The annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) took place April 21-26 in San Diego, drawing more than 11,000 educational researchers from around the world to present the latest in educational research. From the UNC School of Education, 23 faculty members and 27 students contributed to the conference in 60 different events. Almost half of those 60 events had doctoral student involvement, demonstrating the strength of the School’s doctoral student preparation efforts.
“Our doctoral students are deeply involved in our research efforts,” said Jeff Greene, Ph.D., the McMichael Family Professor and area chair of Learning, Development and Psychological Studies. “Their contributions are readily apparent by their active participation at AERA, both in presenting their own research and as collaborators on faculty-led research.”
Doctoral students were lead or solo authors on 17 papers presented at the conference. Their participation included presentations in symposia, roundtable discussions and paper presentations.
The AERA’s annual meeting is the largest gathering of scholars in the field of education research. The theme of the conference this year was “Cultivating Equitable Education Systems for the 21st Century.”
Participants in this year’s annual meeting of the AERA attended both in-person and virtually.
Katherine Ingram, a doctoral student in the School of Education’s School Psychology program, was one of the doctoral students presenting her own research. Her dissertation research — centered on understanding the motivations that prompt adolescent “sexting” — has won a $100,000 dissertation award from the National Institute of Justice.
Dorothy Espelage, Ph.D., the William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education who teaches and conducts research in the School of Education’s School Psychology and Learning Sciences and Psychological Studies programs, has worked with Ingram on her research and was a co-presenter with Ingram at AERA.
“Katie’s research is critical for understanding who, why, and how adolescents participate in sexting behavior so that we can build programs to prevent the harms that can come from them,” Espelage said. “Presenting this research in a forum such as AERA gives students experience presenting their work in a professional setting, and also helps spread findings that can contribute to others’ research efforts.”
AERA is the largest national professional organization devoted to the scientific study of education. Founded in 1916, AERA works to advance knowledge about education, encourages scholarly inquiry related to education, and promotes the use of research to improve education and serve the public good.
Following is a list of faculty and students who took part in the conference, with UNC School of Education-affiliated faculty in boldface and students and postdocs italicized:
Invited Speaker Sessions
Conducting Community-Engaged Research on Motivation From Our Partners’ Perspectives
Co-chair and a speaker: Matthew L. Bernacki
Division E Fireside Chat: Networking in a Virtual World
Panelist: Dorothy L. Espelage
Measuring Equity: How Do We Measure Equity in Schools at Scale?
Panelist: Constance A. Lindsay
Governance Sessions
AERA Journal Publications Committee and Journal Editors: Closed Meeting
Participant: Thurston Domina
AERA Committee on Scholars of Color in Education Mentoring Roundtable
Participant: Sherick A. Hughes
AERA Scholars of Color in Education Committee: Closed Meeting
Participant: Sherick A. Hughes
Business Meetings
SIG-Test Validity Research and Evaluation
Tugging on Superman’s Cape
Speaker: Gregory J. Cizek
Cizek is being recognized as the recipient of the 2022 Test Validation Research and Evaluation Award for a Senior Scholar.
AERA Division E Business Meeting: A Celebration of Success
Participant: Luz Robinson
Symposia
Symposium: Authenticating the Signal: Validating Digital Traces of Student Learning Using Concurrent, Corroborating Data Sources
Chair: Matthew L. Bernacki
Paper: Code What I Say, Not Just What I Do! Multimethod Investigations Into Digitally Traced Behaviors
Matthew L. Bernacki, Jeff A. Greene, Robert D. Plumley, Linyu Yu, Rebekah F. Duke, Rebekah Freed, Christina Hollander, Kelly Hogan
Symposium: Bifactor Models to Improve Theoretical and Analytical Precision and the Opportunity to Study Motivational Processes
Co-chair: Matthew L. Bernacki
Paper: An Integrative Variable- and Person-Centered Framework for Representing the Dimensionality of Math Interest
Matthew L. Bernacki
Paper: Bifactor Modeling and Latent Profiling of Biology Undergraduates’ General and Specific Achievement Goals and Task Values
Jeff A. Greene, Matthew Bernacki, Robert D. Plumley, Shelbi Laura Kuhlmann, Kelly Hogan, Mara Evans, Kathleen M. Gates, A.T. Panter
Symposium: Innovative Technology Practices to Support Equitable Schooling
Paper: Personalizing Mathematics to Students’ Career Interests Using the “Stories of Algebra” Online Environment
Matthew L. Bernacki, Meghan Greene
Symposium: Improving the Design of Program Evaluations in Education and Prevention Science
Paper: Design Parameters for Planning Multilevel Randomized Trials on Social and Behavioral Outcomes
Nianbo Dong
Symposium: Recent Research on Classroom Management: The Latest Edition of the Handbook of Classroom Management
Discussant: Dorothy L. Espelage
Symposium: Supporting Undergraduate STEM Students’ Academic Success Through Campus-Based and Researcher-Developed Self-Regulated Learning Initiatives
Chairs: Jeff A. Greene, Matthew L. Bernacki
Paper: Optimizing Student Participation in and Benefit From Brief, Digital Learning Skills Training
Matthew L. Bernacki
Paper: A Self-Regulated Learning Analytics Prediction-and-Intervention Design: Detecting and Supporting Struggling Biology Students
Matthew L. Bernacki
Paper: How Do Motivation Profiles Moderate the Efficacy of a Targeted Self-Regulated Learning Intervention?
