Urban Education

This article explicates the structure, content, and pedagogy of an urban district’s professional development for literacy coaches. To analyze qualitative data on a district’s yearlong coach professional development, I utilize situated cognition theory. Observation and interview data reveal that the coach community of practice (CCOP) was a venue in which coaches engaged in a variety of learning activities regarding literacy instruction, coaching, and school reform. The content of CCOP addressed a band of literacy instruction (e.g., assessment and intervention programs) and coaching methods. The pedagogy of CCOP was loosely aligned with two dimensions of situated cognition: social interaction and authentic activity. There were limited opportunities to critically examine contextualized problems of practice regarding instruction, coaching, or the district context. Coaches rarely discussed their own work routines, teacher practice, or student learning. Although coaches received support around how to coach, this occurred in the absence of clarity around the substance of this coaching. Coaches reported benefiting from opportunities to interact professionally with other coaches from across the district. This article has implications for research on district capacity-building efforts, situated cognition, and the design and implementation of professional development for instructional leaders.

A safe environment is a prerequisite for productive learning. Using a unique panel data set of survey responses from New York City middle school students, the article provides insight into the relationship between feelings of safety in the classroom and academic achievement. The survey data include the reported feelings of safety for more than 340,000 students annually from 2007 to 2010 in more than 700 middle schools. Findings show a consistent negative relationship between feeling unsafe in the classroom and test scores. The study provides insight into the mechanisms through which feeling unsafe in the classroom relates to test scores and presents multiple robustness checks to support the central finding.

Black girls are more likely to be suspended or expelled through exclusionary discipline than their female counterparts, but continue to be overlooked and understudied. This article presents a case for using critical race feminism and figured worlds as theoretical frameworks for examining the effects of zero tolerance policies on Black girls. We use these frameworks to explore how adults’ implementation of disciplinary policies not only affects the racial and gender identity development of Black girls, but perpetuates anti-Black discipline and represents behavioral responses to White femininity that may not align with Black girls’ femininity and identification with school.

We explored the associations of collective self-esteem and parent educational practices with school engagement in a sample of 128 Samoan middle and high school students in an urban school district. Simultaneous regression analysis revealed that each of these independent variables contributed to significant variance in school engagement. Specifically, the overall regression model accounted for 22% of the variance in school engagement. Collective self-esteem was the most significant association, followed by parent educational practices. Implications discuss how we must consider Samoan and other marginalized youths’ cultural worth and perceptions of parental practices as critical factors influencing their school connections.

We explore the interconnections of pupil admission and school choice with the socioeconomic composition of schools in the city of Espoo, Finland. We analyze pupil enrollment from residential areas, and compare the schools’ expected and actual socioeconomic profiles using GIS software (MapInfo). Social-diversification mechanisms within urban comprehensive schooling emerged: Distinctive choices of language and selective classes are made predominantly by pupils from residential blocks with higher socioeconomic profiles. The role of urban segregation in school choice seems to be stronger than predicted. As mechanisms of educational distinction accompanied with grouping policies, choice leads to socioeconomic segregation across and within schools.

English Language Learners (ELLs) are the fastest growing segment of school population, especially in urban schools. The teaching workforce has relatively unchanged to match this fast growth. Data found no measurable difference in the percentages of teachers’ ethnic backgrounds between 1999-2000 and 2007-2008. This mismatch creates the demand for preparing the K-12 teachers who can work effectively with ELLs. The study examines an innovative program that prepares K-12 teachers through research and service combined with traditional professional development. Findings reveal significant improvement in the teachers’ second language (L2) knowledge and strategies working with ELLs.