Elementary Education Commons^™

Stress In Educational Context, Sarah Matthews

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

This paper examines stress within educational contexts as a complex, relational, and systemic experience rather than solely a negative condition. Drawing on research related to stress perception, coping, leadership, trauma, and resource access, the paper highlights how stress affects educators, students, and families across early childhood and special education settings. Key themes include the role of perception in shaping stress responses, the impact of resource availability and socioeconomic factors, the transfer of stress within classroom environments, and the influence of leadership and organizational stability on teacher and student well-being. Using an ecological framework, the paper emphasizes that stress operates across …

Play As Research: What Teachers Can Learn By Watching Children Investigate, Kailey Price

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

This article invites educators to view children's play through the lens of play as research. Through the story of a classroom rock investigation and other everyday examples, it highlights how children naturally ask questions, test ideas, solve problems, and build understanding through play. Rather than seeing play as a break from learning, educators can learn to recognize the inquiry already taking place in moments such as digging in dirt, collecting natural materials, building structures, or investigating puddles after rain. The article introduces three simple reflection questions teachers can use to better understand children's thinking. It also describes practical ways to …

Beyond The Room Arrangement: Using The Environment As A Responsive Teaching Tool, Lydia J. Bingham, Carrie L. Ota

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

This article explores the classroom environment as a "third teacher," arguing that intentional design should extend beyond simple furniture organization to actively support children's relationships, curiosity, and learning. It emphasizes a responsive approach in which teachers move away from a one-and-done, adult-centered layout toward environments that evolve based on observations of children's emerging interests and needs. This piece offers actionable insights for low-barrier environmental adaptation, emphasizing that the most effective learning spaces are never truly "finished" but are subject to ongoing, intentional revision to better meet the needs of the children they serve.

Within The Making: Methodological Possibilities In Arts-Centred Research, Darlene St. Georges

Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal

This editorial introduces the Fall 2026 tenth-anniversary issue of Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal, exploring methodological possibilities within arts-centred research. It considers the dynamic relationship between methods and methodology, attending to how creative practices generate knowledge through material encounters, relational engagement, intuition, and uncertainty. Questions of methodological rigour, ethical responsibility, and pedagogical responsiveness are examined through a relational and decolonial orientation. The eight contributions extend these considerations across diverse artistic and educational practices, illuminating how methodologies emerge, evolve, and transform through the living processes of creative inquiry.Darlene St. Georges is an Associate Professor of Art Education at the University …

Performing Proficiency: Ethnodrama As Arts-Based Research In An Esl Acting Classroom, Angel M. Morales

Journal of English Learner Education

This study explores the use of ethnodrama as an arts-based research method and pedagogical tool in English as a Second Language (ESL) education. Drawing on the work of Saldaña, Salvatore, and Denzin, the project examines how performance can communicate lived experiences, foster language development, and promote social justice in multicultural classrooms. Based on interviews and observations of ESL students in an Acting I course, the resulting ethnodrama, What?! Acting?!, presents verbatim narratives that reveal learners’ identities, struggles, and resilience. The findings highlight how theatrical practice enhances linguistic fluency, self-expression, and cultural understanding, demonstrating the transformative potential of performance in …

A Franco-American University Collaboration: Oral Assessment With Cefr And Star, Nadia Yassine-Diab, Christina Torres University Of Central Florida, Aimee Schoonmaker

Journal of English Learner Education

This article describes the collaboration between faculty at two international
universities, one in France and one in the U.S., who partnered their students to practice and assess oral skills. Using computer-mediated communication with both synchronous and asynchronous elements, the collaboration provided a valuable opportunity for both groups to engage in pedagogically meaningful and structured exchanges integrated into coursework that mirror their future professional situations (O’Dowd et. al., 2020). More specifically, each semester, the U.S. TESOL students interview and assess French speaking English language learners using the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) and the Situation Task Action Results (STAR) interview …

Math Language Acquisition And Improving English Language Learners’ Ability To Understand And Solve Math Word Problems, Crystal L. Gammon, Jillian Skelton

