Washington Research Foundation

This study examined the prevalence, conceptualization, and form of cooperative learning used by elementary school teachers. Responding to a survey, 93% of teachers (n = 85) from six elementary schools in two districts indicated they used cooperative learning. In interviews with a subset of those teachers (n = 21), all indicated having daily cooperative lessons in several subjects. The majority of teachers subscribed to cooperative learning to achieve both academic and social learning goals, structured tasks for positive interdependence, and taught students skills for working in small groups. When we applied criteria for cooperative learning derived from the research literature, few teachers were employing recognized forms of this practice, primarily because they did not tie individual accountability to group goals. Implications for communication between researcher-developers and teachers are discussed.

This study examined the prevalence, conceptualization, and form of cooperative learning used by elementary school teachers. Responding to a survey, 93% of teachers (n = 85) from six elementary schools in two districts indicated they used cooperative learning. In interviews with a subset of those teachers (n = 21), all indicated having daily cooperative lessons in several subjects. The majority of teachers subscribed to cooperative learning to achieve both academic and social learning goals, structured tasks for positive interdependence, and taught students skills for working in small groups. When we applied criteria for cooperative learning derived from the research literature, few teachers were employing recognized forms of this practice, primarily because they did not tie individual accountability to group goals. Implications for communication between researcher-developers and teachers are discussed.

Ligation of CD28 on CD4 Th1 clones and freshly isolated mixtures of naive and memory CD4 T cells triggered their T cell receptors (TCR) is sufficient to induce the costimulatory signals necessary for interleukin 2 (IL-2) production by these cells. CTLA-4-reactive ligands expressed on antigen-presenting cells (APC) are critical in providing costimulatory signals to these T cell populations. We demonstrate that these activation characteristics apply equally to purified naive CD4 T cells. Because B cell blasts express CTLA-4-reactive ligands and high levels of adhesion and major histocompatibility complex class II molecules, they would be expected to engage both the TCR and CD28 and consequently stimulate IL-2 production by naive CD4 T cells. Using purified populations of cells in limiting dilution cultures, we have carried out a quantitative analysis of the interaction between naive CD4 T cells and either activated B or dendritic cells. We demonstrate that B cell blasts stimulate a high frequency of naive CD4 T cells. Slight differences in TCR signaling efficiency between the two APC types were observed. Even at optimal peptide concentrations, however, the amount of IL-2 made by individual T cells was fourfold lower in response to B cell blasts than to dendritic cells. This relative deficiency of activated B cells was due to their inability to optimally costimulate naive CD4 T cells.

This study was designed to test the effects of activity-based phonological instruction delivered by five classroom teachers on the phonological skill development and reading and writing outcomes of kindergarten children with ( n = 31) and without ( n = 57) disabilities, and children repeating kindergarten ( n = 19) placed in general and self-contained classes. Teachers in the treatment received 10 inservice training sessions spaced over the school year and implemented from 100 to 281 activities during the 6-month intervention. Outcomes for treated children were compared with children matched for type (general or repeating kindergartners, or children with mild disabilities) in classrooms using the same background prereading curriculum. Results suggest that intervention delivered by nonresearch personnel can be an effective way to improve the literacy outcomes of children with a broad range of ability.

This study reports new analyses from an earlier study by Antil, Jenkins, Wayne, & Vadasy (1998) in which 21 general education classroom teachers were interviewed about their use of cooperative learning. We report teachers' perceptions of how cooperative learning benefits special education and remedial students, the percentage of these students who consistently participated in classroom cooperative learning activities, its efficacy for these students, and the kind of modifications teachers made for students with special needs. Teachers were generally positive about cooperative learning's efficacy for students with learning problems, while acknowledging that it worked better for some students than others. Major benefits were improved self-esteem, a safe learning environment, and better classroom success rates and products. The primary modification for special and remedial education students was selecting suitable partners for them.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of code-oriented supplemental instruction for kindergarten students at risk for reading difficulties. Paraeducators were trained to provide 18 weeks of explicit instruction in phonemic skills and the alphabetic code. Students identified by their teachers meeting study eligibility criteria were randomly assigned to 2 groups: individual supplemental instruction and control. Students were pretested in December, midtested, and posttested in May-June of kindergarten. At posttest, treatment students significantly outperformed controls on measures of reading accuracy, reading efficiency, oral reading fluency, and developmental spelling. Treatment students had significantly higher linear growth rates in phonemic awareness and alphabetic knowledge during the kindergarten treatment. At a 1-year follow-up, significant group differences remained in reading accuracy and efficiency. Ethical challenges of longitudinal intervention research are discussed. Findings have policy implications for making supplemental instruction in critical early reading skills available.

