bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Importance of Early Attitudes toward Mathematics and Science
Authors: Ing Marsha , Nylund-Gibson Karen 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Given the importance of increasing student participation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), there is a need to understand how factors such as student's attitudes toward math and science in middle and high school are linked to their later college and career choices. Purpose/Objective The purpose of this study is to describe heterogeneity in math and science attitudes and how these attitudes change through middle and high school. This study contributes to the literature by using measures from grade levels where student attitudes might be particularly vulnerable to shifting; examining the extent to which attitudes are persistent for particular groups of students; comparing the stability of attitudes across multiple domains (mathematics and science), which are intertwined in the pursuit of STEM careers; and relating attitudes to STEM career attainment, an outcome that occurred some 20 years later. Research Design We used the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY) to examine the development of student attitudes in middle and high school and the relationship of those patterns to academic achievement and career choices. We used latent class analysis and latent transition analysis to study change over time. Findings/Results Based on latent class analyses conducted for seventh, 10th, and 12th grade independently, four attitudinal profiles were identified at each grade level that varied in their affinity toward mathematics and science: very positive, qualified positive, neutral, less positive. The stability of these four attitudinal profiles at each grade level varied over time. Using latent transition analysis, approximately 40% of students in this study did not change their attitudes from seventh through 12th grade. Of those who changed their attitudes, change occurred prior to 10th grade and changed toward more negative attitudes. This pattern of change varied depending on ethnicity and gender. Conclusions/Recommendations Findings suggest that although a proportion of students have consistently positive or consistently negative attitudes toward mathematics and science, there is a larger group of students with malleable attitudes. These findings emphasize the importance of encouraging and supporting early positive attitudes toward mathematics and science, particularly for ethnically underrepresented females because of the impact on outcomes such as achievement and STEM career attainment.
Teacher Working Conditions, Teacher Commitment, and Charter Schools
Authors: Ni Yongmei 
Published: November 2021

Background The charter school movement relies on teachers as critical components. Teacher commitment is an important aspect of teachers’ lives, because it is an internal force for teachers to grow as professionals. It is also considered one of the crucial factors in influencing various educational outcomes, including teacher effectiveness, teacher retention, and student learning. However, no empirical studies have examined teacher commitment in charter schools. Purpose To address this knowledge gap, this study compares organizational and professional commitment of teachers in charter schools and traditional public schools (TPSs) and explores how these differences are associated with teachers’ characteristics, school contextual factors, and working conditions in the two types of schools. Research Design This study utilizes quantitative analyses of national data from the 2007– 2008 School and Staffing Survey. Hierarchical linear models were developed to examine whether teacher commitment differs between charter schools and TPSs; how teacher characteristics, school contextual factors, and teachers’ perceptions of working conditions contribute to the difference; and finally, whether these variables differentially influence teacher commitment in charter schools and TPSs. Conclusions On average, teachers in charter schools experienced lower levels of organizational commitment than teachers in TPSs, but similar levels of professional commitment. Teacher working conditions explained a large amount of the variance in between-school teacher commitment, suggesting that improving principal leadership, increasing opportunities for professional development, and alleviating teachers’ workload would be effective ways to promote teacher commitment in charter schools.
Suburbanizing Segregation? Changes in Racial/Ethnic Diversity and the Geographic Distribution of Metropolitan School Segregation, 2002–2012
Authors: Stroub Kori J. , Richards Meredith P. 