Journal of English Learner Education

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore third- through fifth-grade teachers’ perceptions of effective vocabulary instruction and collaboration practices used to support English Language Learners (ELLs) in understanding, discussing, and solving math word problems. The problem addressed was that ELL students in rural southeastern U.S. school districts were not achieving mathematics proficiency at the same rate as their native English-speaking peers, particularly when solving word problems requiring academic language comprehension. The findings revealed that teachers viewed math vocabulary instruction as essential for closing academic gaps while also identifying vocabulary as a major barrier when it was not explicitly …

Making The Implicit Explicit For Multilingual Learners: A Language-Based Framework For Literacy Development, Luciana C. De Oliveira

Journal of English Learner Education

Literacy is fundamentally an act of meaning-making that requires bridging micro-level linguistic choices with macro-level text structures across genres. Current literacy policies dominated by Science of Reading (SoR) mandates often overemphasize isolated, word-level foundational skills. This narrow focus creates a one-size-fits-all model that reduces reading to the level of individual words, not appropriate for multilingual learners (MLs) who require access to dense, specialized disciplinary discourse. This article proposes an intentional, language-based literacy framework designed to build high-challenge, high-support classrooms for MLs without lowering academic expectations. Integrating genre-based pedagogy through the Teaching and Learning Cycle (TLC) with the mode continuum, the …

Psychological Stress And Its Relationship With Reading And Writing Difficulties Among Students In The Foundational Stage Of Basic Education, Dr. Ali S. Al Shuaili

International Journal for Research in Education

This study aimed to examine the relationship between psychological stress and early reading and writing skills among foundation stage students in Oman and to determine the predictive power of stress on overall literacy performance. A quantitative descriptive correlational design was employed. The sample consisted of 78 students (aged 6–10 years) selected through stratified random sampling from 11 schools during the second semester of the 2024/2025 academic year. The study utilized the Children’s Psychological Stress Scale (CPSS) and the Early Literacy Skills Instrument (ELSI), both demonstrating satisfactory psychometric properties in terms of validity and reliability. Results revealed statistically significant moderate negative …

Developing An Ethno–Collaborative Inquiry E-Module To Improve Elementary Students’ Numeracy Skills: An Addie-Based Development Study With Sasak Ethnomathematics, Intan Dwi Hastuti, M. Aris Akbar, Iwan Azmi, Sutarto Sutarto, Venkatachalam M

Jurnal Pendidikan dan Pembelajaran

Background: Existing elementary mathematics teaching materials may provide limited opportunities to connect plane geometry concepts with local cultural contexts and collaborative inquiry activities.

Objectives: This study aimed to develop an Ethno–Collaborative Inquiry E-Module and evaluate its feasibility, practicality, and preliminary effectiveness in supporting fifth-grade elementary school students’ numeracy skills in plane geometry, particularly in solving problems involving perimeter and area.

Methods: The study employed a research and development (R&D) approach using the ADDIE model, comprising the stages of analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. The research involved 32 fifth-grade students at SDN Dapur Desa Aik Bukak, North Batukliang District, Central …

Padlet-Supported Parikan Writing In A Grade 4 Classroom: A Qualitative Study On Joyful Learning And Student Critical Thinking, Endang Sri Maruti, Muhammad Hanif, Durarin Nuha Achfama, Chelsa Bunga Nagita, Selfia Selfia

Jurnal Pendidikan dan Pembelajaran

Background: This study explores the utilization of Padlet as a digital collaborative platform for creating parikan, a traditional Javanese poetic form, inspired by local wisdom.

Objectives: The purpose of the research is to examines how the creation of parikan through Padlet facilitates joyful learning and provides opportunities for students to engage in critical thinking.

