Intervention: Saxon Middle School Math

Intervention: Saxon Middle School Math
April 9, 2007

Effectiveness

Findings

The WWC review of interventions for Saxon Middle School Math addresses student outcomes in one domain: math achievement. ⁵

Williams (1986) reported statistically significant differences favoring the intervention group on students' gains in total mathematics test scores, and this finding was confirmed by the WWC analysis.

Peters (1992) reported no statistically significant differences between the intervention group and the comparison group on the Orleans-Hanna Prognostic Test.

Crawford & Raia (1986) reported statistically significant differences favoring the intervention group on students' total scores on the math sub-test of the California Achievement test, and this finding was confirmed by WWC analysis.

Roberts (1994) reported no statistically significant differences between the intervention and comparison groups on the Stanford Achievement Test Eighth Edition math test.

Resendez, Fahmy, & Manley (2005) found statistically significant differences favoring the intervention group on the math portions of both the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS; TLI score), and the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), and these findings were confirmed by the WWC analysis. Resendez & Manley (2005) found no statistically significant differences between the intervention and comparison group using total scores on the Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT). In sum, three of the six studies reviewed reported statistically significant positive effects. The remaining three studies showed indeterminate effects.

Rating of effectiveness

The WWC rates the effects of an intervention in a given outcome domain as positive, potentially positive, mixed, no discernible effects, potentially negative, or negative. The rating of effectiveness takes into account four factors: the quality of the research design, the statistical significance of the findings,⁶ the size of the difference between participants in the intervention condition and the comparison condition, and the consistency in findings across studies (see the WWC Intervention Rating Scheme).

⁵ Additional analyses were done after removing schools that scored at the extremes (one treatment, one comparison); however, no statistically significant differences were found in those analyses.
⁶ The level of statistical significance was reported by the study authors, or where necessary, calculated by the WWC to correct for clustering within classrooms or schools and for multiple comparisons. For an explanation, see the WWC Tutorial on Mismatch. See the WWC Intervention Rating Scheme for the formulas the WWC used to calculate the statistical significance. In the case of Saxon Middle School Math, corrections for clustering and multiple comparisons were needed for part of the studies reviewed.

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Effectiveness

Findings

Rating of effectiveness

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