Special educators are tasked with understanding and implementing evidence-based practices. The purpose of this article is to highlight the salient features of replication in special education research and explain how practitioners can use this knowledge to become critical consumers of research. To do this we describe replication, emphasize the…

We examined effects of research-based early writing intervention delivered within a data-based instruction (DBI) framework for children with intensive needs. We randomly assigned 46 students with and without disabilities in Grades 1 to 3 within classrooms to either treatment or control. Treatment students received research-based early writing…

This randomized field trial comparing Strategies for Teaching based on Autism Research and Structured Teaching enrolled educators in 33 kindergarten-through-second-grade autism support classrooms and 119 students, aged 5-8 years in the School District of Philadelphia. Students were assessed at the beginning and end of the academic year using the…

This review examined the involvement of teachers in the intervention research for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) from 1996 through February 2008. Forty-nine studies involving teachers of children with ASD were coded for different types of involvement. Findings are discussed in regards to three issues: (a) the manner in which…

Despite expansive improvements in both treatments and research, the majority of persons with autism use non-empirically supported interventions. One way to decrease the research-to-practice gap involves increasing the direct applicability of research findings to clinical settings. Effectiveness research achieves this goal by identifying treatments…

Using evidence-based practices, or those instructional techniques shown by research to improve student outcomes meaningfully, increases the performance of students with disabilities and should therefore be a priority for special educators. But how does a practice come to be considered evidence based? The unique characteristics of group…

This appendix accompanies "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better. A Large-Scale Study of Middle Grades Practices and Student Outcomes. Initial Research Report." This appendix contains the full bibliography of all research and policy documents consulted during the development of the ten research domains and three…

Research in the field of special education often incorporates single-subject designs to investigate the effectiveness of educational practices for students with disabilities. As such, it is important that educators and educational professionals understand the characteristics of single-subject research methodologies and how those characteristics…

Finding time for teams to work in schools is both a necessity and a responsibility. If educators are sincere about efforts to improve student learning, leaders must take responsibility for providing team time for teachers and a structure in which they are able to work collaboratively. The Papillion-La Vista (Nebraska) Public Schools took to heart…

A review of 37 single subject design studies examined evidence-based practices for young children with autism. Practices with well established evidence of effectiveness were adult-directed teaching and differential reinforcement. Emerging and effective practices included peer-mediated interventions, visual supports, self-monitoring, and family…

Education researchers, practitioners, and policymakers alike are committed to identifying interventions that teach students more effectively. Increased emphasis on evaluation and accountability has increased desire for sound evaluations of these interventions; and at the same time, school-level data have become increasingly available. This article…

Special education research has undergone one of the most significant developments in the history of education during the past two decades (Gersten, Vaughn, Deshler, & Schiller, 1997). These developments can be related to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 and the resulting knowledge about teaching individuals with…

This paper reviews the literature on the role of judgment and collaboration between clinicians and researchers to identify and instruct students with reading difficulties, particularly reading difficulties based on either underlying core deficits in phonological processing or poor language comprehension. For students with speech-sound based…

This paper presents the research and methodology and analyses used for the "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades" research. This appendix contains the following sections: (1) Overview; (2) Constructing the Survey Data File; (3) Constructing Composite Independent Variables (Subdomains); (4) Constructing Longitudinal Outcome Variables; (5)…

This appendix accompanies "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better. A Large-Scale Study of Middle Grades Practices and Student Outcomes. Initial Research Report." This appendix focuses on the findings and domain comparisons of the study. This appendix contains the following: (1) Decision Rules; (2) Full Set of…