Teacher behaviors such as providing frequent opportunities to respond and feedback are known to promote student engagement. In addition, contextual variables such as grade-level and instructional grouping may affect engagement. However, less is known about teacher behavior in these instructional contexts. This study aimed to examine active…

This study examined the effect of using a remote device, a Clicker, on the on-task behavior of middle school students with behavior problems. Five students with behavior problems participated in the study. A single-subject research design with ABAB (phase A: baseline 1, phase B: intervention 1, phase A: baseline 2, phase B: intervention 2) phases…

Effective instruction is a critical predictor of student achievement. As students with exceptionalities such as emotional and behavioral disorders and learning disabilities, who typically struggle with academic achievement, spend increasing amounts of general education settings, the need for precise instructional behaviors becomes more imperative.…

Implementation fidelity is crucial to the success of behavioral interventions. However, measuring and maintaining intervention implementation fidelity in schools' natural settings can be challenging. This article reports findings from a study examining the implementation fidelity of check-in check-out interventions at an urban school district…

While the Common Core State Standards and state learning standards guide teachers in what mathematical content knowledge should be addressed as well as the processes and proficiencies necessary for developing mathematical competence, several student- and teacher-related factors may hinder student access to the general education curriculum for…

Students with emotional disturbances present with behavioral and academic deficits that often limit their participation in general education settings. As an antecedent intervention, academic choice provides multiple choices surrounding academic work promoting academic and behavioral gains. The authors examined the effects of assignment choice with…

Through a mixed-methods study, teacher education faculty members investigated the implementation of a new block of courses and an associated secondary clinical experience designed to prepare preservice secondary special educators. Seventy-three preservice candidates (a) completed then-and-now surveys assessing their confidence implementing 25…

This article synthesizes the current research in the area of school transitions for all students from junior high to high school and the effect of the transitions on students. The authors discuss current common high school transition practices and make recommendations for high school transition programming. The authors present a case study…

Although physical aggression has received much attention in the literature, relational aggression has only been explored in the past decade or so. This is problematic given that relational aggression is increasingly prevalent among middle school girls and has become a cause for alarm, as this phenomenon leads to several negative psychological,…

School personnel are using Schoolwide Positive Behavior Supports in public schools throughout the United States. A number of studies have evaluated the universal level, or Tier 1, of Schoolwide Positive Behavior Supports. In this study, the authors describe and analyze the interventions offered as options for use for Tier 2 in middle schools…

When many students are tardy at the secondary level, teachers must continually restart instruction or delay beginning instructional periods throughout the school day. To address the considerable amount of instructional time lost caused by high rates of tardiness, the authors investigated the results of schoolwide intervention to reduce student…

Research from the learning sciences (how people learn) can help educators and parents work more effectively with disengaged students and reluctant learners. In this article, the author reviews the knowledge base of the learning sciences and examines what researchers and teachers have learned in the past 30 years regarding how and why people learn…

The authors studied changes in disproportionate exclusion of African American students, compared with their White peers, in relation to implementation of Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support using data from 46 schools. They measured (a) exclusion through suspension and expulsion data collected with the Schoolwide Information System; (b) Schoolwide…

This study measured self-perceptions of school competence among 263 4th- and 6th-grade African American students who attended an academically challenged school district. Self-perceptions of school competence are defined as self-perceptions of ability, confidence, and school satisfaction. Results indicated that 4th-grade students had lesser…

The authors investigated the effectiveness of using high-preference (high-p) mathematics tasks for increasing task initiation of low-preference (low-p) mathematics tasks with a 13-year-old middle school student with autism. They used an ABAB design to determine the effectiveness of high-p tasks with to comply with low-p tasks. Results indicated…