This brief summarizes McKinney-Vento Act mandates for local educational agencies (LEAs) and schools. It includes additional explanation on two issues about which charter schools have frequently raised questions: transportation, specifically to and from the school of origin, and enrollment policies, which may create barriers for homeless students.…

The increasing number of homeless youth in the United States presents many social justice concerns, including issues of educational access, stigma, and self-advocacy. These problems become even more apparent when homelessness and educational attainment intersect. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 was enacted to address these…

Based on a 180-day school year, any student who misses 18 days or more per year--or about two days per month--is considered chronically absent. An alarming 4,328 Newark students in grades kindergarten through 3rd grade were chronically absent during the 2013-14 school year. When young students miss too much school, they will likely struggle…

Museum games can be a powerful meaning-making experience for players, but only if we understand that what makes games fun is also what makes them meaningful. Renowned game designer Sid Meier ("Civilization", "Railroad Tycoon", "Pirates") famously defined a good game as "a series of interesting choices." What…

In making a case for ecocomposition, Sidney Dobrin has claimed that writing, place, and environment cannot be separated. As Donehower, Hogg, and Schell and Deborah Brandt might argue, literacy cannot be separated from place either. But it might sometimes be separated from environment as an ecosystem that has value distinct from, and without the…

A pragmatic sequential mixed methods research methodology was used to examine commercial airline pilots' (N =156) types and frequencies of informal learning activities, perceptions of workplace informal learning, and opinions on how organizations should support workplace informal learning outside of the formal learning environment. This study…

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE), Office for Exceptional Children (OEC) oversees statewide preschool special education programs with school districts, approved providers and parents. Special Education and related services are available for children from the age of three through age 21 who have been identified with a disability. The…

The United States has a weight problem. It's not just about food intake but also about energy consumption [97, 153]. This dissertation asks: "How can we encourage people to act in ways that are mutually beneficial for themselves and the environment?" To date, there is no single behavior intervention in the literature targets behavioral…

The recent implementation of technology in the classroom is probably one of the most challenging innovations that many teachers are having to confront today. Teachers have to develop a knowledge base that goes beyond technology proficiency, into learning about how technology, for example, can be used for various forms of representations of subject…

The modern world is characterized by the extensive use of concrete and asphalt pavement. Periodically, these materials are replaced and the old materials disposed of. In this challenge, students will be asked to develop ways to reuse the old materials. It is important for students to understand how concrete and asphalt are made and applied, as…

Long gone are the days when the study of the internal combustion engine was the core of the transportation curriculum offered in most middle schools and high schools. To be competitive and successful, today's students need a more global understanding of transportation, distribution, and logistics systems. In response to this shift to include…

Previous studies indicate that practicum experience is essential for pre-service teachers to develop understanding of effective teaching, professional identity, and culturally responsiveness. However, it is possible that first-year pre-service teachers are not ready to teach in a classroom with as many as 30 students which could present…

There is no question that students who experience homelessness, like all students, are entitled to be educated. A federal law, known as the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, requires states to provide homeless children and youth with the same access to free appropriate public education as is available to other students. The Act also requires…

The risk convergence model proposes reduction of perceived social distance to a mediated personality as a mechanism through which the mass media can influence audiences' personal risk perceptions. As an initial test of the model, this study examined whether 5 audience variables known to facilitate media effects on personal risk…

Background: The prevalence of obesity in children is high, and many do not meet physical activity recommendations. The Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program encourages school-aged children to walk and bike to school. We assessed the condition of the walking/biking environment around schools in Louisiana prior to the state's first SRTS program.…