What's New for February 2012

Study of Alabama STEM Initiative Finds Positive Impacts (February 21, 2012)
REL Southeast recently conducted a randomized control trial on the effectiveness of the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) in grades 4-8. Introduced in 2002, AMSTI is a whole-school reform initiative providing professional development, access to materials and technology, and in-school support for teachers.

The REL Southeast study, titled Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI), was conducted in five regions of the state. The study randomly assigned 82 schools, which contained about 780 teachers and approximately 30,000 students, to receive the treatment. Findings include:

• By the end of the first year following the introduction of AMSTI, mathematics achievement for students in the AMSTI schools was significantly higher than that for students in the control schools. The difference in achievement was roughly equivalent to 28 additional days of instruction.
• There was no significant difference in science achievement after the first year of the program between students in the AMSTI and control schools.
• Contrary to the theory of action for AMSTI, the study found no evidence that teachers in the AMSTI schools were more likely than teachers in the control schools to use active learning classroom practices for math and science instruction. Preliminary analysis of student achievement outcomes two years following the introduction of AMSTI suggests that AMSTI may have resulted in higher student achievement in both mathematics and science.

REL Report Examines Effectiveness of a Supplemental Math Tutoring Program on Student Achievement (February 14, 2012)
To increase the evidence base on remediation in early math, the 2006-2011 REL Southwest at Edvance Research conducted a rigorous experimental study of the impact of the Number Rockets small group tutoring program on grade 1 math achievement. Number Rockets is an early mathematics intervention targeted to students at risk of falling behind.

This study, Evaluation of Number Rockets: A Tier-2 Intervention for Grade 1 Students at Risk for Difficulties in Mathematics, found that the Number Rockets intervention had a positive effect on math achievement in grade 1, without having a negative effect on reading achievement. Comparison students received regular core mathematics instruction but no additional support.

Specific findings include:

• Grade 1 students that participated in Number Rockets performed, on average, 7.31 percentile points higher in math achievement than comparison students.
• Students who participated in the Number Rockets program scored at the same levels on post tests of letter- and word-reading skills as students who did not participate in the program. Further, "pulling out" students from non-math classes for additional math tutoring did not appear to reduce student achievement in reading.
• The effect of the program was seen for all students, regardless of their level of math achievement prior to the program.
• Among students who received the Number Rockets intervention, there was no difference in achievement by the number of tutoring sessions provided.

REL Report Examines the Title I Supplemental Educational Services Program in the Appalachia Region (February 10, 2012)
Under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, students from low-income households are eligible for extra academic assistance if they attend a Title I school that has not made adequate yearly progress for at least three consecutive years. Supplemental educational services usually involve individual or small-group tutoring beyond regular school hours in reading and math. This 2006-2011 REL Appalachia at CNA report, A Descriptive Study of Enrollment in Supplemental Educational Services in the Four REL Appalachia Region States, examines the 2007/08 Title I supplemental educational services program by school locale in the Appalachia Region. The study examines enrollment rates, the number of tutoring hours contracted for and attended, and variation in the type of instruction provided.

REL Technical Brief Updates Database of Dropout Prevention Programs and Policies in Nine Low-Income Urban School Districts in the Northeast and Islands Region (February 9, 2012)
Nationally, many public school students fail to graduate from high school. Those most at risk for not graduating continue to be non-White students living in low-income, urban areas. To learn what dropout prevention programs and policies low-income school districts with high racial/ethnic minority student populations in the Northeast and Islands Region are implementing, (Myint-U. et al. 2009) constructed an interactive database covering nine pilot districts. This REL Northeast and Islands Technical Brief, Updating a Searchable Database of Dropout Prevention Programs and Policies in Nine Low-Income Urban School Districts in the Northeast and Islands Region, builds on the Myint-U. et al. (2009) report, describing updates to the database in 2011 and characteristics of new, discontinued, and sustained programs since 2006/07.

REL Report Examines Effectiveness of Success in Sight Program on Student Achievement (February 8, 2012)
The 2006-2011 REL Central at McREL conducted a randomized control trial of the Success in Sight school improvement intervention in elementary schools in Missouri and Minnesota. Success in Sight is a district-wide intervention designed to help schools, leadership teams, and teachers systematically and systemically engage in continuous school improvement practices to advance the learning of all students. The program focuses on improving data-based decision making, building a purposeful community with a collective belief that the community can achieve its goals, shared leadership, research-based practices, and a cycle of continuous improvement.

The study included approximately 8,200 students and 1,500 teachers in grades 3 through 5 across 52 schools in 8 school districts. The study found that students who attended schools participating in the Success in Sight intervention had comparable levels of math and reading achievement as students who attended schools that did not participate in the intervention. Key results include the following:

• Success in Sight did not produce a statistically significant impact on student reading or mathematics achievement after two years of implementation.
• Teachers who were in Success in Sight schools reported similar levels of engagement in data-based decision making, purposeful community, and shared leadership as teachers who did not receive the intervention.