This article investigates the awarding of scholarships to students from historically disadvantaged communities to attend elite schools in South Africa. Specifically, the article analyses the narrated accounts of former scholarship recipients who reflect on their experiences of entering an elite secondary school as scholarship students. Using…

Many schools across the United States use the Early Warning System (EWS) to identify chronically absent students on time and intervene. The prediction power of the EWS is well examined but more evidence is needed about their effectiveness at reducing student absence. This study examines the effect of EWS on student absence in a large urban school…

This study critically analyzes the discursive constructions of immigrant children from low-income households in Norwegian official publications between 2014 and 2024. The study uses Foucauldian discourse analysis to explore the representation of these children, the power dynamics and knowledge claims present in these discourses, and the…

Executive functions (EF) are crucial to regulating learning and are predictors of emerging mathematics. However, interventions that leverage EF to improve mathematics remain poorly understood. 193 four-year-olds (mean age = 3 years; 11 months pre-intervention; 111 female, 69% White) were assessed 5 months apart, with 103 children randomised to an…

Using a nested design and guided by the Social Control Theory, this study examined the factors that influence learners' achievement in mathematics in South Africa. The researchers collected data from 32 participants through an online questionnaire with open-ended and closed-ended questions. Quantitative data was analysed using SPSS to produce…

We are in the midst of a youth mental health crisis. Yet, many children and adolescents who need services do not have access to high-quality mental health care. This is especially true for low-income and economically marginalized families and youth of color. Schools offer an ideal setting in which children and adolescents can access services;…

This paper explores the application of the card-sorting interview technique in understanding the complex interplay of motivations and barriers faced by adults engaging in learning. Traditional research methods, whether quantitative or qualitative, often fail to capture these nuanced interactions or to provide scalable insights for policy…

We investigate the contrasting realities of the pandemic on psychosocial experiences and ways of coping among American Voices Project respondent surveys (N = 720) and interviews (N = 172). Despite similar levels of distress early in the pandemic, by late 2020 clear differences across education, race and ethnicity, and gender emerged, both…

Play Africa, with over 40 innovative exhibits and/or programs since inception, was created as a means to address the inequalities and lack of high-quality experiences that affect the early development of children from birth to age 10 in South Africa. The results from the 2021 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) paint a dire…

In the 21st century, the widespread use of information technologies has made access to technology, technology usage skills, and the quality of technology services increasingly important. However, the digital divide--defined as a lack of access to telecommunications--remains a significant issue that separates developed countries from developing…

The purpose of my study is to examine the attitudes that underserved students have towards chronic absenteeism and how it relates to academic outcomes and achievement. Hillcrest Academy North defines academic achievement as outcomes that indicate the extent to which a student has achieved their learning goals and is measured by assessment given…

Applied linguistic designs are too seldom acknowledged for being inspired by care and concern for the language needs of the vulnerable. Yet in them love and compassion, rather than self-interest and malice, are easily identifiable as motivations. Normatively, applied linguistic interventions aiming to alleviate pernicious language difficulties are…

Family navigator programs are becoming increasingly common among families of children with autism. Yet, it is unclear how family navigators are developed; by exploring the input of families of children with autism, such programs can be responsive to family needs. In this study, 12 parents of autistic children from low-resourced communities were…

The purpose of this nonexperimental quantitative research study was to explore and identify factors affecting the performance of elementary and secondary Title I schools in South Carolina. The study analyzed statistical significant differences in the overall performance of Title I schools over three years and analyzed other factors such as the…

Giving quizzes to get students to read may continue to be misunderstood, even grossly undervalued. Using a quiz to encourage (enforce) reading plays a significant role not only in students learning content of their chosen field, but also as the critical first step toward an awakening of the mind--or, at the very least, the mind being more…