A teacher sits at a table with several elementary school students, holding up a small whiteboard that reads "twelve times five equals"

Teaching and Learning

Quality teaching and learning are at the core of everything we do. We not only train the best teachers using the latest research on how students learn, we also evaluate educational innovations, partner with schools across the country, and much more.

100%
of Teacher Education graduates obtain licensure

Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning

CASTL is an interdisciplinary research center that aims to advance the quality of teaching and learning, from infancy to higher education. Our research initiatives span the globe and our faculty are leading the way to promote meaningful changes in education.

CLASS: Classroom Assessment Scoring System

CLASS™ is an observational instrument developed at the University of Virginia to assess classroom quality in PK-12 classrooms. CLASS™ can be used to reliably assess classroom quality for research and program evaluation, and also provides a tool to help new and experienced teachers become more effective. 

$55
million dollars of CASTL research funding over the last decade
MyTeachingPartner

MyTeachingPartner™, or MTP, is a system of professional development supports developed at CASTL. MTP improves teacher-student interactions, which in turn increases student learning and development.

Related News: Teaching and Learning

Research Labs: Teaching and Learning

  • FOCAL
  • Research Lab

Foundations of Cognitive Learning Lab

The FOCAL Lab studies the cognitive processes that underpin learning throughout the school years. The cognitive foundations that are central to our studies include motivation, executive function and self-regulation, sensorimotor and visuospatial processing, phonological skills, and general knowledge of the world. 

  • Research Lab

Engineering Design Lab

The Engineering Design Initiative aims to foster advanced and innovative performance across a range of subjects by integrating engineering design into K-12 classrooms. 

  • CTL
  • Research Lab

Contemplative Teaching and Learning Lab

The Contemplative Teaching and Learning Lab applies the contemplative sciences to informing our understanding of life-span development and education.

  • Research Lab

Robert H. Tai Research Group

The Robert H. Tai Research Group is a research team based at the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia.  This multi-institutional team conducts quantitative and qualitative research on major issues in Science Education.  The overarching goal is to produce robust empirical data that targets national policy, with the outcome of developing science students into productive and contributing scientists.

Dr. Tai and his research team cover a wide-range of interests including student engagement in K-12 science, the retention of students in the science pipeline, factors influencing success in college science courses, the transition of graduate students to practicing scientist, as well as the role of specialized high schools in talent development.  The team takes advantage of the many outlets for sharing and presenting research findings, thus reaching a wide audience in informing and influencing Science Education.

  • Research Lab

The 21st Century Learning Project

The aim of the 21st Century Learning Project is to create a framework of a common language, theory, and operational plan for societies to promote citizens’ learning in the 21st century. This framework will organize an expanding global network of engaged partners collaborating in an iterative process of refinement, application, and expansion.

Research: Teaching and Learning

Fostering Independence While Teaching Students With or at Risk for Reading Disabilities

This article describes the GRR model of instruction and provides specific guidance and resources to support special education teachers in implementing the GRR model during small-group reading instruction in primary-grade classrooms, with a particular emphasis on facilitating group and independent practice.

A Cautionary Tale of Tutoring Hard-to-Reach Students in Kenya

We study the effect of teacher-student phone calls in Kenya when schools were closed. Schools were randomly assigned for 3rd, 5th and 6th graders to receive one of two versions of a 7-week weekly math intervention—5-minute accountability checks or 15-minute mini-tutoring sessions—or to the control group.

Topic

Faculty Associated

Department or Center Associated

Effectiveness of Interventions for English Learners with Word Reading Difficulties: A Research Synthesis

This study meta-analyzed the last four decades (1980–2020) of reading intervention research focused on improving reading outcomes for English language (EL) students in Grades K–5 with or at risk for word reading difficulties.

Is it more effective or efficient to coach teachers in pairs or individually? A comparison of teacher and student outcomes and coaching costs

We examined the effects of two approaches on observations of teachers' classroom management practices and student behavioral outcomes, relative to non-coached conditions, over the course of a single school year and at a 1-year follow-up.

Negotiating Dominican Citizenship: Education, Race and Nation during the US Occupation, 1916-1924

In this Race & Education talk from the Center for Race and Public Education in the South (CRPES), Dr. Alexa Rodríguez gave a talk entitled "Negotiating Dominican Citizenship: Education, Race and Nation during the US Occupation, 1916-1924" on Wednesday, April 6th, 2022.

Related Academic Programs

Teaching and Learning

Ready for the next step? Learn from top faculty in the field of teaching and learning in one of our related programs.