In this study, we used a randomized control trial (N = 84) to evaluate the effects of a classroom-based motivational interviewing intervention on undergraduate psychology students' test performance. Results indicated that students in the treatment group (n = 38) demonstrated significant increases in their exam grades following the intervention (d…

This multiyear scale-up effectiveness study of Open Court Reading (OCR) involved approximately 4,500 students and more than 1,000 teachers per year in Grades K-5 from 49 elementary schools in seven districts across the country. Using a school-level cluster randomized trial design, we assessed the implementation and effectiveness of Open Court…

Home visitation has the potential to improve parent, child, and maternal outcomes and has become a widely implemented prevention program across the United States. The purpose of this research was to use a randomized controlled trial to assess the short-term effectiveness of the Arizona Healthy Families program across a range of outcomes. Two…

The present study examined the effectiveness of the oral history approach with respect to students' historical competence. A total of 35 ninth-grade classes (N = 900) in Germany were randomly assigned to one of four conditions--live, video, text, or a (nontreated) control group--in a pretest, posttest, and follow-up design. Comparing the three…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of using group story-mapping on ESL students with a learning disability in reading comprehension. The researcher focused on a specific graphic organizer in this study, called Group Story-Mapping. This strategy required students with learning disabilities involving reading comprehension to…

Improving children's attendance is a high priority for Head Start and other early childhood education programs serving low-income children. We conducted a randomized control trial in a major northern city to evaluate the impact of a low-cost intervention designed to promote parents' social capital as a potential influence on children's attendance…

The Fidelity of Implementation (FOI) study that is the focus of this report was conducted as a component of a scale-up effectiveness trial of the SRA/McGraw-Hill Open Court Reading program. The overall purpose of the FOI study was to support and provide context for findings from the larger experimental impact study of Open Court Reading (OCR). To…

This paper is the first summary of two studies and 10 years of evaluating the Milwaukee Parental Choice (voucher) Program (MPCP). This paper discusses school voucher evaluations in general terms and how these studies are carried out. The paper outlines the types of studies completed in "Study I" and "Study II" and the results…

Children's University (CU) aims to improve the aspirations, attainment, and skills of pupils aged 5-14 by providing learning activities beyond the normal school day. This trial focused on pupils in Years 5 and 6 (aged 9-11), and activities included after-school clubs, visits to universities, museums, and libraries, and 'social action'…

This report presents the findings from interviews with principals about their schools' participation in the ASSISTments efficacy study on seventh-grade mathematics. The purpose of the interviews was to explore the following areas: To what extent schools had policies or expectations regarding homework practice and completion; To what extent schools…

Purpose: The past decade has seen considerable debate about how to best evaluate the efficacy of educational improvement initiatives, and members of the educational leadership research community have entered the debate with great energy. Throughout this debate, the use of randomized experiments has been a particularly contentious subject. This…

Project Based Learning (PBL) is a pedagogical approach that seeks to provide Year 7 pupils with independent and group learning skills to meet both the needs of the Year 7 curriculum as well as support their learning in future stages of their education. It particularly aims to improve their engagement in learning as well as practical literacy…

The Evidence-based Literacy Support-"Literacy Octopus" Trial tested a range of dissemination interventions and resources, all of which aimed to engage schools in using evidence-based materials to improve teaching and learning in Key Stage 2 literacy. Four delivery partners provided interventions. These included light-touch,…

In 2012, WestEd received a "Development" grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Investing in Innovation (i3) competition to develop and implement Internet-based Reading Apprenticeship Improving Science Education ("iRAISE"). "iRAISE" was implemented in Michigan and Pennsylvania and was provided to over 100…

This is a report of a pilot study of the Physically Active Lessons (PAL) programme, which was piloted in five primary schools in Hertfordshire between February and July 2014. PAL involves adapting lesson plans to combine short bursts of physical activity with academic content. The study had two aims: (1) to explore the feasibility of adapting a…