Digital Commons Network^™

Are Testing Accommodations Helping Or Not? A Review Of English Learner (El) Accommodations On Standardized Tests, Cole Forbes

Journal of English Learner Education

This paper examines and critiques English Learner (EL) testing accommodation policies. They have been ineffective at increasing test scores and accessibility. The policies have mandated that EL students participate in high-stakes assessments with accommodations, and sometimes without them. The purpose of the accommodation is to create an even playing field for all test-takers, so that no subgroup is put at a disadvantage, which would compromise their scores and lead to misclassification of students. Laws and Acts such as the Bilingual Education Act of 1968, No Child Left Behind, and the Every Student Succeeds Act have updated and mandated a more …

Differentiated Instruction For Multilingual Learners: A Thematic Analysis Of Research And Practice, Mohsine Bensaid, Jiayuan Jiang

Journal of English Learner Education

Differentiated instruction (DI) is widely promoted as a means of supporting diverse learners, yet its enactment for multilingual learners (MLs) remains uneven and under-theorized in mainstream classrooms. This study examines how DI is conceptualized and implemented to support MLs by attending to learners’ linguistic, cultural, and academic profiles. Using reflexive thematic analysis, this qualitative synthesis examines 20 peer-reviewed empirical studies published between 2010 and 2024 in English-medium K–12 contexts in the United States, with particular attention to elementary settings when specified. Analytic interpretation was supported by practitioner-based reflection functioning as an interpretive lens rather than a separate data source. Four …

A Quasi-Experimental Study On The Effectiveness Of Achieve3000 On The Reading Comprehension Scores Of Ells With Ld, Paula P. Fields

Journal of English Learner Education

The purpose of this quasi-experimental pretest-posttest study was to determine if a significant difference existed in the comprehension scores of secondary English Language Learners with learning disabilities after treatment. The problem addressed is that a significant correlation exists between English language learners and learning-disabled students’ low reading proficiency scores and student achievement, leading to decreased graduation rates. Schema theory served as the theoretical foundation of this research because when the appropriate schema is activated, it helps increase comprehension. The research question guiding this study was: Is there a significant difference between the reading comprehension scores of high school English language …

Reading Comprehension Interventions For Multilingual Learners With Disabilities: A Systematic Review, Sariya Shabnam, Jennifer E. Smith, Samiratu Bashiru

Journal of English Learner Education

Multilingual learners with disabilities (MLWDs) face substantial barriers to reading comprehension given the intersecting challenges of language acquisition and disability (Artzi et al., 2022; Frates et al., 2024). Students with disabilities often need explicit, strategy-based instruction with modeling, guided practice, and scaffolding (Frates et al., 2024; Wawire et al., 2024; Moura, 2024). When learners are also multilingual, interventions must be linguistically accessible and responsive to diverse cognitive profiles (Moura, 2024; Sarisahin, 2020). MLWDs comprise 15.8% of English learners in U.S. public schools (NCES, 2024), yet research on effective comprehension interventions remains limited; most studies treat multilingual learners or students with …

Advances In Culture, Tourism, And Hospitality Research: Volume 1, Cihan Cobanoglu, Hanqin Qiu, Jiaying Lyu, James H. W. Shen

University of South Florida (USF) M3 Publishing

This is the first volume of the Advances in Culture, Tourism, and Hospitality Research Book Series.

Desegregating The Community Of Inquiry In Philosophy For/With Children, Maughn Rollins Gregory, Darren Chetty

Department of Educational Foundations Scholarship and Creative Works

This dialogical article examines persistent challenges in engaging racism, colonialism, and white supremacy within the theory and practice of Philosophy for/with Children (P4/wC). Framed as a mutual interview between two long-standing colleagues, the dialogue revisits formative encounters in the P4/wC community and situates them within broader intellectual traditions, including American pragmatism, deliberative democracy, and Africana philosophy. Drawing on personal experience, archival material, and critical scholarship, the authors interrogate the metaphilosophical assumptions underpinning the “community of inquiry,” particularly its commitments to reasonableness, consensus, and democratic dialogue. Concepts such as the “gated community of inquiry,” white ignorance, nonideal theory, and insurrectionist ethics …

The Labor Of Reading: A Personal And Pedagogical Exploration, Alisha Goldblatt

Wellspring: A Practitioner-Oriented Journal of Literacy and Language Education

While teachers bemoan the decrease in students’ ability to sustain interest in reading, and phones dominate over plain text, I have been wrestling with two questions that predate the current ubiquity of screentime: Why are some people more capable of reading fluently and with passion than others? Why can’t every person easily “lose” themselves in a text? As an English teacher and avid reader, I investigate the mechanisms of the act of reading (mainly fiction and creative nonfiction), the well-intentioned efforts of educators, and the question of whether reading itself is absolutely necessary to produce an informed, empathetic, and educated …

