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October 2, 2018
Formal Teacher Evaluation
This paper examines formal teacher evaluation. Formal teacher evaluation is integrated into many state and district policies, and, even with shifts in federal focus under ESSA, is likely to remain common practice. The goal of formal teacher evaluation is to collect data that accurately represents teacher practice and the connection to student achievement in a valid and reliable way, and use that information to improve the system for teaching and learning. Although conclusions about the impact of teacher evaluation on student achievement are mixed (Stecher et al., 2018; Taylor & Tyler, 2012a, 2012b), ideally collecting and using information about teacher practice can advance the conversation about quality instruction and teaching potential.
Citation: Cleaver, S., Detrich, R. & States, J. (2018). Overview of Teacher Formal Evaluation. Oakland, CA: The Wing Institute. https://www.winginstitute.org/teacher-evaluation-formal.
Link: https://www.winginstitute.org/teacher-evaluation-formal
October 1, 2018
Excessive student absenteeism (chronic absences) can have a devastating impact on student achievement. It’s significance was recognized in the recently passed Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) which now requires all states to include in their school report cards how many students are chronically absent. The Data Matters report analyzes the data in an attempt better understand the relationship between chronic absences and a wide range of variables: chronic absences by year, state, schools, poverty, ethnicity, and other school characteristics. Key findings include: (1) Nearly eight million students in the nation (15%) were chronically absent in the 2015-16 school year, (2) While chronic absenteeism affects all states, there is great variability between individual states ranging from 12% to 31% students with chronic absences, (3) over half (52%) of chronic absenteeism comes from students in schools with high or extreme levels of chronic absenteeism, and (4) schools with higher concentrations of low income students are more likely to experience chronic absenteeism. The report provides recommendations and strategies for managing chronic absenteeism at all levels of education leadership, from state agencies through individual schools. It also has an interactive web site where the reader can drill down on specific data at all levels of the education system. www.attendanceworks.org
Citation: Chang, Hedy N., Bauer, Lauren and Vaughan Byrnes, Data Matters: Using Chronic Absence to Accelerate Action for Student Success, Attendance Works and Everyone Graduates Center, September 2018.
Link: http://www.attendanceworks.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Data-Matters_EXEC-Summary_083118-2.pdf
October 1, 2018
Standardized tests play a critical role in tracking and comparing K-12 student progress across time, student demographics, and governing bodies (states, cities, districts). Each individual state establishes its own curricula, standardized tests, and achievement (proficiency) standards. As these decisions vary significantly across states and time, it becomes difficult to establish common metrics that would assess the true picture of a state’s performance. One methodology is to benchmark the each state’s proficiency standards against those of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test. This study does just that. Using NAEP as a common yardstick allows a comparison of different state assessments. The results confirm the wide variation in proficiency standards across states. It also documents that the significant majority of states have standards are much lower than those established by the NAEP.
At the national level, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test is the gold standard. It has been administered annually since 1970 and establishes student achievement standards using rigorous and independent evaluation methodology to ensure they are reasonable, valid, and informative. The achievement levels (Basic, Proficient, and Advanced) identify what students should know and be able to do at each grade level in a specific subject area. Students performing at or above the Proficient level on NAEP assessments demonstrate solid academic performance and competency over challenging subject matter. Proficiency is the target academic performance benchmark for students.
The study provides two sets of data regarding this issue: (1) how the individual state standards themselves compare to NAEP standards and (2) where students would have been placed for both the state and national tests. In 2015, only two states had proficiency standards for reading at the same range as those of NAEP. Forty-one states had proficiency standards that corresponded with the Basic Level in NAEP. One state had standards that corresponded with below Basic. In other words, the achievement levels in most states for being identified as proficient are much lower than those identified by NAEP.
The second analysis examined the percent of students identified as proficient in each state and compares it to the percent of the same student population that would be considered proficient by NAEP standards. For example, Louisiana standards identified 66.8% of its students as being proficient across reading and math, only 24.8 % of the students would have been classified as proficient by NAEP. In Nebraska, 76.2% of students were classified as proficient as opposed to only 40.2% meeting the proficiency standard for NAEP.