Abstract At-risk 1st graders were randomly assigned to tutoring in more or less decodable texts, and instruction in the same phonics program. The more decodable group (n = 39) read storybooks that were consistent with the phonics program. The less decodable group (n = 40) read storybooks written without phonetic control. During the first 30 lessons, storybook decodability was 85% versus 11% for the 2 groups. Tutoring occurred 4 days per week for 25 weeks. A control group did not receive tutoring in phonics or story reading. Both tutored groups significantly surpassed the control on an array of decoding, word reading, passage reading, and comprehension measures. However, the more and less decodable text groups did not differ on any posttest.

This study examined the effectiveness of nonprofessional tutors in a phonologically based reading treatment similar to those in which successful reading outcomes have been demonstrated. Participants were 23 first graders at risk for learning disability who received intensive one-to-one tutoring from noncertified tutors for 30 minutes, 4 days a week, for one school year. Tutoring included instruction in phonological skills, letter-sound correspondence, explicit decoding, rime analysis, writing, spelling, and reading phonetically controlled text. At year end, tutored students significantly outperformed untutored control students on measures of reading, spelling, and decoding. Effect sizes ranged from .42 to 1.24. Treatment effects diminished at follow-up at the end of second grade, although tutored students continued to significantly outperform untutored students in decoding and spelling. Findings suggest that phonologically based reading instruction for first graders at risk for learning disability can be delivered by nonteacher tutors. Our discussion addresses the character of reading outcomes associated with tutoring, individual differences in response to treatment, and the infrastructure required for nonprofessional tutoring programs.

This study examined effects of a repeated reading intervention, Quick Reads, with incidental word-level scaffolding instruction. Second- and third-grade students with passage-reading fluency performance between the 10th and 60th percentiles were randomly assigned to dyads, which were in turn randomly assigned to treatment (paired tutoring, n = 82) or control (no tutoring, n = 80) conditions. Paraeducators tutored dyads for 30 min per day, 4 days per week, for 15 weeks (November-March). At midintervention, most teachers with students in the study were formally observed during their literacy blocks. Multilevel modeling was used to test for direct treatment effects on pretest-posttest gains as well as to test for unique treatment effects after classroom oral text reading time, 2 pretests, and corresponding interactions were accounted for. Model results revealed both direct and unique treatment effects on gains in word reading and fluency. Moreover, complex interactions between group, oral text reading time, and pretests were also detected, suggesting that pretest skills should be taken into account when considering repeated reading instruction for 2nd and 3rd graders with low to average passage-reading fluency.

In this quasi-experimental study, which is part of a series of investigations on supplemental reading tutoring variations, the relative effectiveness of more intense decoding instruction or text reading practice was examined. Fifty-seven first-grade students scoring in the lowest quartile for reading skills received either classroom reading instruction or one of two treatments: tutoring in word study with text reading practice, or word study tutoring alone. Individual instruction was provided by trained paraprofessional tutors. At the end of first grade, treatment students significantly outperformed their nontutored peers on measures of reading accuracy, reading comprehension, reading efficiency, passage reading fluency, and spelling. Differential treatment effects on passage reading fluency are examined, taking into consideration pretest skill levels and text reading practice characteristics.

Sustainably managed wild fisheries support food and nutritional security, livelihoods, and cultures (1). Harmful fisheries subsidies—government payments that incentivize overcapacity and lead to overfishing—undermine these benefits yet are increasing globally (2). World Trade Organization (WTO) members have a unique opportunity at their ministerial meeting in November to reach an agreement that eliminates harmful subsidies (3). We—a group of scientists spanning 46 countries and 6 continents—urge the WTO to make this commitment...

