Highlighted publications
Pedagogy and practice: Creating spaces for multilingual students to learn and belong
Education as Capital? A Critical Discourse Analysis of the Investment Discourse in International Research on Chinese Rural Education
Xiang, X., Lou, J., Yu, M., & Teng, J. (2024). Education as Capital? A Critical Discourse Analysis of the Investment Discourse in International Research on Chinese Rural Education. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education.
This article examines the rise of human capital theory and the investment discourse in education with a focus on Chinese rural education. We carry out Critical Discourse Analysis on 38 research articles published in highly cited English-language social science journals between 1978 and 2022. We demonstrate that Chinese rural education boomed as a topic of international research in the 21st century due to intensified academic internationalisation in China, which is intertwined with China’s pursuit of global influence and rising nationalism. The articles in our sample respond more to mainstream discourses dominated by the Global North than to the concerns of local communities, thereby reinforcing the dominance of western social theories and discourses like the human capital theory and the investment discourse. Amidst increasingly antagonistic global politics, we call for the critical ‘double negation’ (this issue) of both coloniality and nationalism to open up possibilities of plural knowledges.
Using transformative technology to teach central tendency and promote equity
Özgün-Koca, S. A., Lewis, J. M., Nazelli, C.J., & Hernandez, L. (2024). Using transformative technology to teach central tendency and promote equity. Journal of the Korean Society of Mathematics Education, 27(3), 297–317.
Keywords
Mathematics education
Instructional technology
Equity
This article explores how the use of technology along with carefully designed tasks can advance equity in the teaching of mathematics. Focusing on one of the dimensions of the EQTTech lesson analysis tool, this study examines how the use of technology can support the development of authority, identity, and agency in minoritized high school youth. A lesson on central tendency was designed and enacted in two 9th grade classrooms using GeoGebra and Padlet technologies. Student work and video recordings of the lesson were analyzed for student expressions of authority, identity and agency. These key constructs were intertwined in practice, and appear to be supported by the pairing of carefully selected tasks with technology chosen for its potential to advance equity.
‘We persist in this cycle’: A critical disability raciolinguistic analysis of behavioral policies for emergent bilinguals labeled as disabled
Stinson, C., Migliarini, V., & Miller, A. L. (accepted November 2024). ‘We persist in this cycle’: A critical disability raciolinguistic analysis of behavioral policies for emergent bilinguals labeled as disabled. The Urban Review. Advance online publication.
Keywords
Emergent bilinguals
Behavior management
DisCrit
Urban education
Raciolinguistics
School discipline
Emergent bilingual children with disabilities are represented across many student subgroups which are disproportionately affected by rigid disciplinary policies and behavioral support systems, as well as exclusionary policy implementation in gen- eral and special education. This qualitative study investigated how teachers read and enacted policies to correct, eliminate, or otherwise change emergent bilingual students’ behavior and social interactions in a culturally, racially, and linguistically diverse mid-sized urban school district. The findings of this study offer suggestions for teachers and teacher educators as they endeavor to disrupt inequitable outcomes of behavioral policies on emergent bilingual students with and without disabilities.
Teachers’ insights on cultivating inclusive education for students with complex support needs
Mansouri, M. C., Miller, A. L., Kurth, J. A., Ruther, L. C., Wilt, C. L., Toews, S. G., & Morningstar, M. E. (2024). Teachers’ insights on cultivating inclusive education for students with complex support needs. Teachers College Record. Advance online publication.
Keywords
Inclusive education
Special education
Students with complex support needs
Teacher agency
Teacher preparation
Department of Defense K-12 STEM Summer Camps & Saturday Sessions Resume
Keywords
STEM
K-12 Education
Native-Indigenous students
Microsystem and intrapersonal variables associated with middle school achievement: The important role of engagement. Preventing School Failure
Porcaro, J., Somers, C. L., Karanfili, B., & Partridge, R. T. (in press, 2024). Microsystem and intrapersonal variables associated with middle school achievement: The important role of engagement. Preventing School Failure.
Emotion-Driven Eating and Overeating Among Fourth Graders: The Roles of Body Image, Academic Achievement, and Peer and School Factors
Somers, C. L., Kevern, C., Moore, W. E. G., Centeio, E., Kulik, N., Piotter, B., Garn, A., & McCaughtry, N. (2024). Emotion‐driven eating and overeating among fourth graders: The roles of body image, academic achievement, and peer and school factors. Journal of School Health, 94 (4), 317-326.