Citation: Bandeira de Mello, V., Rahman, T., and Park, B.J. (2018). Mapping State Proficiency Standards Onto NAEP Scales: Results From the 2015 NAEP Reading and Mathematics Assessments (NCES 2018-159). U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics.
Link: https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/subject/publications/studies/pdf/2018159.pdf
September 10, 2018
Instructional Coaching Program and Practice Standards
The New Teacher Center has released guidelines and standards for the implementation of coaching as a powerful means of improving school, teacher, and ultimately student performance. The Instructional Coaching Program Standardsdefine the essential elements of a coaching program designed to accelerate teacher effectiveness. Districts can then use the Instructional Coaching Practice Standards as a framework to implement the components in a strategic, quality practice. The components consist of selection, roles, and responsibilities of coaches who will provide focused instructional assistance to teachers; preparation, development, and ongoing support for those coaches; a collaborative system of formative assessment of practice for teachers and coaches; and targeted, differentiatedprofessional learning opportunities for teachers. Formal standards are necessary for overcoming deficits inherent in previous in-service and teacher induction efforts that often left implementation of teacher training up to each personto define. This transformation is essential in assuring a consistency of practice for all the differing interventions currently bundled under the coaching label. These new coaching standards are a clarification and distillation of current practice elements, and are designed to make coaching more productive and cost effective.
Citation:
New Teacher Center (2018). Instructional Coaching Program and Practice Standards. New Teacher Center. https://newteachercenter.org
Link: https://p.widencdn.net/1bqq6o/IC-Program-Standards-2018
https://p.widencdn.net/2bev1d/IC-Practice-Standards-2018
September 10, 2018
Does Tailoring Instruction to “Learning Styles” Help Students Learn?
In this 2018 analysis, Daniel Willingham revisits his 2005 review of the literature on learning styles. Thirteen years ago he concluded there is no evidence supporting theories that distinguish between visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning styles and improved achievement. To update his earlier study, Willingham examined research published since 2005. Learning style theorists have postulated that teaching to a specific learning style will help struggling students achieve success in school. Willingham begins by differentiating between learning style and ability. He defines learning style as the way a person completes tasks, and ability as how well the person executes the tasks. Learning style advocates believe that having a student focus on a preferred style will lead to improved performance. The recent research examined by Willingham supports his earlier conclusion: “There is not convincing evidence to support the idea that tailoring instruction according to a learning-styles theory improves student outcomes.” Matching instruction to learning style ultimately offers no credible benefit to students.Willingham did find new research confirming that people do show a preference for one style over another, but acting on the preference does not improve performance.
The implications from this research are that educators do not need to match learning style to student. Finally, it is worthwhile for teachers to teach students strategies that are effective and necessary for solving specific problems such as memorizing information, reading with comprehension, overcoming math anxiety, and avoiding distraction.
Citation: Willingham, D. T. (2018). Does tailoring instruction to “learning styles” help students learn? Ask the cognitive scientist. American Educator, 28–43.
Link: https://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/ae_summer2018_willingham.pdf
September 10, 2018
Effectiveness of the Practice Style and Reciprocal Style of Teaching: A Meta-Analysis
This meta-analysis looks at the effectiveness of two strategies in teaching motor skills to students: practice and reciprocal. The research examined two of the 11 teaching strategies identified in Mosston’s Spectrum of Teaching Styles designed for teachers in physical education. Six studies met the criteria for inclusion in this paper. The practice strategy involves the student in the decision-making process. The reciprocal strategy assigns each learner to a specific role: One learner performs the task and the other is the observer who offers immediate and ongoing feedback using a criteria sheet designed by the teacher. At the end of the practice, the students switch roles.
The study showed a very large effect size of 1.16 for the practice strategy, and a large effect size of 0.94 for the reciprocal strategy. It would not be surprising to see these particularly large effect sizes moderated in subsequent replication studies (Makel & Plucker, 2014; van Aert & van Assen, 2018). The study confirms previous research on reciprocal teaching as an effective instructional strategy. Reciprocal teaching has been found to be a powerful strategy for teaching reading and other academic subjects. John Hattie (1995) reported an effect size of 0.74 for reciprocal teaching. The takeaway from this meta-analysis is that practice and reciprocal styles have positive effects on motor skill acquisition.
