Across six Sub-Saharan African countries, grade 4 students of teachers who were hired after a free primary education reform perform worse, on average, on language and math tests--statistically significantly so in language--than students of teachers who were hired before the reform. Teachers who were hired just after the reform also perform worse,…

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships among (1) special education teachers' knowledge for teaching reading fluency, (2) the specific instructional practices they used in fluency instruction, and (3) gains of students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) on a performance measure of oral reading fluency (ORF). Analyses…

In May of 2011, the "Los Angeles Times" published, for the second time, results of statistical studies examining the variation in teacher and school performance in the Los Angeles Unified School District, based on the California Standards Tests for math and English Language Arts (ELA). The studies use data from the seven academic years…

Recent national and state standards of accountability have focused on increasing student performance and achievement as well as teacher quality. Included in this challenge is the issue of teacher compensation and how it has evolved with the efforts of providing quality instruction in order to improve the performance of students. Texas has…

Teacher effectiveness and evaluation using student growth measures is a popular reform strategy in education. Teachers can make a difference in student academic growth, but a question that begs an answer is how to go about measuring this impact. This study examines models of teacher effectiveness and the development of hierarchical linear models…

Describes "What Works in Reading?," a study of the variables that contribute to reading achievement. Provides an analysis of the study's impact, and examines why its findings were translated into policy. Isolates and discusses factors associated with research utilization. (CMG)

Researchers found that a Washington State fourth-grade teacher successfully met the demands of standards-based writing instruction without compromising her teaching stance or diverse students' learning. She instituted 15-minute class meetings to address student problems, read aloud from books with relevant characters, and used innovative,…

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study disclosed that while U.S. students did well in the fourth grade in comparison with students from other countries, they had slipped considerably by eighth grade. This study was conducted to see what could be learned about achievement growth between grades 4 and 8. Achievement growth was…

This study was designed to improve the academic achievement of 35 third- and fourth-grade underachievers through improved self-esteem. Specific goals included focusing on self-concept and learning skills reinforcement, with the ultimate goal of increasing academic performance and motivation. Large group sessions with students focused on…

The study of the same people at several occasions is known by various names: panel studies, multi-wave, multi-variable models, cohort analysis, and gain score analysis. The use of econometric concepts, path analysis, and structural equation analysis to study multi-wave, multi-variable models became widespread in methodological practice in the late…

Noting that performance at the highest levels of achievement on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is evidence that students have demonstrated competency over challenging subject matter and achieved the third National Educational Goal, this report presents the most up-to-date results in reading achievement for the states and…

A study in two South African schools investigated the impact of encouraging free, voluntary reading on the English language skills of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) learners. Subjects were 139 fourth- through seventh-grade students in an experimental group and 105 students in a control group. Pretests of reading comprehension were administered…

The Schenectady Intensive Reading Instructional Teams (I. R. I. T.) Program, funded under the Elementary Secondary Education Act Title III, is designed to provide intensive reading instruction to 135 students from eight elementary schools in the district. The students, mostly third and some fourth graders, are nominated by their classroom teachers…

Project Special Elementary Education for the Disadvantaged (SEED) is a nationwide program in which professional mathematicians and scientists from major universities and research corporations teach abstract, conceptually oriented mathematics to full-sized classes of elementary school children on a daily basis as a supplement to their regular…

This paper reports on research conducted to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference between the achievement test scores of students who enter first grade as 5-year-olds, and those who enter first grade as 6-year-olds. Ex post facto research was conducted on 3 samples of students (17,000 from 1st grades, 17,500 from 4th…