Investigating The Impact Of Gamification And Humor On Student Engagement In An Esl Classroom, Joshua F. Filipowski

Wellspring: A Practitioner-Oriented Journal of Literacy and Language Education

This study explores the impact of gamification and humor on middle school students' engagement, participation, and learning outcomes. The researcher, an ESL teacher, sought to address students' boredom and disengagement by introducing games and humor into the classroom. The study involved 12 middle school English learners and employed both qualitative and quantitative methods, including journal entries, focus groups, and participation tracking. Findings indicated that students were more engaged and willing to participate during gamified activities, with slight but significant improvements in quiz scores. Students expressed a preference for jokes and games over traditional methods. The research suggests that incorporating humor …

Smarter, Faster Lesson Planning With Ai: Supporting Math Instruction Without Sacrificing Quality, Marti Shirley

Professional Learning Day

This session demonstrates how AI can streamline lesson planning for secondary mathematics without reducing instructional integrity or depth. Teachers will learn how to use AI tools to generate hooks, worked examples, misconceptions, guided practice sets, and exit tickets that are all aligned to specific mathematical standards. The focus is on using AI to save time, generate ideas, and support differentiation while maintaining teacher control over content accuracy and pedagogical intent. Teachers will learn how to use a predeveloped prompt to create and refine a complete lesson plan, and leave with a bank of effective lesson-planning prompts and editable mini-lesson templates.

The Course Of Empire: Romantic Art And The Origins Of American Conservation, Dr. Shawn Bailey

Professional Learning Day

This panel will discuss the creation of the world's first national park through the lens of nineteenth century nationalism. Specifically, we will answer the question: how does Romantic art lead directly to the creation of Yellowstone in 1872? This will include a run through of a full lesson plan, with audience participation, and include access to all necessary sources, slides, and a fun homework assignment. While I use this lesson in an environmental history class, it would also work well in a United States survey when discussing the rise of American nationalism in the nineteenth century.

Vocabulary And Student Led Notes Initiative, Luke Cd Johnson, Janel Smith

Empowering Educators Conference

The presentation is aimed at improving the accessibility of important subject matter literacy to students of all ability levels. Its primary focus is on the acquisition of vocabulary and the implementation of classroom-friendly methods to improve retention of information, including content literacy. It secondarily shows a method to transfer the focus of students' note-taking skills, aiming to transfer to lecture-style notes.

What Are Your Students Doing This Summer? We Have Some Ideas., Dr. Anita White, Jacqueline Salinas

Professional Learning Day

IMSA offers summer programs for students who are currently in 8th grade and interested in math and science enrichment , and students in grades 10 and 11 who would be interested in a summer research opportunity. The directors of the PROMISE (Providing Opportunities for Mathematics and Science  Enrichment) and SRELO (Summer Research and Experiential Learning Opportunities) programs will provide information, answer questions and share activities that are a part of the programs.

How Ai Really Works, Dr. Peter Dong

Professional Learning Day

The rise of generative artificial intelligence has generated excitement, fear, and more than its share of hype and hysteria. This session will discuss, as simply as possible, the basic principles of large language models.  The hope is that this will dispel some of the aura of mysticism around AI and allow people to consider carefully how it can be useful as a tool—and when it can’t.

Use Your Words: Positive Feedback And Engagment, Tracy Townsend

Professional Learning Day

Educators are used to hearing families described as our partners in their students' education, but too often, that partnership is limited to crisis intervention. At IMSA, the role of students' families can be especially uncertain, with limited communication leaving teachers feeling unsupported by those outside the classroom, and families uninformed about life inside it. Come learn about one IMSA English teacher's quest to engage more families and their students in positive communications, and to enhance student engagement. In this blend of presentation and workshop format, you'll see how this process can be adapted to your classroom, how it can improve …

Teaching Smarter, Not Harder: Using Google Ai Studio & “Vibe Coding” In The Middle School Classroom, Dr. Phadmaka Patankar, Lindsey Herlehy

Professional Learning Day

Curious about how AI can actually save you time and boost student engagement? In this interactive session, you’ll explore Google AI Studio and learn how to use “vibe coding”— describing your ideas in everyday language and letting Gemini generate classroom materials for you. We’ll share sample activities and tasks and practical classroom resources that demonstrate how AI can help create engaging, interactive lessons. You’ll also learn how to craft effective AI prompts that align lessons to targeted learning objectives and standards-based outcomes, ensuring AIgenerated content supports intentional instruction. Join us to discuss how these tools can be used in multiple …

Client Feedback Effects On Enjoyment, Motivation And Self-Efficacy In A Project-Based Learning Course, Krista Stacey, David M. Bourrie