Possibilities and power during Early Head Start Home visits: Comparing family‐ and home visitor‐opened decision‐making
Hancock, C. L. (2024). Possibilities and power during Early Head Start Home visits: Comparing family‐ and home visitor‐opened decision‐making. Infant Mental Health Journal: Infancy and Early Childhood. Advance online publication.
Keywords
Decision-making
Discourse analysis
Early Head Start
Family partnerships
Home visiting
Mixed methods research
Decision-making by families and professionals about how to support children’s development is an integral aspect of home visits. This study investigated home visit decision-making in a US program for families experiencing poverty, Early Head Start (EHS), through the following questions: What types of decisions do home visitors and families make about children’s development during EHS home visits? How and to what extent do home visitors and families participate during these decisions? A convergent mixed methods research design was implemented to investigate participation through frequency counts and discourse analysis of home visit transcripts. Home visitor participants were four women, three white and one Black. Twelve families participated (12 mothers, 2 fathers). Parents identified as white (n = 8), Black (n = 3), and multiracial (n = 3; Black and white). One parent was a bilingual Arabic and English speaker. A total of 66 decisions about children’s development were identified, with 49 decisions initiated by home visitors and 17 initiated by families. Although families talked more and took on active roles when they initiated (i.e., opened) decisions, home visitors predominantly controlled decision-making. Quantitative and qualitative participation differed only in the beginning of family-opened decisions, and home visitors gradually took more control.
Challenges and Stresses Experienced by Paralympic Athletes and Coaches
Beasely, V., Bastos, T, McDougall, H., & Martin, J. (2025). Challenges and Stresses Experienced by Paralympic Athletes and Coaches. In K. Griggs (Eds.) Handbook of Applied Sports Science and Exercise in Disability Sports (1st Ed). (pp. xxx-xxx). New York, NY: Routledge Publishing.
Impact of Sport Engagement and Social Support on the Health-Related Quality of Life of Youth Athletes With Physical Disabilities
Sur, M. H., Shapiro, D. R., & Martin, J. (2024). Impact of Sport Engagement and Social Support on the Health-Related Quality of Life of Youth Athletes With Physical Disabilities. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 1(aop), 1-18.
APAQ at Forty: Publication Trends
Martin, J. J. (2024). APAQ at Forty: Publication Trends. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, 1(aop), 1-18.
Use of Psychological Skills Training
Munroe-Chandler, K., Ely, F., Loughead, T., Martin, J., & Beasley, V. (2025). Use of Psychological Skills Training. In K. Griggs (Eds.) Handbook of Applied Sports Science and Exercise in Disability Sports (1st Ed). (pp. xxx-xxx). New York, NY: Routledge Publishing.
Clubhouse virtual programming: A trend analysis of member engagement patterns before, during, and after pandemic lockdown
Rice, K., Simaitis, G., & Pernice, F. (2024). Clubhouse virtual programming: A trend analysis of member engagement patterns before, during, and after pandemic lockdown. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 47(3), 200–208.
Keywords
Clubhouse
Mental illness
Virtual programs
Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on the mental health of individuals with serious mental illness, with restricting social gatherings and limiting access to essential community and psychosocial support services. For programs like clubhouses, adapting typically in-person programming to online settings led to the creation of virtual clubhouse programming that persists at many sites even after reopening. Although it has been documented how clubhouses adapted their programming online, it has not been investigated at the individual level how those programs were utilized over time, by different member cohorts, and how they persist in comparison to one another. Method: The present article presents descriptive and inferential statistics, analysis of variance, and secondary trend analysis of the Fountain House clubhouse in-person and virtual engagements of three member cohorts who enrolled in either three time periods before pandemic restrictions (the prior cohort), during pandemic restrictions (the pandemic cohort), and after lockdown restrictions (the reopening cohort). Result: Initial findings show that the prior cohort sustained their overall rate of engagement across time periods. The pandemic cohort had a significantly higher rate of engagement than the prior cohort within the during period but demonstrated a significant decrease in engagement rate between the during and after period. Prior and pandemic cohorts had statistically similar virtual and in-person engagement ratios in the after period, but the reopen cohort differed significantly with a predominant ratio of in-person engagements. Conclusions and Implications for Practice: Member engagement trends within in-person and virtual offerings across the three different pandemic related time periods indicate important considerations for the sustainability and innovation of clubhouse virtual programming.
