Education research has generated strong evidence about instructional approaches that improve students’ algebra learning, but translating those findings into consistent classroom practice can be a challenge. Time constraints, competing priorities, and uncertainty about how to operationalize research can all limit implementation of evidence-based practices.
REL Central developed the Toolkit to Support Evidence-Based Algebra Instruction in Middle and High School to address this challenge. The toolkit supports teachers in implementing instructional strategies based on the three evidence-based recommendations identified by the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) in Teaching Strategies for Improving Algebra Knowledge in Middle and High School Students. Rather than restating the recommendations or prescribing curriculum, the toolkit focuses on how teachers can transform the recommendations into instructional strategies, study their use, and refine them over time in their classroom settings. Developed collaboratively with educators throughout Nebraska, the toolkit is designed to be practical, user‑friendly, and directly applicable in schools.
An Implementation-Oriented Design
A key strength of the algebra toolkit is that it treats implementation as a process, not an event. The toolkit is intentionally not a curriculum or a scripted program. Instead, it supports educators in strengthening their existing instruction by embedding evidence-based strategies into lessons they already teach.
Teachers begin by selecting one of the three WWC recommendations:
- Using solved problems to engage students in analyzing algebraic reasoning and strategies
- Teaching students to utilize the structure of algebraic representations
- Teaching students to intentionally choose from alternative algebraic strategies
From there, teachers identify one or two instructional strategies aligned with that recommendation and plan how to integrate them into their own instructional context. This approach lowers the barrier to entry and makes implementation feasible within the realities of day-to-day teaching.
Using PDSA Cycles to Support Instructional Change
The toolkit organizes implementation around Plan–Do–Study–Act (PDSA) cycles, a continuous improvement framework commonly used in education and other applied fields. PDSA cycles provide structure while allowing flexibility, helping educators learn from their own practice.
- Plan: Teachers define how they will implement an instructional strategy, what successful implementation will look like, and which data will help them understand both implementation and student outcomes.
- Do: Teachers try the strategy in their classrooms and collect low-inference data, such as brief reflections, student work, or peer observation notes.
- Study: Teachers analyze what happened, comparing results to their original plan and examining patterns in student engagement or understanding.
- Act: Teachers refine their approach based on what they learned and decide how to strengthen implementation in future lessons.
This cycle encourages teachers to treat instructional change as iterative and evidence-informed, rather than expecting immediate perfection.
The Role of Professional Learning Communities
Implementation in the algebra toolkit is designed to take place within professional learning communities (PLCs). PLCs provide a collaborative structure for teachers to plan instruction, examine evidence, and reflect on results together.
Working in a PLC supports implementation by:
- creating shared expectations and language around the recommendations.
- providing opportunities for peer feedback and problem-solving.
- reducing isolation and normalizing challenges associated with instructional change.
Rather than positioning implementation as an individual responsibility, the toolkit emphasizes collective learning and shared improvement.
Using Data to Learn, Not to Evaluate
Another distinguishing feature of the toolkit is its use of data for learning purposes. The toolkit includes optional data tools—such as teacher self-reflections, classroom visitation tools, student surveys, and student knowledge assessments—that help teachers understand how instructional strategies are being implemented and how students are responding. For the student surveys and knowledge assessments, teachers may also choose to use the provided excel files to input student data and the files automatically provide figures that display student trends.
Importantly, these data are intended to support reflection and improvement, not evaluation. By focusing on low-stakes, classroom-level evidence, the toolkit helps teachers build habits of inquiry that can strengthen instruction over time.
Supporting Sustainable Implementation
The toolkit also recognizes that successful implementation depends on supportive conditions. School and district leaders play an important role by protecting time for PLCs, encouraging experimentation, and reinforcing that improvement is an ongoing process. Accordingly, the toolkit provides resources for school and district leaders to understand the toolkit and how to support it.
The final module of the toolkit shifts attention to sustainability, guiding teachers and school leaders to reflect on lessons learned, anticipate barriers, and plan for continued use of effective instructional strategies beyond a single cycle or school year.
Moving from Evidence to Impact
The algebra toolkit demonstrates that implementing evidence-based recommendations does not require wholesale instructional reform. By grounding instructional change in teachers’ existing practice, supporting iterative learning through PDSA cycles, and fostering collaboration through PLCs, the toolkit offers a practical pathway from research evidence to classroom impact.
In doing so, it helps teachers move beyond knowing what works in algebra instruction toward understanding how to make it work—for their students, in their schools, and over time.
For more information or support in implementing the toolkit, subscribe to our newsletter, reach out via email, follow us on X and LinkedIn, and visit our website to learn more about REL Central.