University Faculty and Staff Publications

This paper reports a mixed-methods evaluation of how feedback/project source (faculty-led versus client-led) shapes student outcomes in a two-course undergraduate game and simulation development sequence (N = 29 across two academic years). Quantitative measures (enjoyment, intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy) were collected with a six-point Likert survey and analyzed, but due to small sample sizes were not used to empirically evaluate the constructs. Instead, qualitative data comprised of de-identified focus-group transcripts and open-ended survey responses were analyzed with a keyword-assisted codebook and manual validation. Year 1 (faculty feedback) exhibited more consistent post-course gains, especially in self-efficacy, while Year 2 (client feedback) produced …

Institutionalizing A Culture Of Respect For Teaching And Professional Faculty, Laura E. Sponsler

Higher Education: Faculty Scholarship

The University of Denver has made great strides in improving faculty work and culture with the creation of full time non-tenure track lines – the Teaching and Professional Faculty. In 2015, DU’s faculty senate and Board of Trustees approved and created professional pathways with promotion, longer term contracts, and defined responsibilities for Teaching and Professional Faculty. Compared to other universities and colleges, our current strengths include multi-year contracts, participation and leadership in university governance, opportunities for advancement and promotion, and collegiality amongst faculty members.

This white paper serves to examine the institutionalization of these lines and the current status of …

Cultural Science Night, Jiyoon Yoon

Mavs Open Press Open Educational Resources - Archive

This book is to learn water and weather by integrating with other cultures. This textbook is organized around two interconnected components. The first component provides cultural knowledge of China, India, Korea, and Mexico. The second component focuses on culturally responsive science instruction created for the Cultural Science Night event, an occasion in which teachers present hands-on, culturally responsive science activities in collaboration with students.

If you need an accessibility accommodation or have questions about the use of this text, please contact Mavs Open Press.

The Minutes Of The Marshall University Graduate Council Meeting, February 27, 2026, Marshall University Graduate Council

Graduate Council Minutes

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of The Alabama Literacy Act On Rural Third-Grade Students, Autumn F. Blalock

College of Education

Low third-grade reading proficiency rates in Alabama prompted the passage of the Alabama Literacy Act (ALA) in 2019, which mandates systematic, explicit literacy instruction grounded in the Science of Reading. While the Act represents a substantial shift in instructional practice and state education policy, limited empirical research has examined its impact across school contexts, particularly in rural settings. The purpose of this quantitative, quasi-experimental study was to examine whether third-grade reading proficiency rates changed following implementation of the ALA and to compare outcomes between rural and non-rural schools and among rural students by socioeconomic status. Guided by the Simple View …

Addressing Health Inequities For People With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities In The Hospital Through Partnerships In Nurse Training, Suzannah Iadarola, Amanda Laprime, Samantha Hochheimer, Tabby Anvari, Carrie Baker, Jacqueline Goodman

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

People with intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD) deserve the same access to quality healthcare yet are at increased risk of medical and/or psychiatric conditions as compared to the general population. Patients with IDD have less health satisfaction, shorter life expectancy, less access to preventative care, higher chronic health conditions, overuse of certain medications, and increased mortality. This population and their caregivers report high levels of dissatisfaction with emergency/inpatient care. Nurses also express frustration with lack of training, limited resources, and competing priorities.

We developed the Advancing Supportive Care through Education for Nurses on Disability (ASCEND) Program, to build the capacity of inpatient/Emergency …

Third-Grade Teachers’ Experiences When Implementing Technology Tools To Enhance Literacy Instruction, Sherry Ann Kim Marie Meeks

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem that was addressed through this study was that third-grade teachers had challenges fostering students’ use of technology during instruction to increase literacy proficiency at rural schools in the western Caribbean. Grounded in Siemens’s connectivism theory, the purpose of this study was to understand the experiences of third-grade teachers when using technology to improve students’ literacy proficiency levels. Data were collected from 14 third-grade teachers from regional primary schools who had in-depth knowledge about integrating technology into third-grade instruction. Thematic analysis using open coding yielded six themes: teachers (1) believe technology plays an important role in preparing third-grade students …

Teachers' Experiences Implementing Play-Based Learning Practices In Prekindergarten–Kindergarten Classrooms, Atiana T. Carroll

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed through this study was that prekindergarten and kindergarten (PK-K) teachers in one large southern U.S. school district were not implementing play-based learning (PBL) practices despite the well-documented benefits of PBL in early childhood education. Guided by Knowles’s adult learning theory and Kolb’s experiential learning theory, the purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore PK-K teachers’ experiences with implementing PBL and to identify what teachers need to embed PBL practices in PK-K classrooms. Semistructured interviews were conducted with nine PK-K teachers, and thematic analysis was applied to identify key patterns. Four themes emerged from the analysis: …

Author Talks In A Virtual Graduate Literature Course, S. Rebecca Leigh

Michigan Reading Journal

In a graduate, online course, seven invited guests – a combination of authors and illustrators, some of whom are Michiganders – spoke to 18 graduate students and practicing teachers, about books, writing, illustrating for children, and trends in education today. This is a literature course that is guided by the questions, “What are current topics and issues connected to literature today?,” and “How might we rise above these challenges that puts contemporary literature in the hands of students?”