Disaggregating between- and within-person associations of mastery and cognitive function: age as a moderator
Du, C., Wu, B., Peng, C. et al. Disaggregating between- and within-person associations of mastery and cognitive function: age as a moderator. BMC Geriatr 24, 722 (2024).
Keywords
Multilevel modeling
Cognitive functioning
Ahcging
Mastery may shape the way individuals cope with life challenges and influence cognitive function in later life. Mastery grows out of traumatic experience and could change over the life course. This study examined the within-person and between-person associations of mastery and cognitive function, and if these associations were moderated by age in the United States.
Asian diaspora theorizing: defying Racism~ Re-imagining alternate Nows~ Invigorating otherwise futures
He, M. F., Sharma, S., & Yu, M. (2024). Asian diaspora theorizing: defying Racism~ Re-imagining alternate Nows~ Invigorating otherwise futures. Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, 1-7.
Keywords
Asian diaspora
Interdisciplinary theorizing
Subaltern consciousness
AsianCrit
Unearthing and reconstructing schooling with multiply-marginalized disabled students through an intersectional sociospatial lens
Miller, A. L., & Pearson, H. (2024). Unearthing and reconstructing schooling with multiply-marginalized disabled students through an intersectional sociospatial lens. Race Ethnicity and Education. Advance online publication.
Keywords
Critical spatial theory
Educational research
Intersectionality
Multiply-marginalized disabled students
Sociospatial dialectic
Multiply-marginalized disabled students in PreK-12 and postsecondary schools have unique educational trajectories. Yet, their firsthand experiences are understudied. This conceptual paper explores the affordances and possibilities of using an intersectional sociospatial lens supported by arts-based and visual methods grounded in the lived experiences of multiply-marginalized disabled students to unearth and reconstruct educational policies, practices, and systems. We anchor with two questions: How does an intersectional sociospatial lens support research and policy grounded in the epistemologies, lived experiences, ontologies, and axiological commitments of multiply-marginalized disabled students? How does an intersectional sociospatial lens revisit, reimagine, and re-engage sociospatial conversations and experiences? To engage this dialogue, we present this blended framing and also review previous work. We highlight the merits of this existing scholarship while providing implications for future research and policy centering multiply-marginalized disabled students with an intersectional sociospatial lens.
Licensing whiteness: property, privilege, and (re)centering the politics of race within neoliberalism
Crowley, C. B., Powell, S., Reynolds, A., & Yu, M. (2024). Licensing whiteness: property, privilege, and (re)centering the politics of race within neoliberalism. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education.
Critical race theory ought to be central to analyses of neoliberalism and its impact on contemporary educational landscapes in the United States. Neoliberalism finds grounding in the rule of law, particularly as it relates to the role of contracts, contractual relationships, and by extension forms of licensure. Parallel to this, critical race theory also finds conceptual grounding in law, most notably as it pertains to understandings of linkages between property rights and whiteness. We explore the implications of considering whiteness as an institutionally-sponsored, state-sanctioned form of licensed property. The identification of neoliberalism as a dominant form of institutionalized whiteness centers understandings of the racialized contractual terms operating discursively under the auspices of white supremacist neoliberal regimes. Though Brown v. Board of Education (1954) overturned the “separate but equal” principle in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), we argue that neoliberalism continues to operationalize the maintenance of racial inequity in US schooling.
Licensing whiteness: property, privilege, and (re)centering the politics of race within neoliberalism
Crowley, C. B., Powell, S., Reynolds, A., & Yu, M. (2024). Licensing whiteness: property, privilege, and (re)centering the politics of race within neoliberalism. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education.
Critical race theory ought to be central to analyses of neoliberalism and its impact on contemporary educational landscapes in the United States. Neoliberalism finds grounding in the rule of law, particularly as it relates to the role of contracts, contractual relationships, and by extension forms of licensure. Parallel to this, critical race theory also finds conceptual grounding in law, most notably as it pertains to understandings of linkages between property rights and whiteness. We explore the implications of considering whiteness as an institutionally-sponsored, state-sanctioned form of licensed property. The identification of neoliberalism as a dominant form of institutionalized whiteness centers understandings of the racialized contractual terms operating discursively under the auspices of white supremacist neoliberal regimes. Though Brown v. Board of Education (1954) overturned the “separate but equal” principle in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), we argue that neoliberalism continues to operationalize the maintenance of racial inequity in US schooling.
