This paper examines the effect of COVID-19 on learning loss and learning inequality in South Africa using 2016 and 2021 Grade 4 PIRLS datasets. On average, South African Grade 4 reading achievement declined by 31 PIRLS points from 320 in 2016 to 288 in 2021, equivalent to a decline of 0.29 standard deviations or 50-60% of a year of learning. The…

This study evaluates the first year of implementation of "How Are the Children" (HATC), a project-based social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum designed to enhance high school student's social-emotional (SE) development. Through documentary filmmaking and lessons based on SE competencies, HATC aims to provide SEL support that…

In December 2022, Rock Island-Milan School District #41 (RIMSD), in partnership with the Connect with Kids Network (CWK) and Empirical Education, received an early-phase Education Innovation and Research (EIR) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. RIMSD contracted with Empirical Education to conduct a one-year teacher-level randomized…

This policy brief examines the impact of Solution Tree's PLC at Work® process on student achievement in Texas schools. Using a quasi-experimental design and statewide data, we found that students in Model PLC Schools made meaningful academic gains, averaging 3.1 months of additional learning in math and 2 months in reading compared to similar…

This report evaluates the impact of the Professional Learning Communities (PLC) at Work® process on student academic achievement over a three-year period in Texas public schools. Drawing on linked administrative data from the University of Houston Education Research Center (UH-ERC), the study uses a quasi-experimental approach to compare…

The aim of the current study was to examine the associations among perceived teacher emotional support, reader self-concept, and reading achievement in a sample of children (n = 2888) at the end of first grade. Structural equation modelling revealed significant relations between perceived teacher emotional support and reader self-concept and…

This report is a continuation of work that examined the progress being made by districts to close the achievement gap in Kentucky (Butler and Poquette, 2019) and aims to further investigate the context in which districts are closing the achievement gap. Districts' achievement gap issues vary significantly: the size of districts' achievement gaps…

School climate is a malleable construct that schools or districts can utilize to target the individualized needs of specific groups of students. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between perceptions of different school climate dimensions and reading and mathematics achievement scores for elementary school students of…

The purpose of this mixed methods study is to examine the relationship and the changes that take place over time between reading motivation, reading frequency and reading achievement for students participating in PREP, a primary reading engagement program. It is imperative to build reading motivation when students are young so they enjoy reading…

Poverty has an enormous impact on children and their success in school. Children with low socioeconomic status often perform poorly in reading. Poor reading skills often lead to truancy, low rates of high school graduation, low-paying jobs, and cycles of illiteracy in generations of families. Secondary data was collected from the Tennessee…

The current study investigated the effects of school mobility on the academic achievement of different racial/ethnic groups in four cohorts of students from a very large urban school district. In this study, I compared within-year and between-year mobility and, most importantly, account for all the schools students attended over the study period.…

The study examines whether the average performance of the population with dyslexia in a working memory measure can be inferred dimensionally from the characteristics of the typical population. Specifically, we focused on Associative Phonological Working Memory (APWM), an ability that we predicted being impaired in dyslexia due to the relationship…

Although out-of-school school suspensions have been correlated with negative school outcomes, they are still a common formal response given to students whose behavior is deemed problematic. Being suspended multiple times within an academic year results in students losing even more instructional time. In this study, we used longitudinal data for…

This study investigated the extent to which third graders (n = 84) from predominantly low-socioeconomic status families had access to books matched to their reading levels in their homes. On average, students showed home visitors books that fell within the Common Core State Standards' recommended text difficulty range for Grade 3 (mean Lexile =…

Efforts taken to promote self-regulated learning (SRL) in elementary school have positive effects on learning outcomes. Few studies examine the role of motivation in relation to other SRL components, namely cognition and metacognition. Additionally, few SRL studies involving elementary students focus on motivational supports. Interventions that…