<p> In the current knowledge economy, a connection exists between globalization and global macro policies and the micro level effect of these policies at the local classroom level. This study begins by establishing globalization's impact on education at the local level by operationalizing 21^st century instruction as a global educational outcome that is actually a macro policy with micro effects. With this framework in place, this study examines the ability of a higher education institution to prepare pre-service teachers to provide 21^st century instruction in the public middle school setting. In order to examine the connection between higher education and the public middle school, the study utilizes qualitative research to examine the level of preparation pre-service teachers receive at the higher institution level. The study also utilizes qualitative research to study participants at the public middle school level in order to measure the degree of 21^st century instruction in the classroom resulting from their higher education pre-service preparation. The study finds that a connection exists between the university and the public middle school setting. The professor participants clearly conceptualize globalization and 21^st century instruction. Additionally, the teacher participants also conceptualize globalization and 21^st century instruction. However, a point of diffusion exists between the active and intended curriculum suggesting that conceptualization is not the same as instructional delivery. Finally, the results support the hypothesis that globalization has an impact on classroom instruction at the local level.</p>

<p> This study examined an existing afterschool, outdoor-based program called <i> Challenge: Nature.</i> This program worked with students in sixth-grade through eighth-grade, who had been recognized as struggling with characteristics of a Significant Identifiable Emotional Disability (SIED). The goal of the study was to identify the effect this program provided to the participants, as well as how new skills and knowledge were transferred from the afterschool setting to other domains of participants' lives, including at school, at home, and in social situations. The research consisted of an action research project using a mixed-methods approach, with existing data previously collected through the host organization. This approach included parent and student surveys, direct observation sheets, and data from the school district. The data collected spanned three years, from the program's conception, to the middle of the 2012-2013 school year. Through data analysis, this study provided an overview of the effects of the program and made suggestions based on the findings.</p>

<p> This quantitative study used descriptive statistics to evaluate data obtained from 179 middle grade teachers, grades 5-9, currently working in a single-gender environment, including public, private, and charter schools, with regard to the academic and behavioral benefits of single-gender education. The study used a survey created by Dr. John Fry in 2009 for his doctoral dissertation, <i> Single-Gender Education: Teachers' Perspective,</i> and sought to confirm or refute his conclusions regarding the efficacy of single-gender education as recommended in his section for future research. The results of this study confirm his conclusions and indicate the teachers have positive perceptions regarding single-gender education, particularly in relation to academic achievement and behavioral change.</p>

<p> Too often, low socioeconomic school districts are associated with low performing students. The NCLB Act of 2001 dictates closure of the achievement gap by year 2014. Twenty-first century education must include instructional practices that use technology to enhance student learning. The non-experimental quantitative causal-comparative research study examined archival data from a Northwestern Arizona school district which included two dependent variables&mdash;the spring AIMS assessment and the spring ATI assessment. The statistical analysis used descriptive statistics to determine the effect of SRS on student academic achievement in mathematics. The data derived from 7th and 8th grade students to examine the ratio of the students&rsquo; scores in the highest category named Above, that included students&rsquo; scores which performed in the higher performance scale ranges on both assessments comparing the ratio of students&rsquo; scores in the Below category, that included students&rsquo; scores which performed in the lowest performance ranges on both assessments. Since the school district did not purchase the SRS technology until the 2010-2011 school year, the archival data from 2010 spring tests when students did not utilize SRS in the classroom was compared to the archival data from 2011 spring tests when students utilized SRS in the classroom environment. The data was compared horizontally from one year to the other: 7th grade to 7th grade and 8th grade to 8th grade on each test. In addition, the data was compared vertically from one year to the other: 7th grade to 8th grade on each test. The results of the research study can be used and replicated to help close the achievement gap.</p>