Jeff A. Greene, Matthew Bernacki, Shelbi Laura Kuhlmann, Robert D. Plumley, Kelly Hogan, Mara Evans, Kathleen M. Gates, A.T. Panter
Paper: Leveraging Learning Analytics, Digital Training, and Campus Academic Success Programs to Support STEM Learners
Matthew Bernacki
Symposium: Teacher Identity and the Contemporary Development of Teachers in Educational Systems Globally
Paper: School as a Battlefield: Unpacking Minoritized Teachers’ Intersecting Identities
Dionne Cross Francis, Kathryn Habib
Symposium: The Inequitable Impact of COVID-19 on Education: A Crisis or an Opportunity?
Paper: Supporting the Educational and Mental Well-Being of Black Families During and Post-COVID-19
Dana C. Griffin, Marisa Marraccini, Meghan Greene, Maya Hardrick, Maya Bracy
Symposium: Critical Contexts for Adolescents: Exploring Contextual Influences on Sexting Behaviors and on the Experiences of Gender-Expansive Adolescents
Paper: Understanding Prevalence of Nonconsensual Sexting Among Adolescents Through a School Social Network Lens
Katherine Ingram, Dorothy L. Espelage
Symposium: Teacher Recruitment, Preparation, and Workforce Diversity
Discussant: Constance A. Lindsay
Symposium: Catalysts for Change: School Counselors Tackle Inequitable Educational Opportunity, Racial Injustice, and COVID-19
Paper: Black Boys’ Lives Matter: A Trauma and Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Approach to Suicide Prevention in Schools
Marisa Marraccini, Constance A. Lindsay, Dana C. Griffin, Meghan Greene, Katherine M. Ingram
Symposium: Thinking Spatially About Black Schoolgirls’ Geographies
Co-chair: Lucia Mock
Roundtable Sessions
Career Readiness: Mathematical Demands of Careers as Reported by Early Career Professionals
Michael Berro, Heather Koons and Angie Diaz of MetaMetrics, Inc.
Understanding Children’s Early Exposure to Same-Race Teachers
Lora A. Cohen-Vogel, Mary Bratsch-Hines, Michael Harris Little, Constance A. Lindsay, Robert Carr
The Physical, Discursive, and Pedagogical Imprisonment of Students With Severe Disability Labels
Charna D’Ardenne, Karen Erikson, Nitasha M Clark
Session: (Re)Thinking Discursive Practices to Center Disability
Paper: Embodied Dialogue: Students Labeled With Severe Disabilities Redefine Narrative
Charna D’Ardenne, Karen Erikson
Academic Vocabulary Volume in Elementary Grades Disciplinary Textbooks
Jill Fitzgerald
Whiteness and Racial Violence: A Narrative Inquiry of Three White Teachers Teaching the History of Lynching in Rural America
Brian Gibbs
Cross-Sector Governance of Early Learning: The Case of North Carolina’s Birth Through Grade 3 Interagency Council
Megan Kathryn Rauch Griffard, Lora A. Cohen-Vogel, Michael Harris Little
District Leadership in Complexity: Navigating Competing Demands of Academic Excellence, Evidence-Based Decision Making, Inclusion, and Care in a Time of Crisis
Chair: Ayesha Hashim
Teacher Learning Through Collaborative Curriculum Design During a Pandemic: A Cultural Historical Activity Theory Investigation
Li Ke, Rebecca Rawson, Troy D. Sadler
Pursuits Beyond High School: Can STEMM–Career and Technical Education Courses Sustain College-Going and Employment?
