The purpose of this study was to assess high school students' perceptions of nature and the amount of time they spend outdoors. More than 200 tenth graders from different demographic locations in Minnesota, USA were surveyed to understand their perceptions of nature, their attitude towards it, as well as to gauge what activities students were…

Drawing valid inferences from modern measurement models is contingent upon a good fit of the data to the model. Violations of model-data fit have numerous consequences, limiting the usefulness and applicability of the model. As Bayesian estimation is becoming more common, understanding the Bayesian approaches for evaluating model-data fit models…

For some elementary science teachers, a unit on land and water brings nightmares of dirt and water all over the room. Several Earth science "kits" contain hands-on exercises that allow the students to "get messy" as they manipulate materials; however, these lessons may lack the necessary opportunities for students to ask unique…

If you have not yet come across Practical Action's teaching resources, this article will open your eyes to a wealth of free high-quality materials that will support your teaching of science within a real-life global context. The potential benefits and importance of this approach, both for increasing student engagement in science and for the future…

California enacted the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) in 2013-14 in an effort to simplify school finance, revamp accountability, and increase funding for high-need students--those who are low income, English Learners, homeless, and/or foster youth. The LCFF represents an overhaul of the previous system of K-12 school finance that had been in…

The Second Session of the 99th Nebraska Legislature, convened in 2007, produced an educational idea that was unique in the United States: The Learning Community of the Omaha metropolitan area. Aimed at creating greater educational funding equity, integrating the young people of the Omaha area, and improving student learning achievement, the…

In 1989, Liberia entered into a Civil War that was devastating to the population, which has not recovered since. The country's infrastructure was significantly destroyed. Eighty percent of schools were non-functional. The illiteracy rate was at 80% in 2017. The teacher population at the primary and secondary levels was 26,000, but, 65% of them had…

Counseling expert V. Scott H. Solberg introduces a new paradigm and framework for career development focused on teaching skills that all students need to set long-term goals and experience post-secondary success. Based on nearly a decade of research and technical assistance in schools, the book shows how educators can leverage the use of…

Today's education reform movement is funded heavily by a network of wealthy elite that often prize neoliberal and free-market interests. Within this network, Teach for America (TFA) is at the nexus of overlapping interests in an educational marketplace where corporate values become the norm for defining both progress and success. Students labeled…

Only by shifting away from a one-size-fits-all approach to teaching and learning can every student achieve self-efficacy and true success in the classroom. In this resource, authors Eric Twadell, Mark Onuscheck, Anthony R. Reibel, and Troy Gobble provide educators with a comprehensive strategy implementation process for proficiency-based…

Educational technology has exploded at a rapid pace, requiring educational institutions to select the most innovative techniques and platforms to complement instruction. Incorporating the latest technologies such as Open Educational Resources (OER) and Virtual Reality (VR) into curricula have proven to be beneficial in the areas of active…

Despite overall declines on college enrollment, various accredited and unaccredited providers of postsecondary education delivery are thriving. This success is driven by the economics of the internet and a market structure that allows students to choose and pay for them. Burck Smith, who is the founder of StraighterLine, a company that helps…

The academic outcomes of retention, completion, persistence and final exam scores between courses taught with open educational resources (OER) and courses taught with publisher content (non-OER) were investigated in this mixed method sequential study. The perceptions and experiences of the instructors who taught the courses were also explored. The…

High-impact practices, such as learning communities, capstones, undergraduate research, and community-based experiences, are effective pedagogies. Most of these practices have been around for decades. By clustering the effective elements of these activities through the term "high-impact practices," we bring together elements which we…

Across all 50 states, there are different ways in which states allocate K-12 funding to districts. This document provides information on English language learner funding by state, including funding mechanism and English language learner citation. To classify funding mechanisms that appear in state statute or in regulations, Education Commission of…