At least one finding shows promising evidence of effectiveness
At least one statistically significant positive finding
Meets WWC standards without reservations
For:
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Grant Competition (findings for First Step Next (FSN))
Research Design:
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Rating:
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Meets WWC standards without reservations
because it is a randomized controlled trial with low attrition.
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.
Compliant Student Behavior outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure
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Comparison
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Period
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Sample
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Intervention mean
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Comparison mean
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Significant?
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Improvement index
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Evidence tier
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The Relational Aggression scale
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
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10.10
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12.30
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Yes
|
|
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Systematic Screening for Behavior Disorders, ABS subscale
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
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Full sample;
154 students
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16.40
|
18.40
|
Yes
|
|
|
Student social functioning outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure
|
Comparison
|
Period
|
Sample
|
Intervention mean
|
Comparison mean
|
Significant?
|
Improvement index
|
Evidence tier
|
Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS) Social Skills Scale - teacher-reported
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
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Full sample;
154 students
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91.70
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80.60
|
Yes
|
|
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Child-Teacher Conflict scale
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
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24.40
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31.40
|
Yes
|
|
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Systematic Screening for Behavior Disorders, ABI subscale
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
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27.90
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23.70
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Yes
|
|
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Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS) Problem Behaviors Scale - teacher-reported
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
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115.00
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124.80
|
Yes
|
|
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Systematic Screening for Behavior Disorders, MBI subscale
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First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
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23.50
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27.90
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Yes
|
|
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Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS) Social Skills Scale - parent-reported
|
First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
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98.90
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92.90
|
Yes
|
|
|
Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS) Problem Behaviors Scale - parent-reported
|
First Step Next (FSN) vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample;
154 students
|
110.00
|
118.10
|
Yes
|
|
|
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.
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Female: 33%
Male: 67%
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Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Oregon
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Race
Black |
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36% |
Other or unknown |
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16% |
White |
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48% |
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Ethnicity
Hispanic |
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16% |
Not Hispanic or Latino |
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84% |
Setting
Study participants were pre-kindergarten students at risk for school failure, drawn from Head Start and preschool programs located in one county in Illinois, one county in Indiana, two counties in Kentucky, and two counties in Oregon.
Study sample
The 160 participating children were 4 years old, on average, and about one-third (33%) were female. Children's race and ethnicity were reported as white (48%), black (36%), and Hispanic (16%).
Intervention Group
First Step Next (FSN) is a Tier 2 early intervention for children in pre-kindergarten through second grade. FSN targets social skills and academic enablers central to promoting school success. The intervention has three major components: (1) social skills instruction, whereby the coach, and later the child's teacher, helps the target child to master a set of "Super Student Skills" by providing behavioral lessons that target social-emotional and academic skills; (2) the green-card game, where the coach or teacher uses a laminated card with a green side and a red side to provide feedback to the child about their compliance with classroom expectations (if the card is on the green side, the child should continue with what they are doing, and if the card is on the red side, they should “stop, think, and get back on track"); and (3) home-school connections, which provides the parents a workbook to promote positive parenting strategies that reinforce the skills the child is learning in the classroom. Parents also receive daily feedback from the coach or teacher.
Comparison Group
Teachers in the comparison condition were offered a 4-hour training in classroom management and positive behavioral support. This training provided teachers with some intervention support, but it was more generic, with no specific strategies provided, as in the FSN intervention. Teachers in this condition were eligible to receive training and implementation support in FSN during following academic year.
Support for implementation
Teachers planning to implement the FSN intervention attend a 1-day workshop on the program. A behavioral coach provided direct support to the focus child in the classroom and provided the child's teacher with one-on-one consultation and supervision. Gradually the role of the coach was transferred to the teacher.