Big Picture Learning is a school network that is driven by a singular vision: to engage every student in individualized learning experiences that focus on their interests and curiosities. To this end, the network partners with schools and districts to transform teaching and learning environments in ways that ensure students will graduate from high…

This study presents the systematic development, validation, and use of a new instrument for measuring student interest in science and technology. The Student Interest in Technology and Science (SITS) survey is composed of 5 sub-sections assessing the following dimensions: interest in learning science, using technology to learn science, science…

The Coalition for Science After School highlights the dual nature of outcomes for science learning during out-of- school time (OST): Learning experiences should not only be positive in the moment, but also position youth for future success. Several frameworks speak to the first set of immediate outcomes--what youth learn, think, and feel as the…

The first purpose of the study was to establish how Italian adolescents perceive jobs in the newly emerging economy sectors as well as more traditional jobs from gender-stereotyped and gender-segregated perspectives. The second purpose was to verify the role of problem-solving and gender in gender-role stereotyping. A total of 217 Italian high…

In this Forum article, the author addresses how to assist adults in improving mathematics and numeracy literacy. Ginsburg observes educators who strive to address their learners' educational gaps and needs are finding themselves in an environment of competing priorities and expectations that can be expressed as mathematics numeracy education. What…

Traditional e-Learning environments are based on static contents considering that all learners are similar, so they are not able to respond to each learner's needs. These systems are less adaptive and once a system that supports a particular strategy has been designed and implemented, it is less likely to change according to student's interactions…

Background: Employment provides an important avenue to social inclusion for most adults. A range of productivity options exist for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) who wish to work, each offering unique challenges relative to inclusion. Methods: This qualitative study examined the productivity experiences of people…

This article explores a perplexing line from Rousseau's Emile: his suggestion that the "most important rule" for the educator is "not to gain time but to lose it." An analysis of what Rousseau meant by this line, the article argues, shows that Rousseau provides the philosophical groundwork for a radical critique of the…

This study is a meta-analysis of the effects of out-of-school time (after school, summer camps, enrichment programs, etc.) on the student interest in STEM. This study was guided by the following research questions: (1) How effective is OST as a means to foster student interest in STEM? (2) How does the effectiveness of OST differ by program and…

For years, our prevailing view of student retention has been shaped by theories that view student retention through the lens of institutional action and ask what institutions can do to retain their students. Students, however, do not seek to be retained. They seek to persist. The two perspectives, though necessarily related, are not the same.…

This article describes how a farm-based class in the Great Lakes region investigated how plants and animals prepare for winter. Two groups of children, ranging in ages from three to five years old, had a farm, pasture, gardens, forest, and a pond available for exploration. A low teacher-to-child ratio was maintained, with one teacher to…

The current studies investigated how interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers is predicted both by academic motivation as well as by beliefs that STEM careers allow the fulfillment of communal goals (i.e., "communal affordances"). This research also examines whether past course experiences of being…

This article focuses on a preservice teacher's participation in an online book club using professional literature. The purpose of this study was to understand how one student's participation within an online book club on teaching contributed to a shifting in pedagogical beliefs. Data include online discussion transcripts and end-of-course…

In this paper, we provide an overview of the "Maths Inside" project, funded by the Australian Maths and Science Partnership Program (AMSPP). The overall aim of the AMSPP is to improve uptake and participation of students in mathematics and science at secondary and tertiary levels. In this research project, we aim to improve student…

In 2014, ACT developed a method to identify high school students who had an interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)-related fields. By using ACT data elements, this method provided two different types of STEM interest: Expressed and measured. Based on these STEM interest types, students can be assigned to one of four…