Abstract Schools are under tremendous pressure to close achievement gaps and increase students' college and career readiness. Research has shown that students' interactions with rigorouus curriculum and instructional practices positively impact their postsecondary outcomes (e.g. Adelman, 2006; Oakes and Saunders, 2007). With an established standard of rigor already existing in many high schools in the form of Advanced Placement courses, a majority of high schools could increase the rigor of their...

Abstract Authentic learning opportunities that engage students, promote student agency, and encourage individual strengths and interests are increasingly practiced in schools. However, learning opportunities for all students remain inconsistent and scattered. Very few studies report how schools navigate the shift from traditional models of instruction to personalized ones. The purpose of this participant-oriented study was to explore a possible solution to reduce the personalized learning gap and...

Abstract Content standards have a significant impact on the classroom as they provide a foundation on which teachers base their instruction and ensure a uniform experience in similar grade levels and settings (Ravitch, 1995; McMannon, 1997). In the field of social studies, standards not only identify the knowledge deemed worthy of consideration, they also suggest additonal desired student outcomes such as the development of agency and civic-mindedness (Ornstein, 1982). This subject area has...