Background/Context: Observational studies often employ regression discontinuity (RD) designs and multiple control-group designs to explore the causal quantities of interest. RD designs assess policy and program effectiveness by assigning subjects to treatment based on whether they exceed a pre-defined cutoff. RD designs are classified into two…

Background/Context: Some observational studies involve multiple layers of treatment selection, specifically in the context of the extended time accommodation (ETA) for English language learners (ELLs). In ETA settings, the first selection occurs due to the eligibility rule, where students whose ELL English proficiency is below a certain threshold…

The purpose of this research was to explore the impact of an online-learning component incorporating peer discussion groups on art achievement, digital literacy practice, student engagement, and student attitude of an eighth-grade visual arts classroom. Participants included 30 students in two 8th-grade art classes. Students in one class received…

Success for All (SFA), one of the best-known school reform models, aims to improve the reading skills of all children but is especially directed at schools that serve large numbers of students from low-income families. First implemented in 1987, SFA combines a challenging reading program, whole-school reform elements, and an emphasis on continuous…

Success for All (SFA), one of the best-known school reform models, aims to improve the reading skills of all children but is especially directed at schools that serve large numbers of students from low-income families. First implemented in 1987, SFA combines a challenging reading program, whole-school reform elements, and an emphasis on continuous…

Interrupted time-series (ITS) are often used to assess the causal effect of a planned or even unplanned shock introduced into an on-going process. The pre-intervention slope is supposed to index the causal counterfactual, and deviations from it in mean, slope or variance are used to indicate an effect. However, a secure causal inference is only…

Math Snacks animations and support materials were developed for use on the web and mobile technologies to teach ratio, proportion, scale factor, and number line concepts using a multi-modal approach. Included in Math Snacks are: Animations which promote the visualization of a concept image; written lessons which provide cognitive complexity for…

In randomized controlled trials (RCTs) where the outcome is a student-level, study-collected test score, a particularly valuable piece of information is a study-collected baseline score from the same or similar test (a pre-test). Pre-test scores can be used to increase the precision of impact estimates, conduct subgroup analysis, and reduce bias…

Rigorous research provides information that will allow other schools and districts to select interventions that have a scientifically based track record of effectiveness. All Striving Reader grants include the mandate to evaluate literacy intervention(s) targeted to adolescents who are reading significantly below grade level. Although all studies…