Context: Assessments of baseline equivalency of intervention and control groups, "balance," play a critical role in evaluating educational interventions. The highest What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) of the Institute of Educational Studies (IES) standard for educational studies, "Meets WWC Design Standards Without Reservations,"…

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a Chinese phonetic script, Zhu-Yin-Fu-Hao (ZYFH), influences low achievers in learning Chinese. In this quasi experimental design, 21 students were assigned to the experimental group, while the other 31 students were distributed to the control group. Two interventions were implemented throughout…

Most students of English as a foreign language (EFL) lack sufficient opportunities to practice their English-speaking skills. However, the recent development of social-networking sites (SNSs) and mobile learning, and especially mobile-assisted language learning, represents new opportunities for these learners to practice speaking English in a…

The purpose of this quantitative quasi-experimental group comparison study using a repeated measures comparison group design with random assignment of subjects to groups was to investigate the effects of handwriting instruction on reading progress for learners in grade 1 and grade 2. At three points in time, the number of words each student read…

The purpose of this pilot study is to analyze the efficacy of a program that combines fine motor activities, animated models, exercises on a digital tablet and paper-pencil exercises. The 10-week program with a 45-minute session and daily exercises was implemented in a class of 16 students of first grade (mean age = 6.9 years old), with another…

This study describes the implementation and effects of a 32-week teacher-led spatial reasoning intervention in K-2 classrooms. The intervention targeted spatial visualization skills as an integrated feature of regular mathematics instruction. Compared to an active control group, children in the spatial intervention demonstrated gains in spatial…

This research was designed to investigate the effectiveness of using the think-aloud strategy to improve the reading comprehension in the content area of science. Based on state standards assessments, many early elementary grade students who were considered fluent readers struggled with evaluative science comprehension. In this quasi-experimental…

When a child does not seem to be ready for primary school, a popular practice is to grant the child more time by letting it repeat kindergarten. However, previous quasi-experimental research demonstrated negative, though diminishing, effects of kindergarten retention on academic learning during the first years of primary school. The present study…

Guided by the theoretical framework of curriculum as a platform for talent development, this quasi-experimental field study investigated an intervention focused on engineering curriculum and curriculum based on a biography of a scientist through a comparative design implemented in low-income schools. Student outcome measures included science…

We evaluated the effect of morphological awareness training delivered in preschool (8 months before school entry) on reading ability at the end of grade 1 and 5 years later (in Grade 6). In preschool, one group of children received morphological awareness training, while a second group received phonological awareness training. A control group…

This quasi-experimental study tested the efficacy of a research based biliterate reading strategy, Lotta Lara, that is part of a larger paired literacy instructional program. Its purpose was to investigate whether the biliterate reading strategy, which focuses on reading fluency, comprehension, and oracy through whole group instruction, impacted…

Currently, parental involvement research considers parents as individuals, and gives little consideration to them as a collective body, including how, as a group, they might influence each other. This study examined the influence of parent social norms on parents' home reading behaviour with their child. Two quasi-experiments conducted in two…

This study aimed to investigate the effect of using e-textbooks, activities, games, and worksheets that loaded onto students tablets on first grade students' achievement on their core curriculum (science, math, English, Arabic) compared to the use of the traditional teaching method. It also, investigated the school administration reflection toward…

Across multiple schools and sites, the impact of grade-at-intervention was evaluated for children at risk or meeting criteria for reading disabilities. A multiple-component reading intervention with demonstrated efficacy was offered to small groups of children in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade. In a quasi-experimental design, 172 children received the…

This article offers a brief and personal account of the historical background, implementation and principal findings from the Trois-Rivieres regional project, a large-scale quasi-experimental intervention that tested the impact of providing a daily hour of specialist-taught quality physical education upon the physical and mental development of…