Categories for Education Outcomes

What do we know about effective teacher preparation?

April 9, 2021

Linking Teacher Preparation Program Design and Implementation to Outcomes for Teachers and Students. This book examines how to improve teacher preparation programs using the best available evidence. The chapters explore how data availability, quality, and use within and across preparation programs shed light on the structures, policies, and practices associated with high-quality teacher preparation. The authors look at critical questions about the connection between what takes place during teacher preparation and subsequent outcomes for teachers and students. Despite a long history of teacher preparation and considerable investments in preservice and in-service training, there remains much to be learned about effectively training teachers. The chapter topics include;

• Improving Teacher Preparation: The Promise, Challenges, and Research Needs of State Accountability Systems,
• Learning to Teach: Optimizing Coursework and Fieldwork Requirements in Traditional Teacher Preparation,
• Using Case Study Data of Completers as Evidence in a Continuous Improvement Model,
• Educating Effective Science Teachers: Preparing and Following Teachers Into the Field,
• Measuring Diversity in Teacher Candidate Practicum Placements and its Relationship to Outcomes,
• Signature Practices in an Urban Residency Program: How Are These Practices Evident in the Graduates’ Classrooms,
• Preparing and Keeping Our Best: Linking a Measure of Preservice Teacher Quality to Professional Outcomes,
• Toward Causal Evidence on Effective Teacher Preparation, and
• Supporting the Use of Evidence in Teacher Preparation: Considerations and Next Steps.

Citation: Carinci, J. E., Jackson, C., & Meyer, S. J. (Eds.). (2020). Linking Teacher Preparation Program Design and Implementation to Outcomes for Teachers and Students. IAP.

Link: Linking Teacher Preparation Program Design and Implementation to Outcomes

 


 

How important is Mastery Learning to improving student achievement?

March 23, 2021

Mastery Learning. Mastery learning is an instructional approach that relies on students successfully mastering material before moving on to the next lesson. It has been found to be a very powerful instructional method, with effect sizes ranging from 0.50 to 0.58, and is the fundamental component of many education interventions such as Response to Intervention (RtI), Personalized System of Instruction (PSI), and computer-based instruction. Mastery learning requires that instructional materials be sequenced so that instruction builds on what has been previously mastered until the overall learning objectives are mastered. Using formative assessment procedures, teachers frequently assess how each student is progressing toward mastering the objectives in each learning unit. Students who demonstrate competency move on to the next unit. Students may study in groups or alone, working through each unit, but progress is assessed individually. For students who have not mastered the lesson, additional group or individual instruction is provided. Remediation may include tutoring, peer monitoring, small group discussions, or additional homework. Mastery learning has been found to be effective at all levels of education.

Citation: Guinness, K., Detrich, R., Keyworth, R. & States, J. (2021). Overview of Mastery Learning. Oakland, CA: The Wing Institute. https://www.winginstitute.org/instructional-delivery-learning.

Link: https://www.winginstitute.org/instructional-delivery-learning

 


 

What practices can enhance the impact of instruction in history and social sciences?

March 19, 2021

The effects of historical reading and writing strategy instruction with fourth-through sixth-grade students. This quasi-experimental study of fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade students explored the use of a cognitive apprenticeship model to teach students historical reading and writing strategies.  These results suggest that with appropriate supports and the opportunity to engage in meaningful historical content, students in fourth through sixth grade can analyze primary and secondary source documents and write evidence-based historical arguments. 

Citation: Wissinger, D. R., De La Paz, S., & Jackson, C. (2021). The effects of historical reading and writing strategy instruction with fourth-through sixth-grade students. Journal of Educational Psychology113(1), 49.

Link: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Daniel-Wissinger/publication/339508391_The_Effects_of_Historical_Reading_and_Writing_Strategy_Instruction_With_Fourth-Through_Sixth-Grade_Students/links/5e58006e92851cefa1c9d8f0/The-Effects-of-Historical-Reading-and-Writing-Strategy-Instruction-With-Fourth-Through-Sixth-Grade-Students.pdf

 


 

Are Dyslexia interventions evidence-based?

March 19, 2021

Are Scientific Reading Instruction and Dyslexia Interventions the Same? Distinctions for Elementary Education Preparation Programs. Dyslexia is a language-based disability that can hinder the fluent acquisition of reading skills. Dyslexia poses a particular challenge to teachers instructing students in reading. It is estimated that approximately 15%-20% of the population is impacted by dyslexia. This paper compares the tenets of structured literacy, the reading method used in many dyslexia programs, to scientific reading instruction. Directed content analysis of documents relevant to the research topic revealed three themes which accounted for concepts from the National Reading Panel report, Scientific Reading Instruction, and the International Dyslexia Association. 

