This study aims to explore seventh-grade students' understanding of negative integers as they engaged in mathematics history integrated model-eliciting activities in small groups. For this educational case study, we designed model-eliciting activities based on six design principles of the models-and-modeling perspective that incorporated history…

Due to the necessity of English knowledge for international education, business, and travel, students, parents, and educators have made English language learning a priority from an early age. However, traditional English as a foreign language (EFL) classrooms are no longer the only option. Types of classes which integrate language learning and…

National trends and goals have pushed beyond the dropout crisis and are now focused on raising the percentage of graduates prepared for college and career. This study examined a longitudinal cohort (n = 6443) of students in an urban, public school district in order to explore how districts and communities can redirect off-track high school…

This study explores the motivations of African American parents for choosing homeschooling for their children and the academic achievement of their Black homeschool students. Their reasons for homeschooling are similar to those of homeschool parents in general, although some use homeschooling to help their children understand Black culture and…

In this article, author Jennifer Dubin offers a look into the innovations taking place in the Toledo Technology Academy (TTA), a career-tech school within the public school system in Toledo, Ohio. TTA teaches students in grades 7 through 12 using a science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) curriculum, in addition to the traditional…

In classrooms around the country, AP (Advanced Placement) teachers are preparing students for tomorrow by teaching them how to think and learn today. AP students learn to construct solid arguments, test theories, and see many sides of an issue--the kind of thinking that solves tough problems both in and outside the classroom, in college and…

Many people may question the value of teaching poetry in public schools, particularly when it yields no "marketable" skills, and standardized testing and the government funding connected to test scores increasingly determine classroom curriculum. While poetry may seem like "fluff" next to math and history, poetry actually serves as a very…

This case study offers a recounting and analysis of the experiences of one urban educator, in a public high school mathematics classroom setting, working to integrate critical mathematics curricula and pedagogy with youth and in collaboration with a community organization. This project helps to unveil complexities that teachers may experience when…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of selected demographic factors on the academic achievement of high school students. More specifically, this study was concerned with the effects of the variables gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) scores in Mathematics,…

The Federal education policy No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has initiated high-stakes testing among U.S. public schools. The premise of the NCLB initiative is that all students reach proficiency in reading and math by 2014. Under NCLB, individual state education departments were required to implement annual assessments in grades two through eight…

Civic knowledge and public engagement is at an all-time low. While the 2016 election brought a renewed interest in engagement among youth, only 23 percent of eighth-graders performed at or above the proficient level on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) civics exam, and achievement levels have virtually stagnated since 1998. In…

This activist research story describes the use of research by an urban multi-racial, multi-SES, citywide grassroots coalition in Indianapolis. This coalition was formed when a small group of local education activists, Black ministers, and community folks met in 2015 to resist the neoliberal takeover of the Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS), a…

This study evaluated the efficacy of an intentionally brief school-based mentoring program. This academic goal-focused mentoring program was developed through a series of iterative randomized controlled trials, and is informed by research in social cognitive theory, cognitive dissonance theory, motivational interviewing, and research in academic…

The question motivating this paper is whether or not there can be standards governing the evaluation of truth claims in religion. In other areas of study such as physics, math, history, and even value-laden realms like morality there is some widespread agreement as to what constitutes good thinking. If such a standard existed in religion, then our…

One of the categories of failing public schools is turnaround schools, which requires effective school leadership and teachers to improve student achievement scores. However, the impact of principals' self-efficacy beliefs in successfully turning around failing schools is unknown. The purpose of this research was to investigate principal…