<p> A purpose of this study was to explore the inter-relations among eighth grade mathematics student achievements in the content domains of <i>Number, Algebra, Geometry, and Data &amp; Chance</i> and the cognitive domains of <i>Knowing, Applying, and Reasoning,</i> in the context of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), 2007. A second purpose was to find the associations between student achievements in the cognitive domains with student-related, teacher-related, school-related, and home-related variables. The variables were selected mainly on the basis of Carroll's model of school learning. Further, the math achievement of the students of the United States in each of the domains was compared with <i> Bulgaria, Chinese Taipei, Republic of Korea, Singapore,</i> and <i> Thailand.</i> After analysis, interpretations were made on the findings of the relationships among student achievements in each of the content and cognitive domains and also on the associations between variables and math achievement in the four content domains. Further, comparative performance of the U.S. with each of the five selected countries in each of the seven domains was analyzed. For finding the relationships among student performance scores across all the countries in eighth grade mathematics in different domains, Pearson's product moment coefficient of correlation was used as the measure. For finding the associations of the scores with the variables, multiple regression method was employed. Finally, for comparing student performances of the U.S. with other states, independent samples <i>t</i>-test was used. </p><p> The findings of this study indicated that student performance in all the content and cognitive domains were highly correlated. The second finding was that the variable <i>'School Resources'</i> was significantly related to student performance in each of the content domains, whereas <i> 'Overall Home Involvement'</i> had moderately significant relation with student achievement in <i>Number</i> and <i>Data &amp; Chance. </i> The findings revealed no significant relation between the other variables considered and student achievement in the four content domains. The third finding showed that <i>Chinese Taipei, Republic of Korea,</i> and <i>Singapore</i> outperformed the U.S. in all the domains, whereas the U.S. performed better than <i>Bulgaria</i> and <i>Thailand </i> in each of the domains. These results provide some clues for improving classroom instruction and streamlining administrative priorities in order to improve student performance in the United States. Furthermore, the results indicate paths for further research in order to augment the educational practice not only in the U.S., but in all countries, for securing better student achievement in mathematics.</p>

<p> Most schools are not safe environments for lesbian, gay, and bisexual students or for individuals who are questioning their sexual orientation. Harassment and victimization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) students is pervasive. The harassment and victimization result in these students having higher rates of absenteeism and lower academic achievements than their peers. To date, most research has focused on primarily high school lesbian, gay, and bisexual students. Very few studies have included students questioning their sexual orientation. This quantitative descriptive study utilized an anonymous survey to gather information about middle school LGBQ students' experiences with harassment. The study included 208 middle school students. The results were compiled into three groups (lesbian/gay/bisexual, questioning, and straight) and compared. Findings indicated that LGBQ students experience significantly more harassment than straight students and questioning students are more likely to experience victimization than lesbian, gay, bisexual, and straight students. The findings support the need for middle school administrators and staff members to take steps to create more inclusive school climates for LGBQ students.</p>

<p> Motivation is an important topic of concern for teachers. A review of motivation research, though, revealed that students have been the focus of motivation research. When teachers have been included in studies, researchers have asked teachers to evaluate specific students, compared teacher and student perception of the same phenomena, or asked teachers to respond to their own <i>a priori</i> frameworks. Research on lay theories and teacher beliefs also yielded ideas important for this study. The purpose of this study was to explore teacher thinking about student motivation among middle school teachers. </p><p> I designed a multi-method qualitative study to investigate teacher thinking about student motivation at the middle school level. In the first phase, I distributed a five-item, open-ended written questionnaire to teachers in two middle schools. The second phase of the study was a multiple case study of four teachers. Through interview and observation, I investigated each teacher's lay theory of motivation. Constant comparative analysis and a coding framework grounded in motivation research were used to analyze data. </p><p> Teachers, I found, tend to define motivation in terms of expectancy. At the same time, they also tend to prioritize belonging over value and expectancy. These findings show that teachers, as a group, consider each domain to be important, and they understand the domains to interact and influence each other. Implications for teacher education, policy, and future research are discussed.</p>