Methods: Employing a qualitative case study design. Data are collected through classroom observations, interviews with students and teachers, documentation of students’ parikan, and analysis of their posts and comments on Padlet. The study was conducted with 24 fourth-grade students at SD Wayut 03, Madiun, Indonesia, during …

Cultivating Ownership In Enactment: Teacher Agency And Professional Identity In Pedagogical Coaching, Brandon Sherman, Mari Haneda, Annela Teemant, Frances Nebus Bose

The Qualitative Report

This study explores how teachers interpret and adapt professional learning practices to align with their contextual needs and professional beliefs, with an emphasis on teacher ownership. It investigates how pedagogical coaching can support teachers in taking ownership of pedagogical principles and practices within the framework of agency, identity, and the zone of enactment. The research employs a qualitative case study of two teachers at a U.S. urban elementary school, who implemented the Enduring Principles of Learning (EPL) framework with the support of a pedagogical coach. Data analysis from video-recorded coaching sessions and teacher-student instructional conversations revealed that the teachers effectively …

"We Are Still Here”: Curating A High Quality Native American Children’S Book Collection For The Elementary Classroom, Lucia Benzor

Teaching Social Studies in the Peach State

Elementary social studies educators face many challenges in the classroom when teaching on the subject of Native Americans. In addition to outdated materials or a lack of resources that inaccurately depict Native Americans as well as stereotypes found in a variety of media, students are left with various misconceptions that they bring with them to the classroom. To begin to combat these hurdles, the author advocates for the use of high quality picture books written by Indigenous authors and shares a carefully curated list of texts and suggestions for classroom use. The list features both fiction and nonfiction that address …

Artifacts Inquiry For Social Studies And Science Classrooms, Tina Valenzuela, Jaime L. Coyne

Teaching Social Studies in the Peach State

Artifacts offer opportunities for students to move beyond reading about the past to investigating evidence from it. In this article, we describe a museum-based artifact inquiry activity developed with teacher candidates and offers practical ways to adapt the activity for K–12 interdisciplinary classrooms. Beginning with a single artifact, learners make careful observations, distinguish observation from inference, develop compelling and supporting questions, investigate additional sources, construct evidence-based claims, and consider perspectives and limitations of the available evidence. The activity aligns with the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework Inquiry Arc and connects with the Georgia Standards of Excellence in social …

School-Based Executive Function Guideline (Sb-Efg): A Practice Guideline For Executive Function Assessment And Intervention In School-Based Practice, Ida Koraitem, Amanda Sarafian, Lenin Grajo

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Executive functioning (EF) is comprised of various cognitive skills, such as working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility, which monitor and guide goal-directed behavior and set a foundation on which healthy development may occur. Although the impact of EF skills on school participation has increasingly been recognized over the years, there are limited occupational therapy models that help occupational therapists integrate EF intervention into school-based practice. Children with limitations in EF have unique needs and challenges that impact school participation; therefore, it is imperative that occupational therapists address EF in school-based practice. This author- developed practice guideline discusses essential elements …

Promoting The Well-Being Of Refugee Students Through A Kawa-Guided Occupational Therapy Intervention: A Mixed-Methods Study, Suzanne Brederson, Heidi Baist, Jennifer E. Lape

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Background: Refugee students newly enrolled in U.S. schools encounter academic, socialization, and mental health challenges because of trauma, language barriers, and cultural differences. Many have had limited or interrupted access to formal education in their home country. This study aimed to gain the perspectives of refugee students on their lived experiences and explore the impact of an occupational therapy intervention guided by the Kawa model on the well-being of this student population.

Methods: The researchers employed a convergent mixed-methods design. Refugee students (n = 8) created Kawa models, which provided rich, qualitative data. Participants completed pre and posttest surveys. Quantitative …

Investigating The Relationship Between Locale, Transportation, And Chronic Absenteeism In Rural Schools, Dawn T. Cook

College of Education

Chronic absenteeism poses a severe threat to public education, directly eroding student achievement by compounding instructional time loss. This correlational study, grounded in bioecological systems theory, examined the relationship between student transportation access, regional isolation, and chronic absenteeism within public elementary and middle schools (grades 3–8) in Alabama. The study used primary self-reported data from a standardized parent survey administered across five public schools and secondary archival records covering every rural public school in Alabama. I analyzed the data using binary logistic regression models and a one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). The results showed that primary transportation modality (bus versus …

