Research shows that some elementary math curricula are more effective than others at increasing student achievement. Most studies in this research base typically included teachers and classrooms that differ, so the results represent "average" curriculum effects, which raises an important question: Are curricula that are effective on…

The purpose of this study is to describe and examine the structures and policies a public, comprehensive high school put in place to implement problem-based learning (PBL) across content areas. Starting in 2010, the school implemented PBL in the hopes of increasing students' career and college readiness skills. The research took place at a…

Exploiting a statewide cutoff point on the placement examination used to assign students to remedial courses in Tennessee, this study employs a regression discontinuity research design to provide causal estimates of the effects on student outcomes of recently redesigned remedial courses at three Tennessee colleges. Moreover, using data on student…

The purpose of this study was to document the design, classroom implementation, and effectiveness of interactive online units to enhance science learning over 3 years among students with learning disabilities, English learners, and general education students. Results of a randomised controlled trial with 2,303 middle school students and 71…

This article reports findings from a cluster-randomized study of an integrated literacy- and math-focused preschool curriculum, comparing versions with and without an explicit socioemotional lesson component to a business-as-usual condition. Participants included 110 classroom teachers from randomized classrooms and approximately eight students…

International assessment data indicate American students are not competing with their counterparts in other countries. The mathematics curriculum and pedagogy are not preparing students to compete in a global economy. This study compared student achievement using sixth grade mathematics results from the Illinois Standards Achievement Test.…

The Science-in-CTE pilot study tested a curriculum integration model that enhanced the science that oc-curs in CTE curricula. The study replicated the National Research Center for Career and Technical Ed-ucation's (NRCCTE) Math-in-CTE experimental research design (Stone, Alfeld, & Pearson, 2008) with applied science in secondary agricultural…

This brief is directed to researchers and adds to the research base about instructional practices that are related to student achievement. Additional evidence on these relationships can suggest specific hypotheses for the future study of such instructional practices, which, in turn, will provide research evidence that could inform professional…

This randomized controlled field trial examined the efficacy of the Responsive Classroom (RC) approach on student achievement. Schools (n = 24) were randomized into intervention and control conditions; 2,904 children were studied from end of second to fifth grade. Students at schools assigned to the RC condition did not outperform students at…

This appendix provides the details that underlie the analyses reported in the evaluation brief, "After Two Years, Three Elementary Math Curricula Outperform a Fourth." The details are organized in six sections: Study Curricula and Design (Section A), Data Collection (Section B), Construction of the Analysis File (Section C), Curriculum…

The increase in language minority students in U.S. schools has drawn attention to instructional models designed to assist these students. It is critical that literacy educators understand the potential of these models for literacy achievement. This study was designed to examine reading achievement of elementary English language learners in…

In this Appendix, we provide details about the data used for the current study, the curricula used in the classrooms from which data were collected, and the current study's methodological approach. (Contains 14 tables and 5 footnotes.)[For full report, see ED544189.]

A randomized-trials design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of a preschool mathematics program based on a comprehensive model of research-based curricula development. Thirty-six preschool classrooms were assigned to experimental (Building Blocks), comparison (a different preschool mathematics curriculum), or control conditions. Children were…

Activities that promote student invention can appear inefficient, because students do not generate canonical solutions, and therefore the students may perform badly on standard assessments. Two studies on teaching descriptive statistics to 9th-grade students examined whether invention activities may prepare students to learn. Study 1 found that…

This study attempted to determine which teaching method, mainly manipulatives or the standard curriculum, best allowed the students to learn first grade math concepts. The manipulatives consisted of objects such as unifix cubes, personal chalkboards, work mats, and various other articles, which allowed the students to see the math that they were…