Heidi Holmes-Erickson

This research seeks to understand parental support for online students. Using a survey, this study examined perceptions from 567 parents from eight online K-12 programs in a Midwestern state regarding their support for students’ online affective, behavioral, and cognitive engagement. Guided by the Academic Communities of Engagement Framework, our analysis identified eight main challenges parents faced when supporting their online student: (a) focus; (b) keeping on pace; (c) lack of motivation; (d) lack of organization, learning materials, live sessions, and support from online schools; (e) lack of feedback, support, and communication from teachers; (f) parents in need of additional skills in supporting students’ online engagement; (g) schedule issues at home and (h) parents’ unawareness of students’ online learning. Practical recommendations to help parents are shared at the end of the study.

In this chapter, we discuss the purpose and value of school field trips in enhancing arts education for young adolescents. Field trips, particularly to art and cultural institutions, are a long-standing educational tradition, in US education, but little is known about their educational and social emotional value for students. We present the results of a longitudinal experiment on the academic and social-emotional effects of arts-based field trips. Students in the study (grades 4–5, ages 9–11) were randomly assigned to attended three art-based field trips including an art museum, a symphony, and a live theater performance, or to serve as a control group. Treatment students who attended the field trips demonstrated increased academic outcomes, school engagement and social emotional outcomes. Additionally, we interviewed teachers and students about their experiences on school field trips to further understand and contextualize the experimental findings. Participants frequently reported that they valued arts field trip experiences. Teachers considered field trips important for student education. Students recalled past field trips as formative experiences and advocated for these experiences for themselves and their peers. We discuss the implications of these findings for policy makers, school leaders, and teachers.

Critical race theory (CRT) and claims of political indoctrination in K-12 classrooms are at the forefront of the ongoing culture wars surrounding public education. Despite a wave of legislative action targeting CRT-related instruction, little systematic evidence documents the extent to which critics’ claims have merit. Using a nationally representative survey of American high school students, we examine the frequency with which students are exposed to CRT-related content and political bias in their classrooms. We further examine how students’ experiences differ by political preference, race/ethnicity, and local political context, finding that classroom content likely mirrors community preferences. Our findings suggest that while some divisive topics are discussed, their frequency and context do not support the claims of the most vocal critics.

As school choice expands nationwide, concerns about ideological polarization in K–12 education have intensified. Using a nationally representative survey of U.S. high school students, we examine how exposure to CRT-related ideas varies across public, charter, private, and homeschool settings. Private school students report greater exposure to critical and favorable ideas about America’s racial history than their public school peers, suggesting a more balanced presentation. Charter and public school students report similar exposure levels, while homeschoolers report the least. These findings challenge claims that choice fosters ideological echo chambers and inform policy debates on school choice, democratic education, and pluralism.