Design Implications For Teacher-Configurable Generative Ai Writing Tools: A Participatory Design Study With Storybot, Ariel Han, Shenshen Han, Zhenyao Cai, Joey Huang, Franceli Cibrian, Kylie Peppler

Engineering Faculty Articles and Research

As generative AI (GenAI) tools become accessible, their integration into K–12 writing presents opportunities and challenges. This study partnered with 21 primary school teachers in a participatory co-design process to develop StoryBot, a teacher-configurable GenAI story-authoring platform. Teachers identified instructional needs and learning outcomes that informed system features, including genre-specific writing scaffolds, configurable prompts, and constraints on full-text generation to preserve student voice. The platform positions educators as co-designers of AI behavior rather than passive users. We conducted a pilot writing workshop with 13 youth (ages 8–12) and a focus group with six educators to examine how the platform influenced …

Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening: Leveraging Ai Tools For Effective Pre-Service Teacher Education, Brittany E. Kiser, Kelly A. Burlison

College of Education Faculty Publications & Presentations

This interactive roundtable examines how AI tools can enhance pre-service teacher education and support multilingual learners in K–6 classrooms. Participants will explore practical applications for lesson planning, language scaffolding, differentiation, and assessment through real-world ESOL teaching experiences. Discussion will focus on aligning WIDA standards with content instruction and integrating evidence-based ESOL strategies across reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Attendees will leave with actionable approaches for the effective and ethical use of AI to support ELLs.

Using Scenario-Based Generative Ai In A Social Studies Methods Course, Timothy Lintner, Ellis Reeves

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly transforming the landscape of educator preparation. This shift is especially evident in social studies. As emerging technologies like AI reshape how social studies is taught and learned, it is essential to incorporate them into course design and student outcomes. Simply put, we must ensure that the next generation of social studies educators can effectively use AI to create real-world, scenario-based learning experiences that foster inquiry and encourage student action-taking. This article examines how AI-supported, scenario-based learning was strategically integrated into a secondary social studies methods course at the University of South Carolina Aiken. From concept …

‘There Is No Continuity’: Assessment Of Pre-Service Teachers' Ability To Analyse Historical Sources In Two Ghanaian Public Universities, Anitha Oforiwah Adu-Boahen

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

The paper examined student-teachers’ understanding of change and continuity in History. Using a convergent parallel mixed method approach, one hundred and thirty-five (135) student-teachers from two public universities examined images depicting classroom settings in Ghana’s educational system from different periods. Respondents were expected to show and explain the continuities and changes in the different periods in Ghanaian history. They were to focus on the disparities in ‘change’ and ‘continuities’ in classroom settings in the Ghanaian educational system over time. Again, student-teachers were expected to transform their knowledge of these changes into historical understanding by writing an interpretation from the sources. …

Using The Past To Better Understand The Present: Contextualizing Today’S History Wars, For Ourselves And For Our Students, Bonnie Laughlin-Schultz

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This essay considers our contemporary moment in the context of the long history of the so-called "history wars" in the United States. It identifies four historical moments with ties to the present, and makes use of primary documents to discuss each time period. It also considers the ways in which historical activists such as Frederick Douglass and W. E. B. Du Bois advocated for honest history in the past, and the ways in which we might argue for nuanced historical thinking in the present. Teachers may find the documents of use for their own classrooms, and a brief appendix at …

Related Arts Teachers In A Professional Learning Community: On The Phenomenon Of Implementation, Noah Friedman

Journal of Practitioner Research

In recent decades, the popularity of teacher collaboration and data-driven instructional practices has seen the increased use of the professional learning community (PLC) model as a method for school improvement. Within the PLC framework are singletons, educators who are the only ones who teach their subject in their buildings (Hansen, 2015). In elementary school settings, related arts teams (e.g. music, art, physical education, and so on) are often included in a PLC as an afterthought. To accommodate the distinctive needs of this team, I created an intervention tool and method to provide support to related arts teams as they implement …