Citation: Woods, L., & Graham, K. K. (2020). Are Scientific Reading Instruction and Dyslexia Interventions the Same? Distinctions for Elementary Education Preparation Programs. SRATE Journal29(1), n1.

Link: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1243766.pdf

 


 

How can teachers increase the effectiveness of science instruction?

March 19, 2021

Effective programs for elementary science: A best-evidence synthesis. This article presents a systematic review of research on the achievement outcomes of all types of approaches to teaching science in elementary schools. The review concludes that science teaching methods focused on enhancing teachers’ classroom instruction throughout the year, such as cooperative learning and science-reading integration, as well as approaches that give teachers technology tools to enhance instruction, have significant potential to improve science learning. 

Citation: Slavin, R. E., Lake, C., Hanley, P., & Thurston, A. (2012). Effective programs for elementary science: A best-evidence synthesis. Baltimore, MD, Johns Hopkins University.

Link: https://bestevidence.org/category/science/science-elementary/

 


 

How do we interpret basic research on teaching reading instruction?

March 17, 2021

What constitutes a science of reading instruction? Recently, the term science of reading has been used in public debate to promote policies and instructional practices based on research on the basic cognitive mechanisms of reading, the neural processes involved in reading, computational models of learning to read, and the like. In this article, the author cautions against instructional over- generalizations based on various kinds of basic research without an adequate consideration of instructional experiments. The author provides several examples of the premature translation of basic research findings into wide-scale pedagogical application. 

Citation: Shanahan, T. (2020). What constitutes a science of reading instruction?. Reading Research Quarterly55, S235-S247.

Link: http://textproject.org/assets/https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24849291/What_Constitutes_a_Science_of_Reading_Instruction_.pdf/Shanahan-Science-of-Reading-2020.pdf

 


 

What instructional practices can be leveraged to improve mathematics instruction?

March 16, 2021

Improving pedagogy in the developmental mathematics classroom. This Brief summarizes a literature review that examines the research evidence concerning a potential means for improving course completion and learning outcomes among developmental math students: reforming mathematics classroom pedagogy. It concludes by offering recommendations for future research and for the adoption of particular instructional practices.

Citation: Hodara, M. (2011). Improving pedagogy in the developmental mathematics classroom. CCRC Brief51, 1-4.

Link: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED516146.pdf

 


 

Student Teaching and Clinical In-Service

March 11, 2021

Student teaching, field experience, and practicum experience are powerful methods for training new teachers. These methods all feature working with students in classrooms or in laboratory environments that bridge the gap between university instruction and the experience of teaching. Integrating theory, knowledge, and skills, student teaching generally occurs under the direction of a supervisor at the end of the preparation process. 

Citation: Cleaver, S., Detrich, R., States, J. & Keyworth, R. (2020). Overview of Teacher Induction. Oakland, CA: The Wing Institute. https://www.winginstitute.org/pre-service-student.

Link: https://www.winginstitute.org/pre-service-student

 


 

How can we reduce dropout rates during covid-19?

February 10, 2021

Dropout Prevention in the Time of COVID-19. Students on the path toward dropping out of high school often exhibit signals that they are at risk well before they stop engaging in school. As school closures due to COVID-19 separate students from structured routines and educational supports, the number of disengaged students may continue to grow. Educators should be aware of and look for signs of disengagement and act to maximize engagement and supports for at-risk students during COVID-19 closures.

Citation: Kassner, L., Jonas, D., and Klein, S. (2020). Dropout Prevention in the Time of COVID-19. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, What Works Clearinghouse.

Link: https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/appalachia/blogs/blog29_dropout-prevention-in-COVID-19.asp

 


 

How can I increase student attendance during Covid-19?

February 9, 2021

Improving Attendance in a Remote Learning Environment. The purpose of this brief is to adapt the suggestions and strategies provided in Improving Attendance and Reducing Chronic Absenteeism to guide practice during remote instruction. Strategies from both briefs will be helpful during hybrid instructional models.

Citation: Freeman, J., Flannery, B., Sugai, G., Goodman, S., Simonsen, B., & Barrett, S. (Aug, 2020). Improving Attendance in a Remote Learning Environment. Eugene, OR: Center on PBIS, University of Oregon. www.pbis.org.

Link: https://assets-global.website-files.com/5d3725188825e071f1670246/5ff34f3363042168264ed6e3_Remote%20Attendance%20Brief%20Revised%2012.23.2020.pdf