WWC review of this study

Reducing Child Problem Behaviors and Improving Teacher-Child Interactions and Relationships: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Best in Class

Sutherland, Kevin S.; Conroy, Maureen A.; Algina, James; Ladwig, Crystal; Jesse, Gabriel; Gyure, Maria (2018). Early Childhood Research Quarterly v42 p31-43. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED581411

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
     examining 
    400
     Students
    , grade
    PK

Reviewed: January 2022

At least one finding shows strong evidence of effectiveness
At least one statistically significant positive finding
Meets WWC standards without reservations
Behavior outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome
measure
Comparison Period Sample Intervention
mean
Comparison
mean
Significant? Improvement
    index
Evidence
tier

TCIDOS Disruptive Behavior

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
380 students

0.02

0.07

Yes

 
 
18
 

TCIDOS Engagement

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
380 students

0.97

0.93

Yes

 
 
17
 

Social Skills Improvement Scale (SSiS): Problem Behavior

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
400 students

111.07

117.75

Yes

 
 
16
 

Caregiver teacher report form

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
400 students

56.21

59.77

Yes

 
 
14
 
Show Supplemental Findings

CTRF Externalizing

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample, subtest;
400 students

57.99

61.81

Yes

 
 
16

Caregiver-teacher report form (CTRF), Internalizing scale

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
400 students

52.38

54.91

Yes

 
 
9
Social-emotional development outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome
measure
Comparison Period Sample Intervention
mean
Comparison
mean
Significant? Improvement
    index
Evidence
tier

inCLASS Conflict

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
376 students

1.70

1.94

Yes

 
 
17
 

TCIDOS Positive Interaction

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
380 students

0.97

0.94

Yes

 
 
17
 

TCIDOS Negative Interaction

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
380 students

0.03

0.07

Yes

 
 
17
 

Social Skills Improvement Scale (SSiS): Social Skills

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
400 students

89.30

83.87

Yes

 
 
16
 

Student teacher relationship scale, Conflict scale

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
395 students

2.36

2.65

Yes

 
 
11
 

Student teacher relationship scale, Closeness scale

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
394 students

4.32

4.16

Yes

 
 
10
 

InCLASS: Teacher Interaction

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
377 students

3.03

2.80

Yes

 
 
10
 

InCLASS: Task orientation

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
377 students

4.16

3.97

No

--

InCLASS: Peer Interaction

BEST in CLASS vs. Business as usual

0 Days

Full sample;
377 students

2.44

2.32

No

--


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.


  • Female: 35%
    Male: 65%
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    South
  • Race
    Asian
    0%
    Black
    66%
    Native American
    0%
    Other or unknown
    16%
    White
    17%
  • Ethnicity
    Hispanic    
    5%
    Not Hispanic or Latino    
    95%

Setting

The study took place in early childhood programs in two southeastern states. Most of the early childhood programs that participated were federally- or state-funded programs (pp. 33-34)

Study sample

Across the 78 study schools and centers, 4.5% of children were Hispanic, 66% were Black, and 17% were White. Males made up about 65% of the overall sample. The average age of children was 4.32 years at entry into the study. Among participating teachers, about 3% of were Hispanic, 48% were Black, and 46% were White. Female teachers made up about 98% of the overall sample. The average teaching experience of participating teachers was 12 years. Teachers varied in their level of education: 30% had an Associates degree, 39% had a Bachelors degree, and 26% had a Masters degree. (pp. 34-35)

Intervention Group

BEST in CLASS is a supplemental intervention in which teachers systematically identify children in the classroom with chronic behavior problems and use targeted instructional practices with those children. These targeted instructional practices, which are implemented over the course of the school year, aim to promote positive teacher-child interactions and child engagement while also decreasing problem behaviors. Teachers received BEST in CLASS teacher training, which included a teacher manual, a workshop, and 14 weeks of one-on-one practice-based coaching with performance feedback. Targeted instructional practice modules included guidance on: how to manage children identified as having chronic behavioral problems; preventive methods to set expectations before problem behaviors occur; strategies for giving students opportunities to engage in instructional activities; how to provide behavior-specific praise, providing instructional feedback; and how best to combine instructional practices in a sequential way (pp. 33, 36-37)

Comparison Group

Comparison teachers implemented the business-as-usual curriculum using a range of federally- or state-funded programs. The most commonly used programs included Teaching Strategies Gold (Heroman et al., 2010), the Creative Curriculum (Heroman et al., 2010) and High Scope (High Scope Educational Research Foundation, 2014). (p. 37)

Support for implementation

Teachers received BEST in CLASS teacher training, which included a teacher manual, a workshop, and 14 weeks of one-on-one practice-based coaching with performance feedback. (pp. 36-37)

 

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