The use of subtractive bilingual models in Puerto Rico may influence children's construction of social categorizations. There is a gap in the literature related to linguistics, ethnicity, and systems of education and acculturation of a majority group. The purpose of this multiple case study was to examine the influence of the language of instruction and teachers' communicative practices in private and public schools on first graders' ethnic identity construction in the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The conceptual framework of the study was based on Markus's unified theory of race and ethnicity, Berry's bidimensional model of acculturation, Tajfel and Turner's social identity theory, and Wimmer's ethnic boundaries multilevel process theory. The research questions concerned how teachers' communicative practices reflected and promoted children's construction of social categorizations, what roles teachers played in ethnic education, and the influences that shaped their cultural knowledge. Purposeful sampling was used to select 2 Spanish speaking and 2 English speaking classrooms form the municipality that could provide information to answer the research questions. Data were collected from classroom observations, structured interviews with teachers, analysis of classroom artifacts, and the use of Zea, Asner-Self, Birman, and Buki's Abbreviated Multidimensional Acculturation Scale. Data were coded and then categorized by theme. The findings of the study demonstrated that teachers' hybridized ethnicity is reflected in communicative practices that influenced children's construction of social categorizations. This study could serve to develop strong cultural awareness policies for education systems and for other countries at risk of losing their language and traditions.

In 1 urban Tennessee school, students in Grades 3 through 5 had not met adequate yearly progress in reading for the past 5 years. The purpose of this case study was to explore teachers' perceptions of current district-recommended teaching practice in reading. The research questions related to current instructional strategies, teaching practices, challenges, and perceptions of current instructional strategies and changes needed to improve students' reading achievement. This study was grounded in the constructivist theoretical framework of Vygotsky. Twelve educators from Grades 3 through 5 and a reading specialist participated in this study. The data were collected from interviews, minutes from professional learning community meetings, and the district guidelines for instruction. Data analysis included open coding to determine common patterns and development of common themes. Findings indicated that teachers described the district learning strategies and guidelines as aligned with the reading curriculum map, and they saw the reading specialist as a valuable resource. Teachers specified that although they were trained in district-recommended strategies, they needed more professional development and support to implement the reading strategies effectively. Teachers wanted job-embedded professional development (PD) to help them develop expertise in implementing effective reading instruction to increase student achievement. To address this, a professional learning community PD project was created. Participation in the PD project may help teachers to implement reading instruction using research-based strategies in accord with district guidelines to improve student reading achievement.

Numerous studies have been published on the efficacy of a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) at the U.S. secondary and postsecondary school levels to increase student access to technology. However, there is a lack of data on the efficacy of a BYOD AUP to increase elementary student technology access. The purpose of this descriptive case study was to determine if a BYOD AUP at the U.S. K-5 level would increase students' access to technology as necessitated by the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). This study was grounded in social transmission and transformative theories. The phenomenon of a northwest suburban elementary school BYOD implementation was examined by documenting the perceptions, attitudes, beliefs, lived experiences, and practices of administrators and teachers. This study used interview and classroom observation of a purposive selection of 3 elementary educators, the principal, and superintendent. Coding of data according to key words lead to analysis according to nodes and themes. Triangulation of multiple data sources and member checking helped to establish the credibility of data. Study findings documented increased access to technology for elementary students, best practices and steps to implementation. Study recommendations for elementary educators and administrators considering BYOD include consensus building, AUP, technology infrastructure, communications, professional development, classroom management, and lesson design to inform the field on elementary BYOD. Study findings facilitate social change by providing BYOD implementation recommendations, increasing elementary student access to technology at a reduced cost to districts and schools.