Two studies—one quasi-experimental and one randomized experiment—were designed to evaluate the effectiveness of supplemental instruction in structural analysis and oral reading practice for second- and third-grade students with below-average word reading skills. Individual instruction was provided by trained paraeducators in single- and multiletter phoneme—grapheme correspondences; structural analysis of inflected, affixed, and multi-syllable words; exception word reading; and scaffolded oral reading practice. Both studies revealed short-term word level and fluency effects.

One-to-one instruction, while highly desirable for children with the lowest reading skills, is not often available. It could be provided by nonprofessional tutors in the community, however. One aim of this study was to determine whether a one-to-one phonologically based tutoring program that incorporates many features of successful early reading programs and that is delivered by nonprofessional tutors is effective with first-grade students at risk for reading failure. Forty at-risk first graders who did not differ on reading skill prior to the intervention were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The treatment group received 30 minutes of individual instruction from community tutors four days a week for up to 23 weeks. The control group received only the regular reading instruction in their classrooms. The treatment group outperformed the control group on all reading, decoding, spelling and segmenting, and writing measures, with effect sizes averaging .21, .35, .37, and .19, respectively. Differences were significant on only one nonword reading and one spelling measure; however, a second aim was to determine the effects of the tutors' ability to implement the lessons scripted for them. Tutors who implemented the program with a high degree of fidelity achieved significant effect sizes in each early reading skill area assessed. Results support the potential of nonprofessional tutors to supplement early reading instruction, and prevent learning disabilities in at-risk children.

This study tested the efficacy of supplemental phonics instruction for 84 low-skilled language minority (LM) kindergarteners and 64 non-LM kindergarteners at 10 urban public schools. Paraeducators were trained to provide the 18-week (January--May) intervention. Students performing in the bottom half of their classroom language group (LM and non-LM) were randomly assigned either to individual supplemental instruction (treatment) or to classroom instruction only (control). Irrespective of their language status, treatment students (n = 67) significantly outperformed controls (n = 81) at posttest in alphabetics, word reading, spelling, passage reading fluency, and comprehension (average treatment d = 0.83); nevertheless, LM students tended to have lower posttest performance than non-LM students (average LM d = -0.30) and were significantly less responsive to treatment on word reading. When we examined the contribution of classroom phonics time to student outcomes, we found that the treatment effect on spelling was greater for students in lower phonics classrooms, whereas the treatment effect on comprehension was greater for those in higher phonics classrooms. Finally, when we examined LM students alone, we found that pretest English receptive vocabulary positively predicted most posttests and interacted with treatment only on phonological awareness. In general, pretest vocabulary did not moderate kindergarten LM treatment response. Supplemental materials: http://supp.apa.org/psycarticles/supplemental/a0019639/EDU-Vadasy20090606-RRR-F1.doc

Across many scientific disciplines, methods for recording, storing, and analyzing data are rapidly increasing in complexity. Skillfully using data science tools that manage this complexity requires training in new programming languages and frameworks as well as immersion in new modes of interaction that foster data sharing, collaborative software development, and exchange across disciplines. Learning these skills from traditional university curricula can be challenging because most courses are not designed to evolve on time scales that can keep pace with rapidly shifting data science methods. Here, we present the concept of a hack week as an effective model offering opportunities for networking and community building, education in state-of-the-art data science methods, and immersion in collaborative project work. We find that hack weeks are successful at cultivating collaboration and facilitating the exchange of knowledge. Participants self-report that these events help them in both their day-to-day research as well as their careers. Based on our results, we conclude that hack weeks present an effective, easy-to-implement, fairly low-cost tool to positively impact data analysis literacy in academic disciplines, foster collaboration, and cultivate best practices.

