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Grounded in the sociocultural nature of literacies and informed of the inherent biases in widely used, English-dominant reading assessments in U.S. schools, this case study traces the planning, development, and pilot administration ( n = 52) of a culturally inclusive (i.e., participant informed), online reading assessment. The Critical Reading Assessment (CRA) is designed to gauge elementary students’ comprehension and critical reasoning (i.e., identifying potential biases or instances of diversity, equity and inclusion) of digital, multimodal texts. Findings from our analysis of recorded pilot sessions with student participants, who are predominantly Spanish/English multilingual learners, suggest (a) the importance of transparency and feedback from multiple stakeholders in the assessment development process; (b) the potential affordance of multiple textual modalities for clarifying comprehension skills and abilities; (c) the potential negative consequences of using established, dominant-English reading tests for determining comprehension abilities; and (d) the need for greater opportunities to practice critical discussions (i.e., questions about perspectives, representation, and other potential biases) about texts. Implications from this study highlight the need for supporting elementary students and their teachers in dialogic, critical reading practices of multimodal textual information.

Grounded in the sociocultural nature of literacies and informed of the inherent biases in widely used, English-dominant reading assessments in U.S. schools, this case study traces the planning, development, and pilot administration (n = 52) of a culturally inclusive (i.e., participant informed), online reading assessment. The Critical Reading Assessment (CRA) is designed to gauge elementary students' comprehension and critical reasoning (i.e., identifying potential biases or instances of diversity, equity and inclusion) of digital, multimodal texts. Findings from our analysis of recorded pilot sessions with student participants, who are predominantly Spanish/English multilingual learners, suggest (a) the importance of transparency and feedback from multiple stakeholders in the assessment development process; (b) the potential affordance of multiple textual modalities for clarifying comprehension skills and abilities; (c) the potential negative consequences of using established, dominant-English reading tests for determining comprehension abilities; and (d) the need for greater opportunities to practice critical discussions (i.e., questions about perspectives, representation, and other potential biases) about texts. Implications from this study highlight the need for supporting elementary students and their teachers in dialogic, critical reading practices of multimodal textual information.

The activity presented in this article is part of a four-part module that centers earthquakes as a common phenomenon that students experience and introduces the idea of a resonant frequency. When the seismic waves from an earthquake encounter a building, the subsequent oscillating motion of the ground causes the building to move back and forth. The activity described in this article was implemented on a field trip to an interactive science center. In the first activity the authors have developed, students explore various structures around their schools to develop an understanding of common stabilizing methods used in construction. In the second activity, students explore the resonant frequencies of different-size strips of cardstock as they vary the frequency of the shaking motion applied to the strips. During this activity, they develop an understanding of how waves can cause objects to move as they transfer energy to the cardstock strips. The activity presented in this article pulls upon the knowledge and experiences gained in the first two classroom activities as students are challenged to stabilize three-dimensional buildings on variable frequency shaker tables. This was piloted as a field trip program to the interactive science center with fourth and fifth graders. This article outlines the full activity, provides sample student ideas that were shared during the authors' testing, and offers some suggestions for adapting this activity to a classroom environment.

The article focuses on the need for systemic changes to better support new teachers rather than simply providing advice on individual actions. Topics include the importance of authentic mentoring relationships, the necessity of collaborative professional communities, and the impact of equitable compensation on teacher retention and satisfaction.

Background: In taking up educational technology tools and student‐centered instructional practice, there is consensus that instructors consider the unique aspects of their instructional context. However, tool adoption success is often framed narrowly by numerical uptake rates or by conformity with non‐negotiable components. Purpose: We pursue an alternative ecosystems framing which posits that variability among contexts is fundamental to understanding instructors' uptake of instructional tools and the ways their teaching trajectories develop over time. Design/Method: Through a multiple‐case study approach using interviews, usage data, surveys, and records of community meetings, we examine 12 instructors' trajectories to illustrate the dynamic uptake of a technology tool. Results: Cross‐case analysis found that instructors' trajectories are tool‐mediated and community‐mediated. We present five cases in detail. Two foreground ways that instructors gained insight into student learning from student responses in the tool. Two illustrate the role played by the project's Community of Practice (CoP), an extra‐institutional support for deepening practice. The final case illustrates the complexity of an evolving instructional ecosystem and its role in instructors' satisfaction and continued use. Conclusions: Use of the educational technology tool perturbed ecosystems and supported instructors' evolving trajectories through mediation of instructor and student activity. Instructors' goals guided initial uptake, but both goals and practice were adapted using information from interactions with the tool and the CoP and changes in instructional contexts. The study confirms the need to understand the complexity of the uptake of innovations and illustrates opportunities for educators, developers, and administrators to enhance uptake and support diversity goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]