This two-year longitudinal study explores whether a professional learning community (PLC) helps shift language teachers' beliefs about implementing play-based learning. Ten practitioners from a preschool participated in this case study. Data were collected through interviews and observations of participants' practices engaged in the PLC. The…

In crafting the active learning approach for this study, we leverage on the definition of active learning as a methodology that requires students' active collaborative engagement and involvement in their own learning and they are held accountable for learning with peers. Building from social interaction, we extend the notion of active learning to…

Semester schools provide high-school students with a relatively new type of learning environment that largely has not been empirically studied. This study used a retrospective survey (n = 797) to explore the learning outcomes that stem from semester schools and identify features within the educational environment that promote them. Participants…

This activity helps students conceptualize and apply systems theory principles to a family communication context by having them create personal whole systems using paper, string, index cards, and the floor. In completing this exercise, students see how their subsystems interact and emerge as something greater than the sum of their parts. They also…

Recent science education reforms emphasize the goal of developing students' science and engineering practices. To foreground those practices during science instruction, teachers need conceptual tools to guide their instructional decision-making. In this conceptual paper, I propose that thinking about science and engineering activities as educative…

Research Findings: This study examined whether teacher-child interaction quality varied as a function of type of activity in toddler classrooms in four European countries (Finland, Netherlands, Poland, and Portugal). It also investigated whether specific activity settings, namely levels of adult involvement, use of whole group, and children's…

As instructional leaders who work closely with teachers within and across schools, elementary mathematics specialists (EMS) are positioned well to promote cohesive implementation of impactful pedagogy throughout school districts. However, EMS's work can be impeded if they do not have structured opportunities to collectively grapple with the…

This research continues the tradition of Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) studies aimed at better understanding the development of pre-service teachers' TPACK. The aim of the study is to show what are the areas of TPACK that pre-service teachers perceived as important and relevant for them, from a teacher training course. This…

This article presents select findings from a case study about applied theatre at a school for girls with refugee backgrounds in the United States. The data were collected through direct observations, semi-structured interviews, and analysis of students' work. The study uses an intersectional analysis to explore relationships between gender, race,…

Background: Engineering identity reflects students' acceptance and recognition of engineering, which has a great influence on their willingness to enter and stay in the engineering field. Existing studies have shown that curricular and co-curricular practice-oriented experiences may be helpful for developing students' engineering identity.…

It is important to raise enterprising individuals in STEM fields so that countries have individuals, who will play a role in global competition, and this is possible with effective STEM education. This research aims to reveal the impact of STEM activities, which were designed using the 6E learning byDeSIGN™ model, in terms of developing middle…

In this study, we examine the supportive and hindering factors that influenced 26 teachers' implementation of pedagogy learned through a research-based, resource-intensive literacy PD initiative (100+ hours). Through post-intervention interviews, we explore the space between learning and enactment of new practices for literacy teaching and…

Gamification is a controversial topic in the field of education, with both proponents and opponents. However, what exactly gamification is and why it has become popular are worth exploring. This academic article first defines the terms "game" and "gamification" in order to differentiate them. Next, the article provides core…

Purpose: There is a critical need to understand how to attract Black girls and other girls of color to the science, technology, engineering, math, and computer science (STEM+CS) field. This study aims to look at the design and implementation of a CS learning ecosystem that supports girls of color in acquiring critical CS skills starting in middle…

Educators across disciplines are implementing lessons and activities that integrate computing concepts into their curriculum to broaden participation in computing. Out of myriad important introductory computing skills, it is unknown which--and to what extent--these concepts are included in these integrated experiences, especially when compared to…