Published: November 2021

Background While postwar suburban migration established suburbs as relatively affluent, homogeneous white enclaves distinct from the urban core, recent waves of suburbanization and exurbanization have been spurred largely by rapid growth in the nonwhite population. While these increases in suburban racial/ethnic diversity represent a significant evolution of the traditional “chocolate city, vanilla suburbs” dichotomy, scholars have expressed concern that they are worsening racial/ethnic segregation among suburban public school students. Objective In this study, we document shifts in the racial imbalance of suburban schools in terms of several racial/ethnic and geographic dimensions (i.e., multiracial, black–white; between and within suburban districts, among localities). In addition, we extend the urban/suburban dichotomy to provide initial evidence on changes in racial balance in metropolitan exurbs. Finally, we use inferential models to directly examine the impact of changes in racial/ethnic diversity on shifts in racial imbalance. Research Design Using demographic data from the National Center of Education Statistics Common Core of Data on 209 U.S. metropolitan areas, we provide a descriptive analysis of changes in segregation within and between urban, suburban, and exurban localities from 2002 to 2012. We measure segregation using Theil's entropy index, which quantifies racial balance across geographic units. We assess the relationship between demographic change and change in segregation via a series of longitudinal fixed-effects models. Results Longitudinal analyses indicate that increases in racial/ethnic diversity are positively related to change in racial imbalance. However, observed increases in diversity were generally insufficient to produce meaningful increases in segregation. As a result, suburbs and exurbs, like urban areas, experienced little change in segregation, although trends were generally in a negative direction and more localities experienced meaningful declines in segregation than meaningful increases. Findings are less encouraging for suburbs and exurbs than for urban areas and underscore the intractability of black-white racial imbalance and the emerging spatial imbalance of Asians and whites. We also document an important shift in the geographic distribution of segregation, with suburbs now accounting for a plurality of metropolitan segregation. Conclusions Contrary to previous researchers, we do not find evidence that suburban and exurban schools are resegregating, although we fail to document meaningful progress towards racial equity. Moreover, while suburbs are not necessarily resegregating, we find that segregation is suburbanizing, and now accounts for the largest share of segregation of any locality. We conclude with a discussion of recommendations for policy and research.
Educating the Whole Child: Kindergarten Mathematics Instructional Practices and Students’ Academic and Socioemotional Development
Authors: Bargagliotti Anna , Gottfried Michael A. , Guarino Cassandra M. 
Published: November 2021

Background To date, school policies and practices have emphasized early-schooling mathematics instructional practices only as a way to boost academic achievement. However, because young children spend a large part of their formative years in classroom settings, it is important to understand not only the link between instruction and achievement but also the link between instruction and socioemotional development. Our study addressed this issue. Using a nationally representative dataset of kindergarten students, we inquired into which early mathematics instructional practices might be linked to a range of child outcomes, including both achievement and socioemotional development. We also investigated whether these associations varied across different subpopulations of students. Population The ECLS-K: 2011 dataset for a nationally representative sample of kindergartners in 2010–11 was used. Children were assessed in mathematics at kindergarten entry and at the end of the kindergarten year. Their socioemotional development was also rated by teachers and parents. Research Design We used student-level multiple regression analyses with school fixed effects, a rich set of individual, family, and classroom covariates, and school cluster-adjusted standard errors to estimate the associations between kindergarten mathematics instructional practices and achievement and multiple socioemotional outcomes. Conclusions We found that several instructional practices were associated with multiple types of outcomes, often with different results for different types of students. Thus, an exclusive focus on achievement likely obscures the full range of influence that teaching practices have on student success. As school systems increasingly seek to foster socioemotional learning, it is important to establish a research base that considers the links between pedagogy and all facets of childhood development.
The Arts, the Common Core, and English Language Development in the Primary Grades
Authors: Greenfader Christa Mulker , Brouillette Liane 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Throughout schooling, English learners (ELs) perform well below their monolingual English-speaking peers on literacy assessments, and Hispanics make up the majority of EL students in the United States. There is a strong consensus about the importance of early English oral language skills for ELs’ literacy development, yet teachers are not adequately prepared to meet the needs of these young learners. Historically, policy has not provided incentives for educators to focus on oral language development in the classroom. However, the recently adopted Common Core State Standards (CCSS) emphasize oral language skills. Purpose/Objective This study examines a professional development program that equipped early elementary teachers in five urban schools with arts-based strategies to promote the oral English development of ELs. A second line of inquiry looked at the extent to which the creative drama and dance activities were aligned with CCSS. Participants There were 3,792 K–2 Hispanic ELs (treatment: N = 497; control: N = 3,295) from Title I schools in a large school district in California. Intervention The Teaching Artist Project (TAP) was a two-year K–2 arts and literacy professional development program consisting of 28 weekly 50-minute lessons (14 theater and 14 dance). The project provided classroom teachers with in-service training on utilizing movement, gesture, and expression to promote stimulating English verbal interactions. TAP was specifically intended to engage non-native English speakers in classroom dialogues, facilitating their oral English development. Research Design This study utilized a mixed methods design. To address the first research question, schools were randomly assigned to treatment and control groups. Multiple regressions were run on data from the California English Language Development Test (CELDT) to investigate the impact of the program on the English speaking abilities of K–2 Hispanic English learners. To address the second research question, document review was used to compare the K–2 CCSS speaking and listening standards and the TAP lesson plans. Findings The treatment group was found to significantly outperform the control group (β = 0.13; p < 0.05) on CELDT speaking scores. Additional review suggested that the performing arts activities corresponded well to the CCSS speaking and listening standards. Conclusions/Recommendations Creative drama and dance activities provide rich verbal classroom interactions, boost English oral language skills of ELs, and align with the CCSS. Yet concerns are raised about the lack of speaking assessments on tests created by the Smarter Balanced and PARCC consortiums and the potential subsequent distortion of K–2 instruction.
