Educators and policymakers advocate for the implementation of problem-based approaches to STEM education in K-12 classrooms to help students develop 21st-century skills such as the ability to think critically, collaborate, and problem-solve. The first exploratory case study in this three-article dissertation examines how students engage in…

For many years, mathematics research has focused on finding ways to help students improve their math performance. These efforts have led to the conclusion that building a strong mathematics foundation is associated with greater achievement across time. Students who develop number sense and learn to use efficient strategies at an early age are more…

At the time of this writing, little research had been completed on the occupational aspirations of students and students' perceptions of their parents' career satisfaction. I completed a qualitative study in which I compared the occupational aspirations of 14 third-grade students, 7 girls and 7 boys, from a low socio-economic school and 14…

Exclusionary discipline practices can widen the opportunity gap for at-risk students (Baker & Coley, 2013; Black, 2016; Crosby et al., 2018; Gibson & Gibson, 2019; Mallett, 2016; McCarter, 2017; Porter, 2015; Williams et al., 2017). The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between student risk factors and exclusionary…

The present study investigated the bidirectional influence that children's and parents' task values in math and sports have on change in the task values of the other group from first grade to 11th grade. Using latent change score models, I found that fathers' math value both positively and negatively influenced change in children's math values…

English Language Learners (ELLs) in North Carolina do not achieve reading proficiency in the primary grades, resulting in a continuous achievement gap between ELLs and their non-ELL peers on state and federally mandated reading assessments. The variance in academic outcomes suggests that the linguistic and educational support ELLs need to…

The mixed methods study examined the impact of "Leader in Me" effects on math achievement in Grades 4 and 5. The problem this study addressed is underachieving mathematical achievement in a suburban school district when compared to the state assessment. "'Leader in Me' helps students learn how to become self-reliant, take…

Parental involvement or lack thereof is not a new issue in education, but it is an issue that continues to plague and impact the educational system. Epstein found that lack of parental involvement was linked to major milestones such as student dropout rates and truancy. The problem addressed in this study was that although research shows teachers…

With the increasing academic gap in public schools, it is important that students are exposed to education at an early age if possible. This causal-comparative research study sought to explore the impact of Pre-K attendance and foundational literacy on academic achievement at the end of the third-grade year. Student achievement was measured using…

Fraction proficiency is a critical milestone for students to reach, as fraction knowledge strongly predicts later math achievement. However, fractions are notoriously difficult for students to learn. The first study in this dissertation reviewed commonly used math curricula to determine if their fraction lessons used evidence-based instructional…

Place value is a foundational competency for primary school mathematics and for this reason we have sought to investigate what the recent and current academic conversations are around this important concept. In this paper we present a survey of literature presented in the Australasian, European and Southern African contexts through a review of…

This dissertation studied the effects of Teacher Directed Games (TDGs) on student vocabulary development and student engagement in a second language. Achieving automaticity with vocabulary is crucial to mastering a second language. A sample of 40 first grade students in a Jewish Day School participated in the study. Students learned their…

The study aimed to investigate the impact of Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) on students' writing skills in their first language (L1), Tagalog, and explore whether their proficiency in L1 contributes to their second language (L2) writing. This study employed a conceptual framework based on language acquisition and bilingual…

Physical literacy (PL) is highlighted as a construct that can positively impact physical activity (PA). Measurement methods and definitions for PL exist, but vary between research groups. This variation affects the ability to compare research findings. The purpose of this study was to assess the construct validity of PL in children. PL was…

Math anxiety (MA) and math performance are generally negatively correlated (Barroso et al., 2021; Namkung et al., 2019). However, the mechanisms underlying this negative association remain unclear. According to the attentional control theory (ACT; Eysenck et al., 2007), anxious individuals experience impaired attentional control during problem…