Found Effects

The WWC found ALAS to have potentially positive effects for staying in school and progressing in school

Improvement index

The WWC computes an improvement index for each individual finding. In addition, within each outcome domain, the WWC computes an average improvement index for each study and an average improvement index across studies (see Technical Details of WWC-Conducted Computations). The improvement index represents the difference between the percentile rank of the average student in the intervention condition versus the percentile rank of the average student in the comparison condition. Unlike the rating of effectiveness, the improvement index is entirely based on the size of the effect, regardless of the statistical significance of the effect, the study design, or the analysis. The improvement index can take on values between -50 and +50, with positive numbers denoting favorable results. The improvement index for staying in school is +42 percentile points (at the end of the intervention, ninth grade). The improvement index for progressing in school is +19 percentile points (at the end of the intervention, ninth grade).

Summary

The WWC reviewed one study on ALAS that met WWC standards. This study found potentially positive effects on staying in school and potentially positive effects on progressing in school. The WWC reviewed an additional study based on a subgroup of ALAS students from the Larson and Rumberger study. The evidence presented in this report is limited and may change as new research emerges.