This study compares the reading achievement of beginning readers in kindergarten who were assigned to two reading groups: (1) cipher readers and (2) phonetic-cue readers. Results showed that the first group did better in both reading and spelling. The importance of beginning readers advancing beyond cue reading to cipher reading is emphasized.…

A performance evaluation model is presented to address the need for measuring the effectiveness of educational training programs in institutions of higher learning. The model emphasizes outcomes by assessing the quality of change that occurs in individual and program performance. (Author/LMO)

This article reports the evaluation of a cognitive education course designed for inmates in Canadian federal penitentiaries. Reports from school instructors indicate that participating inmates showed improvement in their ability to communicate and discuss ideas and were more able to stop and think before acting on a problem. (Author/CT)

The purpose of this study was to determise the relative loss in statistical power of traditional methods of analysis when response-shift bias is present. Five methods of analysis (posttest scores only; postminus pretests; postminus retrospective pretest; postcovaried by pretest; postcovaried by retrospective pretest) were compared. (Author/BW)

A total of 160 second-grade children were assigned on the basis of a free-recall pretest to four instructional conditions and were given a series of lists of pictures for free recall. Results focused on different levels of recall displayed by experimental and control groups. (Author/CI)

This study investigated the transfer of four study rules from pictures to a prose recall task by learning disabled adolescents. Subjects receiving extensive direct training that included problem isomorph recognition surpassed the control group on posttests. Instructed subjects did not differ from nondisabled subjects in use of learning strategies.…

Four theoretical models (Substitution, Suppression, Normal, and Remind) of the effects of lexical knowledge on reading comprehension were evaluated using results of a previous study. Fourth graders recalled texts containing words that were either unfamiliar or recently taught through an intensive vocabulary instruction program. (Author/BS)

This paper examines how controlling statistically for baseline covariates (especially pretests) improves the precision of studies that randomize schools to measure the impacts of educational interventions on student achievement. Part I of the paper introduces the concepts, issues, and options involved. Parts II and III present empirical findings…

This study investigated how the online instruction in a graduate instructional technology course affects learners psychological factors, such as locus of control and achievement motivation. It was expected that learners would be more internal at the completion of the course than at the beginning, and that learners would have higher achievement…

In an age of student accountability, public school systems must find procedures for identifying effective schools, classrooms, and teachers that help students continue to learn academically. As a result, researchers have been modeling schools and classrooms to calculate productivity indicators that will withstand not only statistical review but…

This report discusses the outcomes of a study that investigated the efficacy of a referential communication task for teaching written language skills to elementary school-aged children with learning disabilities. Participants included five dyads, each consisting of one child with a learning disability and one child with typical language…

This report describes one of a series of pilot studies conducted to evaluate the instructional effectiveness of the Harcourt Reading Program. The study focused on the program's primary levels and included Grades 1 and 3. Participants, teachers who had not used the program previously, were encouraged to select one theme to pilot over a 6-week…

A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the instructional effectiveness of the SIGNATURES program (Harcourt Brace), an elementary reading program that aimed to reflect the best thinking about reading instruction. In developing the program, the publishers reviewed current curriculum guides and content standards for most states and from professional…

Although foremost among the benefits of cooperative learning is improvement of student academic achievement, additional affective benefits may further convince teachers that the value added by cooperative learning is worth the effort. This study examined the effect of an 8-month cooperative learning intervention on children's friendship choices in…

As computer aided instruction (CAI) and distance learning become more popular, a model for easily evaluating these teaching methods must be developed, one which will enable replication of the study each year. This paper discusses the results of a study using existing dependent and independent variables to evaluate CAI for developmental reading…