This study investigated the effect of a large group narrative intervention on diverse preschoolers' narrative language skills with aims to explore questions of treatment efficacy and differential response to intervention. A quasi-experimental, pretest/posttest comparison group research design was employed with 71 preschool children. Classrooms…

In posttest results, 76 prealgebra students who learned about functions in a unit emphasizing multiple formats, anchoring learning in a thematic context, and problem solving in cooperative groups were more successful at problem solving and problem representation than were 56 comparison students conventionally taught. Similar results were found for…

Supplemental Instruction (SI) incorporates collaborative learning in small, peer-led, group settings in order to integrate instruction in learning and reasoning skills with course content. Several meta-analyses speak to the efficacy of SI but fail to address selection bias due to ability/motivation and gender. In this study, SI was paired with a…

Describes the Treisman model which involves supplemental workshops in which college students solve problems in collaborative learning groups. Reports on the effectiveness of Math Excel, an implementation of the Treisman model for introductory mathematics courses at Oregon State University over five academic terms. Reveals a significant effect on…

Sixteen Hispanic Spanish/English bilingual children (6 boys and 10 girls) participated in a single-subject design study. Their chronological ages ranged from 8 to 9.5 years. The classroom teacher identified all the children as "academic at risk" on the basis of a history of poor academic performance in spelling and low scores on the…

Supplemental instruction classes have been shown in many studies to enhance performance in the supported courses and even to improve graduation rates. Generally, there has been little evidence of a differential impact on students from different ethnic/racial backgrounds. At San Francisco State University, however, supplemental instruction in the…

A study investigated the effects of teaching 24 middle school students with learning disabilities and mild mental retardation to tutor one another in reading comprehension strategies. Performance on reading comprehension tests following reciprocal tutoring yielded significant performance advantages for students involved in tutoring. Students…

Explored methods for helping students generate conceptual mathematical explanations during peer-mediated learning activities. Three groups (one with training in elaborated help, one with additional training in providing conceptual explanations, and one control) were compared after 18 weeks on mathematics achievement. Found that students with…

Developed and evaluated an explicit approach to teaching students to engage in elaborated help-giving during collaborative group work in reading. Found that grade level and treatment exerted statistically significant and practically sizable effects on the help that students provided their peers. (Author/LPP)

A study examined the effectiveness of the Kindergarten Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (K-PALS) in increasing the beginning reading skills of six kindergartners identified as having emotional or behavioral disorders. The peer tutoring phase of K-PALS led to increases in student scores on letter-sound correspondence and blending probes. (Contains…

Describes a study that used quantitative and qualitative inquiry to determine how collaborative learning relates to the achievement and persistence of first-year community college students. Examines the experiences of students enrolled in Seattle Central Community College's Coordinated Studies Program, an interdisciplinary, team-taught set of…

Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition was implemented with elementary school regular, remedial, and special education students as an approach for organizing reading and language arts instruction. Compared to a control school, the experimental school found significant effects on reading vocabulary, total reading, and language scores but…

A two-year study determined the effects of a comprehensive cooperative-learning approach to reading and language arts instruction on students' achievement, attitudes, and metacognitive awareness. Students in second through sixth grades, some mainstreamed academically handicapped, worked in heterogeneous learning teams on reading and writing…

Examined first-year results of the Success for All (SFA) program, designed to bring every student to grade level in reading by third grade. Found that SFA benefits were most significant at the kindergarten level; teachers were highly accepting of the program; and the program's strengths included cooperative learning, regrouping, tutoring, early…