Federal dollars are utilized to develop instructional programs for students not demonstrating mathematical proficiency on state standardized mathematics assessments, but there is a lack of empirical data on the effectiveness of two different approaches that were used in the local context. The purpose of this quantitative, nonexperimental, casual-comparative study was to determine if state achievement test scores of students in fourth grade who received instruction from a Mathematics Specialist (MS) during the 2007-2009 academic years demonstrated a statistically significant difference from the mathematics state achievement test scores of fourth grade students who received instruction from Grades 1-8 credentialed teachers supported by a Math Coach (MC) during the 2012-2014 academic years. The theoretical base includes two components: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Standards and Federal No Child Left Behind educational policy, which focus on standards-based education, curriculum, assessment, and instruction to meet students' mathematical needs. Data was collected from a census sample of 13,671 students' state scores from school years 2007-2008, 2008-2009 (MS) and 2012-2013, 2013-2014 (MC). The research question was whether there is a difference in MS and MC scores. An independent samples t test was used to compare the means of all the scores. The results show that the MS program produced statistically higher math scores than the MC. This supports the limited literature in favor of MS. Positive social change includes supporting increasing the use of the MS program in the local context to increase mathematics test scores and the potential for redistribution of federal funds to develop MS programs nationwide.

In a time where some 2.4 billion Internet users exist worldwide, children are increasingly impacted by the Internet's influence, both directly and indirectly. With technology now playing a significant role in childhood learning and social development, many unforeseen shifts are occurring that will ultimately impact lifespan development. Although researchers have provided mixed results concerning the impact of the Internet on learning and social development, the body of evidence indicates that veteran K-8 educators who are comfortable and experienced with the Internet view it more favorably. This grounded theory study systematically generated the multisystem technological engagement theory (MSTET) to explain the impact of the Internet on childhood learning and social development. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 14 self-identified veteran K-8 educators. Analysis of the data was conducted using a 3-tiered method of coding that was verified through the process of triangulation and member-checking. Results of this study indicate that the veteran K-8 educators perceived the Internet's impact as positive, given a specific set of conditions: experience and comfort with the Internet, collaboration with parents, a healthy balance between face-to-face and online social interactions, boundaries, and maximization of benefits from available information and resources. These findings may enhance social change initiatives by providing an evidence basis for both targeted instruction and school counseling practice that facilitates healthy K-8 learning and social development in the Internet Age.

In a large urban district in Ohio, 29.2% of Grade 5, 28.7% of Grade 8, and 45.7% of Grade 10 students passed the state test in science. School district administrators formed a community partnership with local science institutions in order to provide students with hands-on place-based learning experiences intended to improve science academic achievement in PK-Grade 5. The purpose of this qualitative program evaluation was to determine the level of implementation of that place-based program by examining the efficacy of the teachers' embedded professional development and their experiences with the training components. Bruner's theory of cognitive development was used to examine teachers' needs in facilitating the program. A stratified random sample of 659 PK-Grade 5 teachers from 73 district elementary schools was selected, and 57 teachers responded to an anonymous online survey of 5 open-ended questions. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identity factors that enhanced or impeded the implementation of place-based education programming based on their professional development. The key findings indicated that over half of the participants viewed resources as lacking, training as limited, and planning that is too time consuming, and complicated. Participants expressed the need for clarity regarding resources and more training on how to plan for and integrate the placed-based approach. The resulting project was an executive summary and interactive workshop for program stakeholders, such as administrators, teachers, and ultimately students, who would benefit from this project by improving the place-based program.

Differentiated instruction is a pedagogical method used by classroom teachers to enhance student learning. Researchers have described how students benefit from differentiated lessons, but have not explored the relationship between teachers' perceptions of differentiation and student success. This gap is problematic because teachers' instruction directly affects student achievement. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore how elementary (K-5) teachers define, familiarize, use, and perceive differentiation. The conceptual framework was rooted from a synthesis of ideas found in current refereed literature, and the educational concepts and constructionist theories of Piaget and Vygotsky. Purposeful sampling identified 12 participants for individual or focus group interviews. Data were analyzed through an interpretative analysis of open, axial, and selective coding; interpretations were subject to member checking to bolster trustworthiness. The findings revealed that teacher participants understood the textbook definition of differentiated instruction and focused on student grouping to create differentiated classrooms. Despite that understanding of differentiation, participants perceived differentiation as time consuming and challenging due to a lack of materials and diverse populations. Implications for social change focus on mindset and instruction. Administrators and teachers may use these findings to broaden the definition of differentiation. Furthermore, teachers may use this study to gain insight of their personal perception of differentiation, identify materials, and commit to improved pedagogical practices that focus on its versatility in classrooms and improve student learning. Teachers may consider the participants' experiences and change their own existing classroom environments, thus improving student successes.