Spelling With Tears: (Re)Thinking The Phonics-Spelling Connection, Meghan K. Block, Kristen L. White

Michigan Reading Journal

Many elementary students perform well on weekly spelling tests but struggle to apply those same words in their everyday reading and writing. This article explores why spelling and phonics instruction often feel disconnected in classrooms and how that disconnect affects children’s literacy development. Using a classroom vignette, teacher perspectives, and research, we argue for integrating spelling into meaningful reading and writing experiences. We share practical, classroom-ready recommendations—including word study, morphology instruction, games, and authentic writing—to help teachers make spelling purposeful, engaging, and transferable.

Letters Across Languages: Building Community, Agency, And Joy Through Multilingual Penpalship Program, Yetunde S. Alabede

Michigan Reading Journal

This reflective article explores the Multilingual Pen-Pal Program, a free, community-based initiative that connects children across Nigeria and the diaspora through letter writing and storytelling. Grounded in ẹ̀bùngogy, an offshoot of ẹ̀bùnlingualism, a framework that views language transmission as a communal gift, the program embodies teaching as gifting. Through translanguaging, storying, and reflexivity, children and families engage in multilingual literacy practices that center care, reciprocity, and joy. This article highlights how the program bridges theory and practice, offering teachers practical ways to cultivate culturally sustaining and multilingual classrooms where literacy becomes a shared, liberatory act of connection.

Examining The Impact Of Young Children’S Motor Development On Inhibitory Control And Social Skills, Ali S. Brian, Shea E. Ferguson, Angie Starrett, Emily Kallis, J. Ross Ramsey

Faculty Publications

Background/Objectives: Understanding how motor and cognitive development may contribute to prosocial behavior is essential for supporting whole-child development in early learning settings. Early childhood education settings are well-positioned to address these concerns through integrated approaches that support the whole child. Research exploring the mechanisms that link developmental domains remains limited, especially regarding how motor development may influence social outcomes through cognitive processes such as inhibitory control. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine whether gains in motor skills were associated with prosocial behaviors indirectly through improvements in inhibitory control. Methods: Preschoolers (N = 238; Mage = 66.61, SD …

Perceptions Of High School Graduates And Educators Regarding A Mathematics Intervention For College And Career Readiness, Annie Elizabeth Carpenter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed in this study was that, from 2017 through 2024, over 68% of 11th-grade students consistently did not meet the college- and career-readiness American College Test standards benchmark in mathematics at Midwest High School (MHS, a pseudonym), which used the Kendall Hunt Illustrative Mathematics (KHIM) curriculum. Guided by Bruner’s theory of instruction and KHIM’s structural components, the purpose of this basic qualitative study was to investigate high school graduates’ and non-administrative educators’ perceptions about learning and teaching with the KHIM curriculum and explore non-administrative educators’ suggestions for enhancements and evolutions to the curriculum at MHS. Semistructured interviews were …

Examining The Impact Of Young Children’S Motor Development On Inhibitory Control And Social Skills, Ali S. Brian Ph.D., Shea E. Ferguson, Angie Starrett Ph.D., Emily Kallis, J. Ross Ramsey

Faculty Publications

Background/Objectives: Understanding how motor and cognitive development may contribute to prosocial behavior is essential for supporting whole-child development in early learning settings. Early childhood education settings are well-positioned to address these concerns through integrated approaches that support the whole child. Research exploring the mechanisms that link developmental domains remains limited, especially regarding how motor development may influence social outcomes through cognitive processes such as inhibitory control. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine whether gains in motor skills were associated with prosocial behaviors indirectly through improvements in inhibitory control. Methods: Preschoolers (N = 238; Mage = 66.61, SD …

Even In That Silence: Ignatian Retreats In The Transformation Of Teacher Spiritual Identity, Nancy Lourdes U. Toledo

eJournal of Catholic Education in Australasia

A teacher continues to navigate and develop one’s personal and professional identity as one interacts with one’s students, peers, mentors, and school. Schools with religious affiliation add another layer of complexity to this interaction as their education paradigm focuses not just on a teacher’s professional identity but one’s spiritual identity as well. Through an in-depth interview of four in-service teachers in a Jesuit school in the Philippines, this study aimed to discover how Ignatian retreats can effect transformation in teacher spiritual identity. The study employed the phenomenological analysis in educational qualitative research. The data were analysed using Castleberry and Nolan’s …