My Kids, Your Kids, Our Kids: What Parents and the Public Want from Schools
Authors: Valant Jon , Newark Daniel 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context School choice reforms could strengthen parents’ influence on school behaviors, since schools must appeal to parents in order to operate. If parents’ desires for schools differ from the broader public's desires for schools, then schools might pursue different goals and activities in systems emphasizing school choice. One popular hypothesis is that school-choosing parents, more than the public, want schools to prioritize their own students’ private interests over more collective social, economic, and political interests. Purpose/Objective We compare parents’ desires for their own children's schools with the U.S. public's desires for public schools. We make these comparisons with respect to the abstract goals that schools pursue, as well as schools’ more tangible behaviors. Population/Participants/Subjects We administered an online survey to nationally representative samples of parents and adults. We administered a second online survey to a national sample of adults. Intervention/Program/Practice The article consists of two studies. Study 1 compares parents’ and the public's beliefs about which abstract goals schools should prioritize. Respondents were randomly assigned to consider either schools in their community, schools around the country, or, if they had children, their own children's schools. They chose from goals that prioritized their students’ professional achievement (“Private Success”), the economy's needs (“Shared Economic Health”), and more collective social and political needs (“Democratic Character”). Study 2 compares parents’ and the public's beliefs about how schools should actually behave. Respondents were randomly assigned to consider either schools in their community, schools around the country, or their own children's schools. We asked about the basic structure and content of the school day, how schools should teach, and how to evaluate school performance. Research Design The studies consist of randomized experiments and related statistical analysis. Findings/Results We find remarkably little difference between parents’ desires for their children's schools and the public's desires for public schools. This is true both for the abstract goals that schools pursue and for schools’ more tangible behaviors. Conclusions/Recommendations Our findings suggest that the hypothesis that parents want schools to focus on their students’ private success at the expense of more collective goals is over-simplified. It may be, for example, that parents want their children to be well rounded in ways that also serve more collective social, political, and economic interests. We observe divisions in Americans’ views of the goals that schools should pursue, but these divisions are more connected to their political affiliation than parent status (with Republicans more focused than Democrats on Private Success).
Five Portraits of Teachers’ Experiences Teaching Writing: Negotiating Knowledge, Student Need, and Policy
Authors: Wahleithner Juliet Michelsen 
Published: November 2021

Background Numerous reports have highlighted problems with writing instruction in American schools, yet few examine the interplay of teachers’ preparation to teach writing, the instructional policies they must navigate, and the writing development of the students in their classrooms. Purpose This study examines high school English teachers’ instruction of writing while taking into account their preparation for teaching writing—both preservice and inservice, the instructional policies in place, and the learners in their classrooms. Setting Data used come from public high school English teachers teaching in Northern California. These data were collected in 2011–2012, when teachers were sill complying with the mandates of the No Child Left Behind legislation. Research Design I use year-long qualitative case studies of five high school English teachers to highlight various ways teachers used their knowledge of writing instruction to negotiate the pressures of accountability policies and their students’ needs as writers to teach writing. Data collected include beginning- and end-of-year interviews with each teacher, four sets of 1- to 2-day observations of each teacher's instruction of writing, and instructional documents related to each teacher's writing instruction. These data were analyzed using the constant comparative method to look for themes within the data collected from each teacher and then make comparisons across teachers. Findings from the case studies are supported by findings from a survey of 171 high school teachers who taught a representative sample of California high school students at 21 schools in 20 districts. The survey included 41 multiple-choice items that asked about teachers’ instructional practices and their perceptions of high-stakes accountability pressures and their students as writers. Survey data were analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics and principal components analysis. Findings Findings illustrate that significant differences existed in how the five teachers approached their writing instruction. These differences were due to both the teachers’ varied preparations to teach writing and the contextual factors in place where each taught. Those teachers with more developed knowledge of writing instruction were better able to navigate the policies in place at their sites and more equipped to plan appropriate instruction to develop their students as writers. Recommendations Findings indicate teachers would be better served by opportunities to develop their knowledge of writing instruction both prior to and once they begin their teaching careers. Additionally, the findings add to an existing body of research that demonstrates the limiting effect high-stakes assessments can have on teachers’ instruction of writing.
