On February 18, 2015, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) conducted a Performance Level Description Development meeting in Albany, New York. The meeting was convened to articulate the knowledge and skills expected of students at each level of performance, consistent with the policy vision set forth by the NYSED. The Performance Level…

The Common Core State Standards, standards in literacy and math for K-12 that have been adopted in more than forty states, are intensifying the academic pressures on young learners. In general, these standards do not reflect how young children learn and are not developmentally appropriate. The author of this essay shows that selected Common Core…

In this essay, I reflect on over 15 years of experience in the field of special education to explore diverse ways of engaging students in opinion and argument writing. I outline, according to the Common Core standards, the progression of writing in the early years with an emphasis on opinion writing through the later elementary, middle, and high…

Twenty-first century literacy requires students to analyze and create images for communication across and within academic disciplines. Thus, literacy teachers are now responsible for supporting students as they engage with visual texts. We must carefully and intentionally choose images for teaching practice and consider the reader, instructional…

The purpose of this article is to share the results of a qualitative research study designed to shed light on the perspectives of inclusive prekindergarten classroom teachers in the United States. This study used surveys, interviews, and classroom observations to explore understandings of recently adopted learning standards and accountability…

The need for a shared vision concerning exemplary curricula for academically advanced learners must be a priority in the field of education. With the advent of the Common Core State Standards adoption in many states, a new conversation has been ignited over meeting the needs of students with gifts and talents for whom the "standard"…

Environmental studies provide an ideal opportunity for gifted children of any age to build critical and creative-thinking skills while also building skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) areas. Exploring issues related to sustainability and environmental concerns permits gifted learners to identify problems, develop…

Secondary students identified as English language learners or with learning disabilities present diverse vocabulary and academic challenges related to their exceptional language needs. Limited academic vocabulary may hinder students in accessing academic content and serve as a barrier to achievement. The literature has documented the use of…

Using various strategies, the City University of New York--a large, public, urban university system--engaged hundreds of faculty across 15 colleges in integrating the Common Core state standards (CCSS) in college coursework. Against the backdrop of a dynamic political climate, this CCSS initiative is described along with findings from a…

This 5E cycle of lessons takes students through a fun and thorough study of Silly Putty's properties, progressing from an initial observation of a "melting snowman" toy in the Engage phase to making and "marketing" their own homemade putty in the Evaluate phase. Along the way, students use evidence to construct their own…

This article reports on a study in which researchers asked children to "make up as story and a picture about marbles for this number sentence: 3 x 5 = 15." Students in this study came from pre - dominantly low- to average-income families living in three distinct geographical areas within the United States. A similar division task was…

Advocates of more connected approaches to teaching the STEM subjects argue that such integration, especially in the context of real-world issues, can make these fields more relevant to students and ultimately increase their motivation and achievement. However, there is little research on how best to integrate the STEM disciplines or on what…

The purpose of this phenomenological research study was to use Self-Determination Theory as a framework to analyze middle school mathematics teachers' motivation to attain effective professional development concerning Ohio's Learning Standards as well as other instructional aspects that affect the classroom. Teachers are exceptionally busy meeting…

This brief focuses on the potential role of County Offices of Education (COEs) in bridging the state's vision for college and career readiness with the implementation needs of local districts and schools. After summarizing the work of 10 COEs that are known for supporting districts in increasing college and career readiness, the brief raises…

Project RAISE is an Arts Integration model that integrates the arts into Common Core curricula of the treatment group: 11 K-6 elementary schools. The RAISE Model fits most closely to an "elaborated residency" (Ingram, 2003) that "builds capacity" of teachers and students to use arts integration strategies in English and Math.…