But Mommy, I Can See!, Paul B. Freeman Od

Optometric Clinical Practice

Book Review: Slotnick S, But MOMMY, I can SEE! Illustrations Daniel W. Miller, Newman Springs; 2024. 76 pages, Paperback, $20.95, ISBN: 979-8-88763-556-9, Hardcover, $32.95, ISBN: 979-8-89617-040-2, eBook, $9.99, ISBN: 979-8-88763-557-6

Outcomes Of A Vision Care Program That Provides Comprehensive Eye Exams To Children Who Have Failed School Screenings In The San Antonio Northside Independent School District, Raelyn Ottenbreit Od, Timothy Wingert Od, Chantelle Ribisi Od, Elizabeth Marunde Od

Optometric Clinical Practice

Purpose: To determine the impact of a program that provides a comprehensive eye exam to children who failed a vision screening.

Method: Seven hundred seventeen students from the San Antonio Northside Independent School District (NISD) received a comprehensive eye examination. The records of these students were retrospectively analyzed to determine the impact of the exam on this population.

Results: The mean improvement in visual acuity after receiving a comprehensive eye exam at the Rosenberg School of Optometry was approximately five- and one-half lines of acuity. In addition to refractive error, other conditions related to eye coordination and ocular …

Voucher Reliance And Tuition Determination In Private K-12 Schools: A Quantitative Analysis Of Florida Schools Under 500 Students, Rebekah A. Kogelschatz

PhD in Education

The purpose of this quantitative survey study was to investigate the relationship between voucher dependency and tuition-setting practices among leaders of private K-12 schools in Florida with fewer than 500 students. Guided by resource dependence theory, the study examined school leaders’ perceptions of scholarship funding, tuition income, affordability, sustainability, timing, and flexibility in tuition-setting decisions, as well as the adequacy of current scholarship amounts. A quantitative, non-experimental survey design was used. The sample included 85 decision-making school leaders from private K-12 schools in Florida whose roles involved financial or tuition-setting decisions. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, confirmatory …

From Classroom Conversations To Public Dialogue: Preservice Teachers Engaging With Diverse Children’S Literature, Janell Pycior

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

Preservice teachers often engage with issues of diversity, equity, identity, and representation within the safety of their university classrooms; however, opportunities to extend these conversations into public and professional settings may be less common. This practice-based reflective article examines the experience of moving seven undergraduate preservice teachers enrolled in an upper-level Diversity in Children’s Literature course beyond their familiar classroom environment and into a professional academic conference. The students, majoring in early childhood, elementary, or special education and minoring in reading, participated in a roundtable discussion at the Indiana Academy of Social Sciences focused on diversity and representation in children’s …

Building A Mini Medical School: An Evidence-Based Framework For Health Science Education Outreach, Alexandra S. Hausmann, Shirley F. Delair, Liliana P. Bronner

Medical Student Summer Research Program

No abstract provided.

Guided By Innovation: A Phenomenological Study Of Virtual Elementary Teachers’ Perceptions Of Generative Artificial Intelligence Integration, Lisa M. Berry

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of elementary virtual teachers who integrate generative artificial intelligence (GAI) tools in their pedagogical practices at a large elementary virtual school. Participants were purposively sampled because those in the specified virtual school program provided relevant, experience-based insights and allowed the researcher practical, feasible access (Creswell & Poth, 2018). The participant sample for this study consisted of virtual elementary teachers who taught students in kindergarten through fifth grade. The researcher conducted semi-structured interviews with 10 teachers. The researcher followed Creswell and Poth’s (2018) data analysis spiral to systematically …

Owning The Mission: Reconciling The Past, While Implementing The Science Of Reading In An Education Preparation Program, Paula J. Adams

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

This reflective inquiry examines the first year of a two-year initiative to more explicitly align an established educator preparation program with the Science of Reading (SoR). Situated within a small private university in New York State, the article considers implementation as both curricular revision and institutional change. The process included faculty professional learning, curriculum mapping, alignment of student learning outcomes, revision of common course assessments, development of SoR-aligned models of candidate work, and consideration of clinical experiences. Particular attention is given to tensions that emerged around policy fatigue, academic freedom and responsibility, differing professional cultures, candidates’ prior experiences with literacy …