,000 students. A common challenge identified among REL Central educators is identifying appropriate methods for analyzing data with small samples of students. In particular, members of the REL Central…

Purpose: This paper aims to provide a critical discussion and re-evaluation of the Personal Growth (PG) model of English, noting that the summer of 2016 marks 50 years since the Dartmouth Conference and the publication of John Dixon's seminal response to the conference in "Growth Through English" (1967). The influence of the London…

The significance of social and emotional learning (SEL) continues to grow in today's schools around the world. More teachers agree that students' social and emotional needs must be addressed in the learning process. This is because how students feel about themselves and think about one another affects the ways they learn in school. Learning…

The goal of this study was to examine how the use of a new instructional model is related to changes in middle school students' engineering identity. The intent of this instructional model, which is called argument-driven engineering (ADE), is to give students opportunities to design and critique solutions to meaningful problems using the core…