Study: 87211

Effects of First-Grade Number Knowledge Tutoring with Contrasting Forms of Practice [Number knowledge tutoring (with speeded or non-speeded practice) vs. control]

Fuchs, Lynn S.; Geary, David C.; Compton, Donald L.; Fuchs, Douglas; Schatschneider, Christopher; Hamlett, Carol L.; DeSelms, Jacqueline; Seethaler, Pamela M.; Wilson, Julie; Craddock, Caitlin F.; Bryant, Joan D.; Luther, Kurstin; Changas, Paul (2013). Journal of Educational Psychology, v105 n1 p58-77. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1006608

Practice Guide

Review Details

Reviewed: November 2019

At least one finding shows strong evidence of effectiveness

At least one statistically significant positive finding

Meets WWC standards without reservations

For:

Practice Guide (findings for Targeted Math Intervention)

Using:

Rating:

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.

Findings

Whole Numbers Computation outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure	Comparison	Period	Sample	Intervention mean	Comparison mean	Significant?	Improvement index	Evidence tier
Arithmetic Combinations (Fuchs Hamlett & Powell 2003)	Targeted Math Intervention vs. Business as usual	0 Days	Galaxy Math (with speeded and non-speeded practice) vs. Control contrast; 591 students	30.74	22.18	Yes	25
Double-digit Addition & Subtraction (Fuchs, Hamlett, & Powell 2003)	Targeted Math Intervention vs. Business as usual	0 Days	Galaxy Math (with speeded and non-speeded practice) vs. Control contrast ; 591 students	3.90	1.94	Yes	22

Whole Numbers Magnitude Understanding/Relative Magnitude Understanding outcomes—Indeterminate effect found for the domain
Outcome measure	Comparison	Period	Sample	Intervention mean	Comparison mean	Significant?	Improvement index	Evidence tier
The Number Sets Test (Geary, Bailey, Hoard 2009)	Targeted Math Intervention vs. Business as usual	0 Days	Galaxy Math (with speeded and non-speeded practice) vs. Control contrast ; 591 students	-0.84	-0.77	No	--

Whole Numbers Word Problems/Problem Solving outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure	Comparison	Period	Sample	Intervention mean	Comparison mean	Significant?	Improvement index	Evidence tier
Word Problems (Jordan & Hanich 2000)	Targeted Math Intervention vs. Business as usual	0 Days	Galaxy Math (with speeded and non-speeded practice) vs. Control contrast ; 591 students	3.31	2.75	Yes	9

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.

Female: 50%
Male: 50%
Urban
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South

Race
Black		69%
Other or unknown		11%
White		20%

Ethnicity
Hispanic		7%

Study Details

Setting

This study was supplemental tutoring for first graders at risk for math difficulties. It took place in an urban district in the Southeastern part of the United States. Researchers recruited 40 schools and 233 first-grade classes across four years.

Study sample

50 percent of the sample was female. 69 percent of the sample was black, 20 percent was white, and 7 percent was Hispanic. 15 percent of the sample had an identified disability and 84 percent were eligible for subsidized lunch. Students whose teachers identified them as not speaking English were excluded from the study.

Intervention Group

The intervention condition in this review is the aggregated sample, combining the two treatment groups (Galaxy Math with speeded and with non-speeded practice). 195 students received speeded practice and 190 students received non-speeded practice. Galaxy Math included a number sense intervention for 25 minutes that focused on understanding magnitude, equal sign understanding, number-after principle, addition and subtraction subsets, number families, magnitude comparisons, number line representations, and inverse relationship between addition and subtraction. The speeded practice included flashcards where students had to meet or beat their scores on addition and subtraction flashcards that coincided with what was being worked on in the 25 minute Galaxy Math lesson. The non-speeded practice included games for students to play with manipulatives for addition and subtraction concepts that coincided with what was being worked on in the 25 minute Galaxy Math lesson.

Comparison Group

Students in the comparison condition received business as usual instruction and did not receive any tutoring.

Support for implementation

Both the intervention and comparison conditions were delivered by 78 tutors who worked with 4 to 7 students across the two tutoring conditions. Tutors received an initial two-day training and participated in weekly meetings where they received support during the 16-week intervention period. In these weekly meetings, tutors provided an update on each student and discussed challenges with other tutors and researchers. The group also reviewed upcoming topics and materials.