The Pedagogy of Place in China’s Migrant Community
Yu, M. (2024). The Pedagogy of Place in China’s Migrant Community. ECNU Review of Education.
This article examines the curriculum and pedagogy of place for migrant children in China and advocates the recognition of migrant families’ and communities’ knowledge as necessary, relevant, and impactful curriculum. This article is based on a longitudinal qualitative study conducted in various migrant settlements in Beijing. Data were collected from in-depth interviews with migrant parents, teachers, and community activists and participant observations in schools, community meetings, and other gatherings in the communities. Data were coded on themes related to place-based connection, attachment, and belonging and then analyzed. Findings demonstrate that pedagogical practices can be developed to re-center the knowledge and experiences of Chinese migrant communities. This pedagogical work recognizes and reflects the undervalued and unrecognized knowledge of migrant communities while investigating the meaning of “place” for migrant children. This is the first study putting special emphasis on the discussion of what “place” means for migrants and what knowledge is worthwhile for their children in China. A key contribution of this article is that it documents the challenges and benefits of creating a place-based curriculum and pedagogy for migrant children as they construct a sense of belonging.
Ignored Subjectivity in the Informational Panopticon: Restricted Classroom Interaction Under Technical Discipline
Chang, Y., Gao, M., & Yu, M. (2024). Ignored Subjectivity in the Informational Panopticon: Restricted Classroom Interaction Under Technical Discipline. ECNU Review of Education.
This article aims to provide a portrait of classroom interactions supported by information technology and discuss the complex impact of technical elements on teaching and the time–space distance of student subjectivity in a technology-dominated world. Based on Foucault's panopticism, this study examines a smart classroom in East Asia to observe classroom teaching and learning processes; conducts semi-structured interviews with teachers, students, parents, and other stakeholders; and analyzes the hidden mechanism of the smart classroom on interaction from the perspective of perceivers. The smart classroom has the distinctive structural features of a Panopticon. Artificial intelligence, which coalesces cultural capital through technological authority, has a significant capital advantage over students, producing a false spectacle of efficient learning. Panoramic surveillance causes the “backstage” of students’ roles to be gradually consumed by the “front” and makes students exhibit “make-work” behavior. Refined information management mechanisms produce invisible digital walls that separate interactive groups, making it difficult for students to obtain sufficient information about the gestures and behaviors of their classmates to interact effectively. This study reveals the ignorance of human subjectivity in the orientation of instrumental rationality by understanding the expressions of witnesses.
Licensing whiteness: property, privilege, and (re)centering the politics of race within neoliberalism
Crowley, C. B., Powell, S., Reynolds, A., & Yu, M. (2024). Licensing whiteness: property, privilege, and (re)centering the politics of race within neoliberalism. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education.
Critical race theory ought to be central to analyses of neoliberalism and its impact on contemporary educational landscapes in the United States. Neoliberalism finds grounding in the rule of law, particularly as it relates to the role of contracts, contractual relationships, and by extension forms of licensure. Parallel to this, critical race theory also finds conceptual grounding in law, most notably as it pertains to understandings of linkages between property rights and whiteness. We explore the implications of considering whiteness as an institutionally-sponsored, state-sanctioned form of licensed property. The identification of neoliberalism as a dominant form of institutionalized whiteness centers understandings of the racialized contractual terms operating discursively under the auspices of white supremacist neoliberal regimes. Though Brown v. Board of Education (1954) overturned the “separate but equal” principle in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), we argue that neoliberalism continues to operationalize the maintenance of racial inequity in US schooling.
Disrupting inequitable family-professional decision-making in EC/ECSE: Alternate possibilities through the humanist frame
Hancock, C. L., & Morgan, C. W. (2024). Disrupting inequitable family-professional decision-making in EC/ECSE: Alternate possibilities through the humanist frame. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education. Advance online publication.
Keywords
Family-professional partnerships
Decision-making
Power
Though families are recognized as educational decision-makers for their children, inequitable family-professional partnerships persist in early childhood and early childhood special education (EC/ECSE), particularly for marginalized families. In this article, we argue that to promote equitable decision-making and best meet the needs of young children from birth through age five and their families, EC/ECSE professionals can reframe family-professional partnerships through an alternate lens to disrupt and transform entrenched power dynamics. To this end, we first introduce two perspectives of knowledge and power, functionalism and humanism, and discuss how they contribute to decision-making in EC/ECSE. Then, we present a model to examine power and apply the model to contrast decision-making rooted in functionalist and humanist framings. To conclude, we provide recommendations for policy, research, and practice through the humanist frame.
