This study replicated and extended our previous evaluation of Urban Improv (UI), a theater-based youth violence prevention (YVP) program developed for urban youth. It assessed the replicability of positive program impacts when implemented by nonprogram originators, as well as the utility of a comprehensive version of the UI program that included a…

Typical career planning courses assist students with the self-assessment process, career exploration, and decision making. Although this assistance is helpful, college students are increasingly concerned with issues of meaning and calling (P. Braun, 2005). The authors describe and test the effectiveness of the Let Your Life Speak course, a program…

Purpose: The purpose of this case study was to investigate how project-based learning (PBL) is being practiced in Columbus Signature Academy (CSA), a high school located in Columbus, Indiana, USA. Design/methodology/approach: The authors used the case study method to provide qualitative details about CSA's use of PBL that is being practiced in a…

In this article, we report the results from a randomized evaluation of the Safe and Civil Schools (SCS) model for school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports. Thirty-two elementary schools in a large urban school district were randomly assigned to an initial training cohort or a wait-list control group. Results suggested that SCS…

Many teacher educators believe that pre-service teachers should be aware of their future classroom environment including students who have linguistically and culturally diverse backgrounds. This paper is a description of how two teacher educators helped pre-service teachers develop their multicultural awareness in preparation for careers in Early…

The purpose of this study was to investigate Finnish high school students' and teachers' perceptions of the effects of short-term Nordic study abroad programs in which they had participated. The data presented were based on a "mixed-methods strategy." The data set consisted of responses from 158 students and 92 teachers to a specifically…

In this study 44 undergraduate students in a language development course participated in service learning with preschool homeless and low-income children as a course requirement. Students completed a survey, questionnaires, reflective journaling, and small-group debriefing sessions. Based on current views on brain-based learning from cortical…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a peer-assisted study session (PASS) program for a large class of Bachelor of Health Science (Paramedic) students. This cohort was made up predominantly of mature aged students who have not undertaken any study for many years. Within a bioscience first-year core subject, student…

Objectives: To test the potential impact of a critical curriculum on psychiatric medications designed for child welfare workers. Method: In a quasiexperimental, longitudinal study, the monthly proportion of medicated foster children and the average number of prescriptions per medicated child at Agency 1 (669 clients) exposed to the…

The methods of evaluating teacher preparation programs are becoming increasingly more reliant on student test data. These test data driven formats, however, are not appropriate for small colleges. Small colleges are currently left off the Tennessee Report Card on the Effectiveness of Teacher Training Programs because the colleges did not produce…

Closing the achievement gap has been a national conversation for several decades and a priority for educators and researchers. By looking closely at one school which is showing exceptional success with closing the achievement gap for low income students and English language learners, this study seeks to understand how school personnel and parents…

KIPP Delta College Preparatory School (KIPP: DCPS), an open-enrollment charter school, opened in 2002 in Helena, Arkansas. Since its opening, KIPP: DCPS students have consistently outperformed their peers in the Helena/West Helena School district, and moreover, recent test scores suggest that white students and minority students are achieving at…

In order to prepare new online students to be successful in the virtual classroom, many institutions opt to provide them with an orientation course. Academic institutions must understand the needs of their students in order to develop an orientation course that is best suited to prepare their students for success. In this study, online graduate…

This study focused on the evaluation of the English as a Second Language (ESL) program provided to the English Language Learners (ELLs) in elementary and middle schools in one local school district. The study evaluated two factors: model of service provided and teacher effectiveness. The models of service provided were a push-in model and a…

Asian Americans, as a group, are not as civically engaged as might be expected given their rapid growth in population and high average levels of education and income. The undergraduate years are a critical period in which this "civic engagement gap" could be addressed given the dramatic growth in Asian American college students and…