This study examined the impact of a commonly adopted elementary universal social-emotional learning program, Second Step, on student social-emotional and academic outcomes following 2 years of implementation. The cluster-randomized wait-list control trial included 61 schools, 321 teachers, and 8,941 early elementary students across 2 states, with…

Interest has been growing in the role of students' attitudes, beliefs, and dispositions as key factors that can support or inhibit student success. A large body of emerging evidence, including multiple randomized controlled trials, shows that interventions that target academic mindsets, attitudes, and beliefs about the nature of ability and the…

Objectives: This study examined the effects of Check & Connect (C&C) on the attendance, behavior, and academic outcomes of at-risk youth in a field-based effectiveness trial. Method: A multisite randomized block design was used, wherein 260 primarily Hispanic (89%) and economically disadvantaged (74%) students were randomized to treatment…

Several social-emotional learning (SEL) or social-emotional and character development (SECD) programs have been shown to be effective at improving SEL/SECD skills, and some have also provided evidence of effectiveness in improving student behavior and academic achievement (Durlak, Weissberg, Dymnicki, Taylor, & Schellinger, 2011). Very few SEL…

At the college level, the effectiveness of active-learning interventions is typically measured at the broadest scales: the achievement or retention of all students in a course. Coarse-grained measures like these cannot inform instructors about an intervention's relative effectiveness for the different student populations in their classrooms or…

Used a matched-schools design, school-level achievement, and disciplinary data to evaluate the effectiveness of the elementary-level Positive Action program on students' performance and behavior over time. Results indicated that program participation improved student behavior, school involvement, and academic achievement into high school. The…

Finds that students in a comprehensive developmental studies program (study skills course and required attendance of tutoring sessions) exceeded their predicted grade point average significantly more than the comparison groups, and that instructors reported a greater number of positive behaviors on the part of these students in their classes.…

Reports the effects of an after school tutoring and academic skills training partnership education program on low-achieving, black students' math and reading achievements. Student and parent behavior and academic achievement were assessed. School-reported defiance and parent-perceived adaptive skills significantly predicted grade point average.…