This paper portrays the activity system of eight classes of Grade 6 children with special educational needs in an Intensive French as a second-language education program. Classroom norms and tools reflected a social-interactionist and social-constructivist approach with scaffolding, social interaction, multiple modes of representing, holistic,…

This article draws on interviews with a recent graduate of an inquiry-based initial teacher education program, and on video data collected in his Grade 6 classroom, to explore the extent to which he was able to enact inquiry-based teaching approaches in his teaching of mathematics and to consider the kinds of resources (administrative and…

Self-efficacy or the belief in one's ability (Bandura, 1977) on the part of both teachers and students is thought to be directly related to teacher and student success. Few studies have compared teacher efficacy, student efficacy, and student ability at once. This study examined the relationship between teacher self-efficacy, student…

In this study, we have investigated, through interviews, conversations, questionnaires, and observations, perceptions of learning success of northern Qikiqtani (Baffin Island) of Nunavut Inuit middle years (grades 5-8) students and the classroom pedagogy influencing their success, in particular their learning in science. Most of the processes…

Recent research has documented the persistence of unequal gender relations and homophobia in young people's lives. Feminist post-structural theories of gender and socio-cultural theories of learning suggest educators need to understand students' constructions of gender relations, masculine/feminine desires, and sexuality if they hope to challenge…

This study examined the effects of peer coaching on mathematics teaching practices and teacher beliefs about their capacity to have an impact on student learning. Twelve teachers in grades 3 and 6 participated in a brief but intensive professional development program over six months. The program focused on effective mathematics teaching strategies…

This article reports on the experiences and perceptions of K-12 teachers as they engaged in a participatory action research (PAR) project, "Science Across the Curriculum." Although the experiences and professional learning of two of the project participants are highlighted, the challenges that all participants experienced as they conceptualized…

This research, using questionnaire and interview data, examined practices and challenges of educators in areas of southern Ontario in fostering immigrant parents' support for their children's literacy. Results showed that teachers learn about the language and culture of their students, modify homework assigned to their ESL students, and encourage…

In this article, I have examined how a drama-based practicum had an impact on learning in meaningful ways for preservice teachers and grade-6 students during a three-week alternative teaching placement. Because the nature of drama-based teaching and learning invites participants to think and feel with ideas and emotions continually intersecting, I…

In this study, we identified factors that influence the academic performance of grade-6 students in a large city school system in language arts and mathematics. For language arts, five student variables, seven class variables, and two school level variables accounted for approximately 50 per cent, 75 per cent, and 90 per cent of the initial…

Principals are held accountable for student achievement although most studies find that they have no direct effect on it. In this study we tested a model hypothesizing that principals contribute to student achievement indirectly through teacher commitment and beliefs about their collective capacity. Path analysis of data from 205 elementary…

In this article, we describe the effects on student achievement and attitudes of a Canadian school-wide, arts education approach, "Learning Through the Arts" "(LTTA)". Our sample included over 6000 students and their parents, teachers, and principals. We gathered data, both at the outset and after three years of involvement in "LTTA" on student…