Abstract This study examined the long-term growth of reading skills following 1 year of supplemental 1st-grade code-oriented intervention provided by paraeducators. A group of 79 1st graders with reading skills averaging in the lowest quartile received explicit alphabetic and decoding instruction and were assessed postintervention and at 1-year intervals through the end of 3rd grade. Growth model results indicate that students continued to benefit from 1st-grade intervention through the end of 3rd grade, with average performance near 50th percentile on decoding and reading fluency, near 40th percentile on word reading and comprehension, and near 30th percentile on spelling. Without exception, both receptive language and rapid automatized naming uniquely predicted 3rd-grade outcomes. Of the students remaining in study in fall of 2nd grade, a subgroup selected by their teachers received additional supplemental instruction. Students referred for added intervention continued to perform significantly lower than those more readily remediated with 1st-grade intervention alone. Notes a n = 79. b n = 57. c n = 49. d n = 41. * p < .05. ** p < .01. *** p < .001. * p < .05 (Z > 2). ** p < .01 (Z > 2.6). **** p < .0001 (Z > 3.9). ***** < .00001 (Z > 4.5). * p < .05. ** p < .01. *** p < .001.

In this article we report data from a longitudinal study of one–to–one tutoring for students at risk for reading disabilities. Participants were at–risk students who received phonics–based tutoring in first grade, students who were tutored in comprehension skills in second grade, and students tutored in both grades 1 and 2. At second–grade posttest, there were significant differences in word identification and word attack between students who were tutored in first grade only compared to students who were also tutored in second grade, favoring students who were tutored in first grade only. Overall, there were no advantages to a second year of tutoring. For students tutored in second grade only, there were no differences at second–grade posttest compared to controls. Schools may have selected students who did not respond to first–grade tutoring for continued tutoring in second grade. Findings are discussed in light of decisions schools make when using tutors to supplement reading instruction for students with reading difficulties.

A total of 46 children in Grades 2 and 3 with low word-level skills were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups that received supplemental phonics-based reading instruction. One group received intervention October through March (21.5 hours), and one group served as a control from October through March and later received intervention March through May (17.5 hours). Paraeducators trained in a standard treatment protocol provided individual instruction for 30 min per day, 4 days per week. At the March posttest, the early treatment (ET; n = 23) group outperformed the controls (late treatment, LT; n = 20) on reading accuracy and passage fluency. Across both groups, second graders outperformed third graders on these same measures. At the 3-month follow-up, the ET group showed no evidence of decline in reading accuracy, passage fluency, or words spelled; however, 3rd-grade ET students had significantly higher spelling skills compared to 2nd graders. The LT group demonstrated significant growth during their intervention in reading accuracy and spelling, but not passage fluency. When we compared the ET and LT groups on their gains per instructional hour, we found that the ET group made significantly greater gains than the LT group across all 3 measures. The results support the value of paraeducator-supplemented reading instruction for students below grade level in word identification and reading fluency.

We examined writing instruction in the middle school context from the perspectives of special and general education teachers via focus groups and rating scales. We found that special and general educators alike valued a balanced approach to teaching writing, that both groups held a positive view of their teaching efficacy, and that both groups were strongly influenced by their teaching context. The teachers in our study, although supportive of balanced literacy instruction, were unsure of how to enact such an approach to teaching lower level writing skills and higher level composing strategies within a process-oriented framework. Moreover, they identified a number of factors that negatively impact their efforts to deliver effective and comprehensive writing instruction: requirements to teach voluminous subject matter content, large numbers of students, substantial variation in student backgrounds and abilities, diminished student motivation, barriers to successful inclusion of students with disabilities and meeting these students' writing needs in the general education classroom, and underdeveloped or misaligned district-sanctioned writing curricula.

This study replicates research on the efficacy of a repeated reading intervention with word-level instruction for students in Grades 2 and 3 with low to moderate fluency skills, examines differences between treatment implementers, and tests unique contributions of treatment-related variables on outcomes. Students from 13 schools were randomly assigned to dyads; dyads were randomly assigned to treatment or control conditions. Schools were matched into treatment implementer groups (teachers or paraeducators) at study onset. Tutoring occurred during school hours for 15 weeks (M = 25.5 hr). Multilevel model results showed treatment students (n = 98) gained more than controls (n = 104) on measures of letter-sound knowledge (d = .41), fluency (d = .37–.38), and comprehension (d = .30–.31); students tutored by teachers gained more than their paraeducator-tutored peers on word reading and fluency. Finally, dyads tutored with greater fidelity gained more in word reading and fluency; dyads that read more complex words in their texts gained less on letter-sounds, fluency, and comprehension.