Decades of research have noted the importance of parent involvement in students' academic success. Less is known about parent engagement models that aim to increase Latino students' reading achievement. This project study examined the effectiveness of a 2-year parent engagement program implemented to address poor reading achievement of Latino elementary school students in a small urban district. The purpose of this study was to determine disparities in student scores between those parents who participated in the program and those parents who did not participate. The research questions examined parent engagement levels in comparison to increased summative reading scores. Based on 3 foundational theories: cultural capital, deprivation, and social reproduction theories, concerted cultivation and accomplishment of natural growth theories, and funds of knowledge theory, this causal-comparative study used preexisting test score data to analyze the differences between pretest and posttest reading scores. The findings from the dependent- and independent-samples t tests suggested that there was limited evidence to support the claim that Latino 3rd grade students whose parents participated in the parent engagement framework showed a statistically significant greater gain in reading proficiency levels than Latino 3rd grade students whose parents did not participate. The conclusions of this study can be used to inform leadership and teacher professional learning initiatives for low-performing districts planning to implement parent engagement programs intended to raise Latino elementary student reading achievement. Results from this study may positively impact social change by providing culturally relevant parent engagement strategies and thus contributes to the overall reading attainment of districts' Latino students.

Student self-regulation is associated with mathematics achievement in Nigerian primary schools, and formative assessment holds promise for increasing self-regulation. However, to date no research has explored teacher professional development (PD) for formative assessment and its effects on students' self-regulation in Nigerian primary schools. This quasi-experimental nonequivalent control group design used Desimone's teacher professional development conceptual framework, Popham's model for practicing formative assessment, and Zimmerman's concept of self-regulated learning. Research questions concerned whether differences existed in teachers' practice and students' self-regulation between two groups of Nigerian primary school mathematics teachers who received variations of professional development. The sample was 13 volunteer mathematics teachers (7 in a workshop plus follow-up group and 6 in a workshop-only group) and 183 students from 7 primary schools. Teacher formative assessment quality (FAQ) data was collected from 3 classroom observations and student end-of-project self-regulation was measured via a questionnaire. Descriptive analysis at the teacher level showed that teachers in the workshop-plus group had a higher level of FAQ than workshop-only teachers. A t test showed students with workshop-plus teachers had significantly higher self-regulation scores on average than students with workshop-only teachers, although FAQ did not correlate with students' self-regulation scores, possibly due to a small sample size. This study contributes to social change by providing supporting evidence for school administrators to provide workshop plus follow-up coaching PD to teachers to increase the quality of formative assessment, which may have implications for improving mathematics achievement among primary students in Nigeria.

The growing population of English language learners (ELLs) in an urban school district in the southwest United States has maintained low achievement scores in the K-5 grades. Students who do not attain reading proficiency at least by the end of 3rd grade are at risk of continued academic failure through high school. Research shows that teachers' knowledge and preparedness to teach reading has an influence on student performance. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the readiness of mainstream classroom teachers to teach reading to ELLs. Guided by the sociocultural frameworks of Bruner and Vygotsky, this study explored teachers' perceptions about the adequacy of instructional resources they receive to improve reading instruction. A sample of 12 purposefully selected teachers from 10 different school districts, with at least 3 years of experience teaching ELLs, shared their responses via semistructured interviews. Data sorted through inductive and axial coding showed teachers expressed an inadequacy in preparing to teach ELLs and depended on their experience with ELLs to provide specific teaching strategies in a risk-free environment that would promote positive student outcomes. The participants' responses helped design a professional development initiative to address the need for more training specific for reading teachers of ELLs. Implications for positive social change include providing more training in reading instruction for teachers of ELLs that can result in increased ELL student reading achievement and greater academic success through high school.