Given increasing interest in evidence-based policy, there is growing attention to how well the results from rigorous program evaluations may inform policy decisions. However, little attention has been paid to documenting the characteristics of schools or districts that participate in rigorous educational evaluations, and how they compare to…

Purpose: This multiyear experimental study was designed to examine (1) the causal impact of McREL International's Balanced Leadership® Professional Development (BLPD) program on school principals' learning, beliefs, and behaviors and (2) whether there were differences in the types of outcomes the professional development influenced. Outcomes…

The purpose of this report is to present the results of a two-year randomized control trial evaluation of the SPARK literacy program. SPARK is an early grade literacy program developed by Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee. In 2010, SPARK was awarded an Investing in Innovation (i3) Department of Education grant to further develop the…

Background: Methods need to be further developed to include non-randomised studies (NRS) in systematic reviews of the effects of health care interventions. NRS are often required to answer questions about harms and interventions for which evidence from randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is not available. Methods used to review randomised…

Background: Excessive student anxiety is a common problem that severely impairs short- and long-term academic functioning and increases teacher burden. Reducing student anxiety has been associated with improvement in educational functioning. Because anxiety manifests daily in the classroom, teachers are in an ideal position to identify and help…

This article presents the results of a randomized clinical trial evaluating the eight-session "Family Eats" web-based intervention promoting healthy home food environments for African American families. African American families (n = 126) with 8- to 12-year-old children completed online baseline questionnaires and were randomized into…

Professional development designed to integrate key features of research-based professional learning has positive and significant effects on teacher practice and student achievement in mathematics when implemented in schools that meet specified technology-readiness criteria. Key features of research-based professional learning include intensive…

To succeed in today's economy, students need both proficiency in the "three Rs" (reading, writing and arithmetic) and strong applied skills. Communication skills, team work, and critical thinking have long been at the top of employers' lists of applied skills they seek in employees. States are responding to employers' needs by putting in…

In 2009, the government's Department for Education commissioned a team of researchers at NatCen Social Research to evaluate the effectiveness of the youth development/teenage pregnancy prevention programme 'Teens and Toddlers'. Previous studies had positive findings but had not been very rigorous in terms of methodology and methods used. We…

Background: Confounding caused by selection bias is often a key difference between non-randomized studies (NRS) and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of interventions. Key methodological issues: In this third paper of the series, we consider issues relating to the inclusion of NRS in systematic reviews on the effects of interventions. We discuss…

Butterfly Phonics aims to improve the reading of struggling pupils through phonics instruction and a formal teaching style where pupils sit at desks in rows facing the teacher. It is based on a course book created by Irina Tyk, and was delivered in this evaluation by Real Action, a charity based in London. Real Action staff recruited and trained…

This paper presents evidence on the amount of classroom variation in gains across various domains of achievement within the Tennessee Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (TN-VPK) program; the data are taken from the randomized control trial (RCT) design of the TN-VPK evaluation. This study explores areas where those differences are largest, and offers…

Objective: This mixed-methods process evaluation examined the feasibility of a parenting program delivered by community facilitators to reduce the risk of child maltreatment in low-income families with children aged 3-8 years in Cape Town, South Africa (N = 68). Method: Quantitative measures included attendance registers, fidelity checklists,…

Recent studies show that texting-based interventions can produce educational benefits in children across a range of ages. We study the effects of a text-based program for kindergarten parents, distinguishing a general program from one that adds differentiation and personalization based on the child's developmental level. Children in the…

The intervention evaluated here is one of two "youth social action" projects jointly funded by the Education Endowment Foundation, the U.K. Cabinet Office, the Pears Foundation and the Stone Family Foundation. It was delivered by the Youth United Foundation (YUF) and involved uniformed youth organisations being established in schools in…