Culturally Sustaining Practices in Content Area Instruction for CLD Students with Learning Disabilities

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students comprise a substantial population of students with learning disabilities, and are historically disproportionately represented in special education. To effectively teach CLD students with learning disabilities, teachers should integrate evidence‐based practices and culturally sustaining pedagogy in their practice. This article highlights several practical examples of culturally sustaining evidence‐based practices across the content areas of mathematics, reading, and writing. Suggestions for practice and future research are presented in the article.     

Connecting Literacy and Science to Increase Achievement for English Language Learners

Giving students a purpose and a passion for sharing their thinking through authentic learning experiences and giving them tools for writing through which they can risk new vocabulary, new language, and new thought is critical for the linguistic and cognitive development of students. Furthermore, students develop a deep understanding of content they have heard and read when given time to process information through writing and speaking. This article describes one teacher’s quest to identify and implement effective research-based instructional strategies that she could use to successfully support her kindergarten ELL students during science instruction.     

Exploring and modelling elements of information management that contribute towards making positive impacts: An outcome based approach for senior managers in a local government setting

This paper reports on the first stage of an investigation into monitoring and evaluating the impact of information management (IM) within a local government context. The overall study will utilise a combination of principles from various results-based, outcomes-based and social change approaches (Logical Framework Analysis, Most Significant Change, and Outcomes Mapping) in an attempt to move Leicestershire County Council away from a culture focused on traditional performance measurement, i.e. percentage change in use of services provided to the public, to something of real value. Interviews with 20 senior managers highlighted the important IM issues for Leicestershire County Council as a local government. These initial findings showed that maintaining high quality, trusted, and governed information and knowledge resources were of great value to the organisation. Analysis showed that 85% of senior managers interviewed considered IM to be “critical” in the achievement of organisational outcomes. Further analysis enabled the development of an initial framework indicating key areas where IM can have impact. These key areas will become the focus of further research, where applying a combination of approaches aforementioned will define the boundary partners, their specific outcomes and progress markers with possible impacts proposed. This detail will help to develop a framework for measuring the impact of IM.     

Reaction Is Not Enough: Decreasing Gendered Harassment in Academic Contexts in Chile,Hong Kong,and the United States

In diverse academic spaces around the world, sexual and gendered harassment is increasingly recognized as a problem. High‐profile cases continue to emerge that underscore how gendered harassment is normalized in elite research contexts. In this article, Liz Jackson and Ana Luisa Muñoz‐García analyze three recent policy cases for decreasing sexual and gendered harassment. These cases involve three levels of analysis and three cultural contexts. The first is that of the higher education community in Chile; the second is the University of Hong Kong; and the third is the Philosophy of Education Society, an international academic society based in North America. In each case we analyze how sexual and gendered harassment has been (1) conceptualized, (2) responded to, and (3) contextualized. Through their analysis of these cases, Jackson and Muñoz‐García invite readers to reflect on practical and philosophical recommendations for moving forward antiharassment policies and programs, seen broadly.     

Re-conceptualising graduate employability: the importance of pre-professional identity

Despite efforts to broaden the concept of graduate employability, there remains an overarching focus on developing industry-relevant employability skills. The skills-based approach is, however, too narrow and does not fully capture the complexity of graduate work-readiness. This paper argues for the redefining of graduate employability by embracing pre-professional identity (PPI) formation. PPI relates to an understanding of and connection with the skills, qualities, conduct, culture and ideology of a student's intended profession. The ‘communities of practice’ model is drawn upon to demonstrate how PPI can be developed during university years. Here, a student makes sense of his/her intended profession through multiple memberships and differing levels of engagement with various communities within higher education's ‘landscape of practice’. Example communities include professional associations, student societies, careers services and employers. Implications for stakeholders are discussed.     

Future aspirations of urban adolescents: a person‐in‐context model

Recognizing the importance future aspirations play in the developmental outcomes of adolescents, this study illuminates the role that individual and contextual factors play in the formation of future aspirations among urban youth. The data for this study were collected prior to the implementation of an intervention program at an urban high school. Focus groups, questionnaires, goal maps and a group identity collage were employed to solicit the perspectives of urban adolescents about their future aspirations and the influences on them. Using a grounded theory methodology, the authors classified the multiple sources of data into a theoretical model of urban adolescents’ future aspirations. Participants’ voices, which were used to construct the theoretical model, are also provided here to vivify the model. This ‘person‐in‐context’ model encompasses both individual/contextual resources and barriers to the future aspirations of urban youth. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.     

Does a Nexus Exist Between the Work of Administrators and Student Outcomes in Higher Education?: An Answer from a Systematic Review of Research

Journal articles within the field of higher education that focus on college and university administrators, have for the most part, examined topics such as leadership, governance, and institutional effectiveness. Recently, internal and external critics have questioned the ability of college and universities to impact educational outcomes, more specifically student outcomes. In this regard, this study sought to examine how the work of administrators in higher education affects student outcomes. From a systematic review of 10 years of research studies on higher education that focus on administrators as a unit of analysis in higher education, the researchers found that the nexus between the work of administrators and student outcomes was nascent.