Improving Young English Learners' Language and Literacy Skills through Teacher Professional Development: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Babinski, Leslie M.; Amendum, Steven J.; Knotek, Steven E.; Sánchez, Marta; Malone, Patrick (2018). American Educational Research Journal, v55 n1 p117-143. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1167074
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examining105Students, gradesK-2
Single Study Review
Review Details
Reviewed: June 2026
- Single Study Review (findings for Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS))
- Randomized Controlled Trial
- Meets WWC standards without reservations because it is a cluster randomized controlled trial with low cluster-level attrition and individual-level non-response.
This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Findings
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Letter-Word Identification |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
431.00 |
431.00 |
-- |
-- |
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Story Recall |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
490.00 |
487.00 |
-- |
-- |
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Passage Comprehension |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
444.00 |
443.00 |
-- |
-- |
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Understanding Directions |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
468.00 |
467.00 |
-- |
-- |
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
DCCS Observation Tool - DCCS Strategies |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Classroom Teachers;
|
N/A |
N/A |
Yes |
|
||
|
Classroom Quality for English Language Learners (CQELL) - English Learners Support |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Classroom teachers;
|
1.21 |
1.12 |
No |
-- | ||
|
Classroom Quality for English Language Learners (CQELL) - Generic Lesson Elements |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Classroom teachers;
|
2.04 |
2.01 |
No |
-- | ||
| Show Supplemental Findings | |||||||||
|
Classroom Quality for English Language Learners (CQELL) - Adapted Strategies |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Classroom teachers;
|
1.93 |
1.35 |
Yes |
|
||
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Verbal Analogies |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
470.00 |
466.00 |
-- |
-- |
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Picture Vocabulary |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
453.00 |
452.00 |
-- |
-- |
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Woodcock Munoz Language Survey Revised Normative Update (WMLS-R): Dictation |
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) vs. Business as usual |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
447.00 |
446.00 |
-- |
-- |
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Sample Characteristics
Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.
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100% English language learners -
Female: 39%
Male: 61% -
Suburban, Urban
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South
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Race Other or unknown 100% -
Ethnicity Hispanic 100% -
Eligible for Free and Reduced Price Lunch Free or reduced price lunch (FRPL) 83% No FRPL 14% Other or unknown 3%
Study Details
Setting
The study took place in 12 elementary schools in three school districts in the Southeast. The study focused on instruction for English learners in kindergarten and grades 1 and 2.
Study sample
The study included Latino students who were English learners, spoke Spanish as their first language, qualified for English as a second language services, and were in participating classrooms. Bilingual students who did not qualify for these services were not included. Researchers randomly assigned 12 schools to one of two groups: 6 schools received the intervention, and 6 schools were assigned to a waitlist comparison group. In each school, participating English as a second language teachers nominated general education teachers to participate in the study with them as a school-based team, prior to random assignment. In total, 45 teachers took part in the study. Student results were based on 105 students: 64 in intervention schools and 41 in comparison schools. The analysis sample used to measure teacher outcomes focused only on the general education teachers.
Intervention Group
Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS) is a professional development program for English as a second language teachers and classroom teachers who work with English learners. The program aimed to improve language and literacy instruction for young English learners by helping teachers plan instruction together and use language and literacy strategies. The intervention also included a component that focused on helping teachers incorporate students’ and families’ cultural and linguistic assets into instruction. Teachers assigned to the intervention group received 35 hours of training during a summer institute and 6 additional hours across four follow-up sessions during the school year. They also had access to coaching at their schools about every 6 weeks and met weekly for 30 minutes with the other teachers on their school team to coordinate instruction. The professional development covered strategies for building students’ language and literacy skills, including vocabulary, comprehension, phonemic awareness, phonics, word recognition, oral language, written language, and use of Spanish-English cognates.
Comparison Group
Teachers in the comparison group did not receive the Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills professional development during the study. They continued with their usual instruction. The study did not describe specific professional development, coaching, or collaboration supports provided to teachers in the comparison group during the study. English as a second language services in both the intervention and comparison schools were typically delivered by pulling small groups of students out to an English as a second language classroom, with some teachers also occasionally providing instruction in the regular classroom.
Support for implementation
A member of the research team who had previously worked as an English as a second language teacher and elementary school principal provided on-site coaching to intervention teachers about every 6 weeks. Because the intervention was a professional development program for teachers, the training, coaching, and collaboration supports that teachers received are described in the intervention group section.
Department-funded evaluation
Review Details
Reviewed: December 2019
- Department-funded evaluation (findings for Developing Collaboration and Consultation Skills (DCCS))
- Randomized Controlled Trial
- Does not meet WWC standards because it is a randomized controlled trial with high attrition, and the analytic intervention and comparison groups do not satisfy the baseline equivalence requirement.
This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Findings
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Sample Characteristics
Study sample characteristics were not reported.An indicator of the effect of the intervention, the improvement index can be interpreted as the expected change in percentile rank for an average comparison group student if that student had received the intervention.
For more, please see the WWC Glossary entry for improvement index.
An outcome is the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are attained as a result of an activity. An outcome measures is an instrument, device, or method that provides data on the outcome.
A finding that is included in the effectiveness rating. Excluded findings may include subgroups and subscales.
The sample on which the analysis was conducted.
The group to which the intervention group is compared, which may include a different intervention, business as usual, or no services.
The timing of the post-intervention outcome measure.
The number of students included in the analysis.
The mean score of students in the intervention group.
The mean score of students in the comparison group.
The WWC considers a finding to be statistically significant if the likelihood that the finding is due to chance alone, rather than a real difference, is less than five percent.
The WWC reviews studies for WWC products, Department of Education grant competitions, and IES performance measures.
The name and version of the document used to guide the review of the study.
The version of the WWC design standards used to guide the review of the study.
The result of the WWC assessment of the study. The rating is based on the strength of evidence of the effectiveness of the intervention. Studies are given a rating of Meets WWC Design Standards without Reservations, Meets WWC Design Standards with Reservations, or >Does Not Meet WWC Design Standards.
A related publication that was reviewed alongside the main study of interest.
Study findings for this report.
Based on the direction, magnitude, statistical significance, and sample size of the findings within a domain, the WWC assigns effectiveness ratings as one of the following: Tier 1 (strong evidence), Tier 2 (moderate evidence), Tier 3 (promising evidence), uncertain effects, and negative effects. For more detail, please see the WWC Handbook.
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Tier 1 Strong indicates strong evidence of effectiveness,
Tier 2 Moderate indicates moderate evidence of effectiveness, and
Tier 3 Promising indicates promising evidence of effectiveness,
as defined in the
non-regulatory guidance for ESSA
and the regulations for ED discretionary grants (EDGAR Part 77).