Citations:
Chatoupis, C., & Vagenas, G. (2018). Effectiveness of the practice style and reciprocal style of teaching: A meta-analysis. Physical Educator, 75(2), 175–194.
Makel, M. C., & Plucker, J. A. (2014). Facts are more important than novelty: Replication in the education sciences. Educational Researcher, 43(6), 304–316.
van Aert, R. C. M., & van Assen, M. A. L. M. (2018). Examining reproducibility in psychology: A hybrid method for combining a statistically significant original study and a replication. Behavior Research Methods, 50(4),1515–1539.
Hattie, J. (2008). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. New York, NY: Routledge.
Link: http://scholar.uoa.gr/sites/default/files/gvagenas/files/chatoupis_vagenas_2018.pdf
September 10, 2018
A Review of the Relationship Between Parental Involvement Indicators and Academic Achievement
This review examines the relationship between parental involvement and student academic achievement. The definition of parental involvement isn’t always clear and encompasses a wide range of parental interventions and involvement in a child’s education. Two types of parental involvement are generally examined in the available research: home-based strategies, such as providing structure and support for learning and education at home, and school-based strategies, such as communicating with teachers and attending school events.
- Parental involvement and early childhood academic achievement(22 studies)
The majority of studies reported small to medium positive effect sizes on achievement for parental interventions in early childhood. When parents engage with preschoolers in learning activities at home, academic achievement improves. Research suggests that enriching activities such as telling stories, teaching letters and numbers, engaging in problem-solving activities, singing songs, and playing games improve children’s literacy skills. Research on parental involvement in school revealed mixed results depending on the type of involvement.
- Parental involvement and academic achievement for elementary school children(22 studies)
The majority of studies of elementary school children that examined the link between parental involvement and school achievement found a small to medium impact in math and reading. Not all studies reported positive outcomes and a small number reported a negative relationship to student achievement. It is important to note that outcomes for parental involvement varied according to the form of parental activity being examined.
This review found that parents’ educational expectations were the strongest predictor of academic achievement for elementary school children. Negative outcomes were associated with parents applying academic pressure in the form of commands, punishment, or coercive interactions. On the other hand, positive parental engagement, such as praising children’s performance, progress, and efforts and letting children know they cared about them and their school performance, was related to improved academic performance.
- Parental involvement and academic achievement at middle school, high school, and beyond(31 studies)
The majority of the studies investigated the link between parental involvement and student achievement in math and literacy. Most reported small to medium positive effect sizes associated with parental involvement and academic achievement.
Parental expectations were generally reported to have a positive correlation with academic achievement, or higher GPA. Valuing academic achievement and then reinforcing it produced significant positive outcomes in mathematics among high school students. Parent-child discussions about school activities and educational planning produced positive outcomes and reduced truancy. Parental control and interference resulted in negative academic achievement. Parents attending school events, meeting with teachers, and/or volunteering at school produced no improvement in academic performance.
Summary
The strongest associations with improved student performance across all grades were parental expectations and aspirations. The review also concluded that parental involvement and academic achievement do not diminish as children grow into young adulthood. What does change is how parents engage with their child over time; direct involvement in learning diminishes, but the value of fostering conditions for academic success increases. Parents seem to affect their children’s academic outcomes by setting high academic expectations and by creating, in ways not considered intrusive or controlling, a comfortable space for the children to develop their own academic motivations. The review also found that the benefits of school-based involvement by parents are not strong or produce mixed results.
Citation:Boonk, L., Gijselaers, H. J., Ritzen, H., & Brand-Gruwel, S. (2018). A review of the relationship between parental involvement indicators and academic achievement. Educational Research Review, 24, 10–30.
Link: https://dspace.ou.nl/bitstream/1820/9860/1/35%20A%20review%20of%20the%20relationship%20between%20parental%20involvement%20indicators%20and%20academic%20achievement..pdf
September 6, 2018
The Wing Institute is recruiting contract-based content writers in the field of evidence-based education. We are looking for professionals who can: 1) conduct literature reviews; 2) analyze the relevant data, research, and policies; and 3) write succinct overviews for publication on our web site.