<p> The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if classroom configuration&mdash;departmentalized and self-contained&mdash;is related to the academic achievement of Grade 6 students in a large urban school district as measured by California Standards Test (CST) scores in mathematics and English Language Arts (ELA) when controlling for prior academic achievement, language, and gender. To this end, existing CST scale scores for the years 2010-2012 were analyzed using hierarchical multiple regressions which allowed the researcher to determine the unique contribution classroom configuration contributed to student achievement. A 22-item researcher-designed questionnaire was also distributed to Grade 6 teachers (n=36) in the participating school district to capture teacher perceptions regarding what type of classroom configuration is best for Grade 6 students.</p><p> Three conclusions based on the findings were drawn. First, classroom configuration had no meaningful impact on student achievement in English Language Arts as measured by the CST. Second, classroom configuration had no meaningful impact on student achievement in math as measured by the CST. Third, departmentalized teachers did not differ significantly on opinions of the instructional benefits of each configuration when compared to self-contained teachers.</p><p> This study presented several implications for practitioners and researchers. One implication is student achievement is due to a variety of factors; therefore, factors outside of classroom configuration must be examined to determine what school level factors best predict student achievement. Quality of instruction most likely makes more of a difference than any structural element. Also, schools should make classroom configuration decisions based on local factors such as student needs and teacher qualifications.</p><p> Conclusions are inconsistent with some studies aimed at determining the impact of classroom configuration on student achievement indicating further research on the topic is needed. With the current shift in education to Common Core standards and assessments, the study should be repeated in different settings using the same instrument to measure student achievement as this method might provide more consistent findings. Future studies that measure teacher efficacy may also explain more of the variance in student achievement. </p>

<p> The purpose of this Executive Position Paper project was to develop resources for improving Individual Educational Program (IEP) mathematics learning goals for conceptual understanding of fractions for middle school special education students. The investigation surveyed how IEP mathematics learning goals are currently determined and proposed a new approach. It demonstrated how the approach would work through a pilot project in which two tools were developed: (1) a list of learning goals for goal writers to use as a reference when writing mathematics learning goals for middle school special needs students and (2) an assessment linked to the goals that would determine whether or not a student has achieved the goals. A description is given of the process that combines knowledge from research literature and information from instructional practice and that continually refines the products.</p><p> For this pilot project the learning goals were focused on order and equivalence of fractions. The goals were identified through a review of educational literature and examination of several sources related to practice for teaching fractions. Assessment items were then developed for the goals. Four experts reviewed the learning goals and assessments for content and clarity and the assessments for validity. Based on their feedback, edits were made to both the learning goals and the assessment items. Four middle school teachers field tested the assessment with their students. Analysis of student work confirmed that the assessment revealed detailed information on individual students' strengths and weaknesses in conceptual understanding of order and equivalence of fractions and that appropriate learning goals could be selected as a result of the assessment. </p><p> Final recommendations include expanding the project to additional math content and other grades and developing instructional lessons and resources linked to the learning goals that teachers could use to help students achieve the learning goals. Additionally, it is recommended that a system of continual improvement be incorporated into the process of further development.</p>

<p> The local school district in the current study was struggling to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) targets in reading because secondary students were scoring below the basic level in reading and their content area teachers had little or no training in reading deficiencies. What had been speculated, yet never tested, was the utility of teacher training in research-based reading programs and interventions on increasing reading achievement scores. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine issues hampering RTI implementation. This case study focused on analyzing the perceptions of secondary RTI teachers within an urban school district in Texas. The theoretical framework was based on cognitive and social constructivist theory. The research question investigated the best approach to improve teachers' knowledge and implementation of the RTI framework to increase students' reading achievement. Interview data were collected from 3 RTI teachers who had more than 3 years of teaching experience. Data were analyzed through lean coding by using provisional codes to reduce codes to 3 major themes. Reports from the 3 teachers suggested that they all encountered many challenges in implementing RTI; additionally they all conveyed that they needed more support from administrators, access to prescribed resources, and consistent guidelines in program implementation. A white paper was developed to inform the local district on RTI implementation challenges and provide recommendations for improvement. This study impacts social change by providing administrators and educators with information that could improve implementation practices and result in better understanding of RTI.</p>