Promoting educational equity for migrant children in China
Yu, M. (2024). Promoting educational equity for migrant children in China. In P. Downes, G. Li, L. Van Praag, & S. Lamb (Eds.),The Routledge International Handbook of Equity and Inclusion in Education (pp. 389-400). Routledge.
Keywords
Educational equity
Migrant children
Minjian society
Situating within the context of migrant communities’ social and political struggles in urban Chinese cities, this chapter aims to demonstrate the mobilization in migrant communities as community members and activists work to provide educational opportunities for migrant children. Although excluded from the urban public realm for decades, migrant communities in China’s large urban cities never stopped their mobilization toward providing education for their children and making their voices heard. Grassroots migrant organizations function as centers of collective actions that address the needs of the community and counter the deficit notions of migrant children and their families, by illuminating the powerful ways that community members and activists utilize various forms of community cultural wealth. The spaces created as a result of the collective actions encouraged the formation of a sense of solidarity among migrant children, their families, as well as activists from outside the communities. These activities not only challenged the stereotypes of migrant children and their families but also provided opportunities to mobilize people from outside the communities to support migrant children’s education.
Community-Based Education and Child Development Work for Migrant Children in China: A Multi-dimensional Citizenship Approach
Yu, M. (2024). Community-Based Education and Child Development Work for Migrant Children in China: A Multi-dimensional Citizenship Approach. Chinese Sociological Review.
Keywords
Community-based education
Migrant children
Multi-dimensional citizenship
The primary focus of this article is to investigate the impact of community-based efforts to provide education and child development programs and service in China’s migrant communities, specifically as it pertains to the prospects of addressing sociocultural and socioeconomic inequalities in education and child development in urban China. Building on frameworks of dimensions of citizenship, this article examines the work of migrant educator-activists who provide community-based education and child development service in Beijing’s migrant communities. Their efforts to address inequalities in child development for migrant children enrich the understanding of citizenship in the Chinese context.
Forging a Path to College Persistence: An Experimental Evaluation of the Detroit Promise Path Program
Brockman, S. L., Camo-Biogradlija, J., Ratledge, A., O’Donoghue, R., Baum, M. Y., & Jacob, B. (2024). Forging a Path to College Persistence: An Experimental Evaluation of the Detroit Promise Path Program. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 0(0), 01623737241230474.
Keywords
Community college coaching
High-need students
Persistence
Randomized trial
Detroit students who obtain a college degree overcome many obstacles to do so. This article reports the results of a randomized evaluation of a program meant to provide support to low-income community college students. The Detroit Promise Path program was designed to complement an existing College Promise scholarship, providing students with coaching, summer engagement, and financial incentives. The evaluation found that students offered the program enrolled in more semesters and earned more credits compared with those offered the scholarship alone. However, at the 3-year mark, there were no discernable impacts on degrees earned. This article examines systemic barriers to degree completion and offers lessons for the design of interventions to increase equity in postsecondary attainment.
Preparing the expert novice: Core practices for implementing blueprints for inquiry design
Brugar, K. A., Roberts, K. L., Allen, A., Ratcliff, K., & Capps, C. (2023). Preparing the expert novice: Core practices for implementing blueprints for inquiry design. Journal of Teacher Education, 74(5), 495-507.
Keywords
Inquiry
Social Studies
Pre-Service teachers
In this study we share the understandings and the reflections of pre-service teachers as they engage in focus group interviews about inquiry and Inquiry Design Model blueprints. These pre-service teachers first discussed their understanding of inquiry which was rooted in their university coursework. They then described their efficacy for implementing inquiry, generally, and the blueprint, specifically, in their current field placements and future classrooms. This envisioned implementation often involved adaptations of the blueprints. In an effort to understand and reconsider how pre-service teachers experience and learn about inquiry, this study can inform teacher educators to better support pre-service teachers to enact socially-conscious and developmentally-appropriate elementary social studies inquiry in their present and future classrooms.
Partnering for success: Text and peer engagement during paired reading
Roberts, K. L., Arya, P., Plond, Kathleen K. (2024). Partnering for success: Text and peer engagement during paired reading. Reading Teacher, 77(4), 453-461.
Keywords
Partner reading
Peer engagement
This article describes partner reading in a third-grade classroom. Though challenging, partner reading provides opportunities for students to engage with texts and each other in ways that support young readers.