School librarians are experiencing upheaval and controversy in education today. They are coping with the implementation of (and battles over) the Common Core State Standards, the uncertain future of their jobs, and the rapidly changing nature of school libraries. Despite the flux and instability in education, the importance of intellectual freedom…

School districts in the USA are an active area of study in education research as findings have shown that some districts find success in certain contexts while others struggle. However, the research domain has had few actionable methods for site selection for in-depth qualitative studies. This study analyses all districts in the state of Ohio (n =…

Examiner effects and content specificity are two well known sources of construct irrelevant variance that present great challenges in performance-based assessments. National medical organizations that are responsible for large-scale performance based assessments experience an additional challenge as they are responsible for administering…

Liberal arts colleges produce a disproportionate number of PhDs in the sciences (National Science Foundation 2008), and knowledgeable observers praise the "cross-training" of these colleges' science majors (Cech 1999; Connell 2004; Ekman 2007; Pascarella et al. 2004; Steitz 2001; Tilghman 2010). While many of the positive outcomes of…

This study investigates the way in which and the extent to which students engage in social categorization during the process of self-selecting team members for a team assignment. The discovery-oriented method of grounded theory was used. Data were gathered from a sample of 38 undergraduate marketing and management students using the Zaltman…

As transgender individuals receive more attention nationwide, it is only a matter of time before increased numbers of transgender educators seek placement in teacher education programs, and eventually, employment as teachers. Given the high levels of discrimination against transgender individuals historically, it is reasonable that P-12 school…

We have written this article seeking to connect societal perceptions of disability with P-12 schools and higher education institutions toward the goal of greater understanding and equitable employment opportunities for music teachers with disabilities, specifically teacher candidates with visual impairment. In our investigation, we examine the…

What are first-generation college students' (FGCS) perspectives of employment screening methods? The authors investigate which methods FGCS believe are likely to cause an employer to extend a job offer and which methods yield the best pool of job applicants. Survey data were collected from undergraduate business majors. They were analyzed using…

Soon after the Great Recession of 2008 hit this manufacturing stalwart of the upper Midwest, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker began proclaiming that the skills gap--the idea that plenty of well-paying jobs existed, but the educational system was failing to provide employers with skilled workers--was the primary cause of high unemployment and a…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the experiences of first-generation college graduates in the USA, as they transitioned from higher education into employment in the private sector. First-generation college graduates are from families in which neither parent had a bachelor's degree. Design/methodology/approach: This paper used…

In urban schools, along with skills for effective teaching, successful teachers must also possess values and belief systems conducive to teaching effectively in diverse settings (Becker, Kennedy, & Hundersmarck, 2003; Haberman, 2008; Metzgar & Wu, 2008). As demonstrated in CAEP standard 3, there is a critical need for EPPs to admit…

Introduction: This study concerns students' criteria in the evaluation of Internet sources for a school assignment requiring reflections on a controversial issue. The findings are elaborated by analysing students' discursive accounts in justifying the use or non-use of sources. Method: The interview data was collected in a Finnish upper secondary…

Since the 1970s, there has been keen interest in examining gender representation in leadership positions across various areas of employment, including K-12 education. Indeed, there have been long-standing concerns about the percentage of women principals. Few studies, however, have examined the percentages of women principals at different…

This paper discusses the pedagogical practice of developing reading for pleasure in pre- schools and primary phase settings through the lens of one key dimension of twenty-first-century reading: personalisation. It draws on a series of studies and examples to identify, address and problematise human- and digitally mediated personalised reading for…

While literacy interventions can be implemented in any grade, focusing on interventions in grades 3-8 is critical because it is often the best chance for students identified with earlier reading deficiencies to become ready for the literacy demands of postsecondary education and careers. States in both the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL)…