Daniel Klasik
Session: Families and Children Navigating During COVID-19
Paper: When Education Goes Full Circle: A Dreams Assessment of Black Families and Educators During COVID-19
Amber Majors Ladipo, Dawn X Henderson
How Do Teachers Matter? The Association of Teacher Characteristics and Student Achievement Gap
Shuai Li
Session: Examining Asian American Students’ Educational Experiences During the Twin Pandemics of COVID-19 and Anti-Asian Hate
Paper: A Critical Framework: Chinese Students’ Perceptions of University Climate and Support During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Xue Lan Rong
Session: Mixed-Methods Research Applications for Teachers
Paper: Self-Efficacy and Professional Development of Chinese Language Teachers in North Carolina Secondary Schools
Lini Ge Polin, Xue Lan Rong
Paper Sessions
Leadership During Challenging Times
Discussant: Elizabeth Marie Allen
Preservice Teachers’ Emotions
Paper: Examining Preservice Teachers’ White Emotions and Other Elements of Whiteness in Multiracial Contexts
Elizabeth Marie Allen
Honing Humanizing Practices: Nurturing Resilience, Mindfulness, and Justice in Teacher Education
Paper: “It’s All Experiential!” Cultivating Knowledge, Skills, and Mindsets That Prepare and Support Resilient Teachers
Cheryl Mason Bolick, Jocelyn A. Glazier, Suzanne A. Gulledge, Kristin Papoi, Nicole Ross
Promoting Justice and Equity in Online Learning Contexts
Paper: Equity Challenges for Remote Learning During COVID-19: A Comparison of Chinese and U.S. Teachers’ Perspectives
Huanyu Cong
(Re)Conceptualizing Education Grounded in Student Experiences and Perspectives
Paper: Dialogue Without Conventional Language: Students With Severe Disability Labels Engage in Dialogic Relationships
Charna D’Ardenne, Karen Erikson
Self-Regulated Learning Processes
Paper: How Do Self-Regulated Learning Processes Relate to Students’ Ability to Learn From Worked Peer Examples?
Rebekah F Duke, Christina Hollander, Linyu Yu, Shelbi Laura Kuhlmann, Matthew L. Bernacki, Jeff A. Greene
Paper: COVID-19 and Developing a Critical Sense of “Normalcy”
Nicole Eilers
Critical Explorations: Students Grappling With Critical Questions and Issues
Paper: Students on Just War and How to End War
Brian C. Gibbs
Paper: “They Tell Us We Can Change the World but Never Teach Us How”: Students on the Role of Social and Political Activism in the Curriculum
Brian C. Gibbs
Disrupting Carceral Logics and the School-to-Prison Pipeline
Paper: Billie Holiday and Racial Justice
Brian C. Gibbs
Engaging Critical Voices of Youth Across Multiple Settings
Paper: “So … Like I’m Responsible for Ending War?” Centering Antiwar Activism in Our Teaching of War
Brian C. Gibbs
Teacher Leadership for Social Justice
Paper: Outlaw Teaching as Necessary Response
Brian C. Gibbs
Higher Education Policy and Campus Crises: Sexual Violence and COVID Contexts
Paper: The Impact of COVID-19 on First-Generation Students’ Health, Well-Being, and Sense of Self
Megan Kathryn Rauch Griffard
Privilege, Access, Privatization, and Equity in School Choice Environments
Paper: Exploring the Tension Between Centralized Student Transportation and School Autonomy in the Context of School Choice
Ayesha Hashim
Stronger Together: Partnerships for Educational Leadership Preparation
Paper: The Demands of Equity-Centered Principal Pipelines and the Role for Research-Practice Partnerships
Ayesha Hashim
Teaching and Curriculum in Early Childhood
Paper: Complex Preschool Teacher Talk, Content Area, and Child Outcome
Wonkyung Jang
Science Education and the COVID-19 Pandemic
Paper: Investigating High School Students’ Systems Thinking in the COVID-19 Pandemic
Eric Kirk, Troy D. Sadler
College Access and Geography
Paper: A Chill From the Desert: How Education Deserts Shape Students’ Pathway to College
Daniel Klasik
Queer (Re)Storying of Dreams and Histories
Paper: Centering Queer Joy in a New English Canon
Caitlin O’Loughlin
Self-Regulated Learning Interventions Within Schools and Other Contexts
Paper: Effects of a Brief Digital Self-Regulated Learning Intervention on Achievement and Moderation by Students’ Motivation
Robert D Plumley, Jeff A. Greene, Matthew L. Bernacki, Shelbi Laura Kuhlmann, Kelly Hogan, Kathleen M. Gates, Abigail Panter
Leadership From the Margins: Pushing the Contextual Boundaries of Social Justice Scholarship, Policy, and Practice
Paper: Restorative Justice: A Qualitative Analysis of School Security Perspectives
Luz Robinson, Ashley Woolweaver, Dorothy L. Espelage
Metacognition, Monitoring, and Mindfulness: Insights From Educational Neuroscience
Paper: Neural Coupling as a Measure of Teacher-Student Understanding
Troy D. Sadler
Poster Sessions
Session: Intersectionality Matters: Educational Perspectives, Paradigms, and Possibilities
Poster: How Preservice Teachers Flutter in Race Conversations: The Verbal and Emotional Content of White Talk (Poster 5)
Elizabeth Marie Allen
AERA Poster Session 6
A Network-Based Learning Analytics Approach to Measuring Student Engagement and Predicting STEM Achievement
Matthew L. Bernacki, Jeff A. Greene
Structured Poster Sessions
Session: Infectious Learning and Teaching: Opportunities and Challenges of Integrating COVID-19 Into K–16 Education
Poster: Teaching and Learning About COVID-19 in the Midst of the Pandemic (Poster 4)
Li Ke, Troy D. Sadler
Artificial Intelligence and the Future of STEM Instruction: Designing New Models to Automate Feedback to Teachers
Kihyun “Kelly” Ryoo, Emily Marie Decker