- Positions to be filled by November 1, 2018.
- Please send resume to Jack States at the Wing Institute: jstates@winginstitute.org
Research topics will focus on the eight education drivers associated with student achievement and success in school. These drivers encompass essential practices, procedures, resources, and management strategies. Specific topics include but are not limited to: skills for effective teaching, effective teacher training, quality of leadership, and external influences affecting student outcomes.
Those interested must be able to analyze both the quality and quantity of evidence studies to determine if current research meets a threshold of evidence for providing information to support the work of educators.
Criteria for inclusion is based on:
- Quality: A continua of evidence prioritizing well designed randomized trials and single subject designed studies.
- Quantity: A continua of evidence spotlighting meta-analyses and replications of single subject designed studies.
Each Overview consists of a summary of the research, graphics as needed, and citations, and supporting conclusions.
Compensation
- $1,000 for each Overview (1,500 to 2,500 words)
- Author’s name on the publication
- Working with other professional is the field of evidence-based education
Expectations
- Work with internal teams to obtain an in-depth understanding of evidence-based research.
- Work remotely and supply your own equipment (computer)
- Plan, develop, organize, write the above documents.
- Analyze documents to maintain continuity of style of content and consistency with prior Wing Institute documents.
- Recommend updates and revisions derived from updates in research.
Education
- Master’s degree in Education, Behavior Analysis, English, Psychology, Communication, or related degrees, is required.
Skills
Ability to deliver high quality documentation
- Ability to communicate complex or technical information easily
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
- Ability to write from the perspective of education policy makers, school administrators, teachers, and parents
August 23, 2018
Promoting Open Science to Increase the Trustworthiness of Evidence in Special Education
The past two decades has seen an explosion of research to guide special educators improve the lives for individuals with disabilities. At the same time society is wrestling with the challenges posed by a post-truth age in which the public is having difficulty discerning what to believe and what to consider as untrustworthy. In this environment it becomes ever more important that researchers find ways to increase special educator’s confidence in the available knowledge base of practices that will reliably produce positive outcomes. This paper offers methods to increase confidence through transparency, openness, and reproducibility of the research made available to special educators. To accomplish this the authors propose that researchers in special education adopt emerging open science reforms such as preprints, data and materials sharing, preregistration of studies and analysis plans, and Registered Reports.
Citation:Cook, B. G., Lloyd, J. W., Mellor, D., Nosek, B. A., & Therrien, W. (2018). Promoting Open Science to Increase the Trustworthiness of Evidence in Special Education.
Link: https://osf.io/zqr69
August 23, 2018
Education Next releases 12thAnnual Survey of public opinion regarding education
Few issues engender stronger opinions in the American population than education, and the number and complexity of issues continue to grow. The annual Education Next Survey of Public Opinion examines the opinions of parents and teachers across a wide range of topic areas such as: student performance, common core curriculum, charter schools, school choice, teacher salaries, school spending, school reform, etc. The 12thAnnual Survey was completed in May, 2018.
The survey tracks opinions in the current year, and the trends in opinions over a 12 year period. Several highlights from the 2018 survey include: (1) Forty-nine percent of respondents who were informed of current teacher salary levels thought that teachers should be paid more, up 13 points from 2017 and the highest percentage since 2008. Sixty seven percent of those who were not informed felt that teacher salaries should increase, also the highest since 2008. (2) Fifty-four percent of the public supports some form of school voucher, up from forty-five percent in 2017. Opposition to vouchers dropped to from 37% to 31%. (3) Public support of charter schools increased five percentage points from the previous year to 44%, with 35% opposed. This number represents a rebound from a substantial decline in support in the previous two-year period (down from 52% support in 2016.
The Survey disaggregates the data by parents and teachers, union and non-union teachers, race, income levels, and political affiliations (Republicans and Democrats). It also has an interactive data base on its website.
Citation: Cheng, A., Henderson, M. B., Peterson, P.E. & West, M. R. (2019). The 2018 EdNext poll on school reform. Education Next, 19(1).
Web Address: https://www.educationnext.org/ednext-poll/