Holistic School Leadership: Development of Systems Thinking in School Leaders
Authors: Shared Haim , Schechter Chen 
Published: November 2021

Background Systems thinking is a holistic approach that puts the study of wholes before that of parts. It does not try to break systems down into parts in order to understand them; instead, it focuses attention on how the parts act together in networks of interactions. Purpose This study explored the development of holistic school leadership— an approach where principals lead schools through the systems thinking concept and procedures— over principals’ different career stages, a topic that has received little research attention. Research Design Qualitative data were collected via 82 semistructured interviews, six focus groups, and 27 observations of three groups of principals: (a) prospective principals— 24 students attending three principal preparation programs; (b) novice principals— follow-up on 11 prospective principals during their first year after appointment; and (c) experienced principals— eight principals holding that position for 5+ years. Data analysis was conducted by generating themes through an inductive process of condensing, coding, categorizing, and theorizing. Findings Data analysis indicated that the development of systems thinking in school leaders consists of five stages: (a) preservice stage, typified by an expansion of view; (b) survival stage, typified by a slowdown in the development of systems thinking; (c) consolidation stage, typified by a gradual development of systems thinking; (d) role maturity stage, typified by a systemic view; and (e) possible decline stage, typified by some degree of difficulty to think systemically. Conclusions Systems thinking is not equally applicable to aspiring, novice, midcareer, and veteran school principals. This study's findings may help identify ways to enhance and accelerate the development of systems thinking in prospective and currently performing principals in a way that is compatible with the unique features and context of their specific stage.
Social Movements and Educational Research: Toward a United Field of Scholarship
Authors: Niesz Tricia , Korora Aaron M. , Walkuski Christy Burke , Foot Rachel E. 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Educational research addressing social movements appears to be growing rapidly but, with a few exceptions, this body of literature has remained largely isolated in pockets stretched across myriad fields of educational scholarship. Awareness and dialogue across researchers is limited because social movement-focused educational research lacks the structure, identity, profile, and networks of a field of scholarship. Purpose/Objective The purpose of this article is to explore how educational researchers have addressed social movements in their scholarship. Through presenting the findings from a wide-ranging literature review, we aim to generate greater awareness of social movement-oriented educational scholarship and argue for a more united field of research on social movements and education. Research Design We conducted an extensive review of educational scholarship with an explicit focus on social movements. Our sample included more than 370 publications from myriad fields of educational research, including adult education, higher education, social foundations of education, and other fields addressing K–12 schooling. Findings/Results We found that most of the educational literature addressing social movements can be grouped into one of two categories: the study of education and learning in social movements, and the study of the influence of movements on formal education. The first category of scholarship, produced primarily (though not entirely) in the field of adult education, has the appearance of a research program, with researchers engaged in scholarly conversation with shared theoretical touchstones. The second category of scholarship does not have the appearance of a research program, as it is produced across a number of fields that do not appear to be in dialogue. Although there is little sign of mutual awareness across these two large categories of literature, we found that researchers on both sides of the divide have much in common, including theoretical, methodological, and topical interests. Conclusions/Recommendations We conclude the literature review by arguing for the establishment of a more united field of research on social movements and education. We posit that an interdisciplinary and multi-perspective field devoted to understanding the educational dimensions and implications of social movements would not only benefit researchers and their scholarship but also pose and answer new and important questions related to formal, non-formal, and informal education. A more united field of inquiry related to social movements and education would also raise the profile of this scholarship such that it could have greater influence on educational policy and practice, as well as on social movements themselves.