Study: 90042

Practice Guide

Review Details

Reviewed: July 2022

No statistically significant positive
findings

Meets WWC standards with reservations

For:

Practice Guide (findings for Second Step Early Learning (SSEL))

Using:

Rating:

Meets WWC standards with reservations because it is a compromised cluster randomized controlled trial, but it satisfies the baseline equivalence requirement for the individuals in the analytic intervention and comparison groups.

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

Reading & Literacy Related outcomes—Indeterminate effect found for the domain
Outcome measure	Comparison	Period	Sample	Intervention mean	Comparison mean	Significant?	Improvement index	Evidence tier
Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement (WJ-III) Letter-Word Identification Subtest	Second Step Early Learning (SSEL) vs. Business as usual	0 Days	Full sample; 770 students	95.80	97.28	No	--

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: 49%
Male: 51%

Race
Asian		2%
Black		26%
Other or unknown		30%
White		42%

Ethnicity
Hispanic		41%
Not Hispanic or Latino		59%

Eligible for Free and Reduced Price Lunch
Other or unknown		100%

Study Details

Setting

The study was conducted across seven community-based preschools and six Head Start programs.

Study sample

The analytic sample was 50.8 percent male; the overall mean age was 53.0 months. Of these students, 42 percent are reported as Anglo-American, 26 percent are African American, 2 percent are Asian American, 3 percent are classified as ‘other race,’ and no race information was provided for the remaining 27 percent of children and families. About 41 percent of the students were Hispanic.

Intervention Group

Students assigned to the intervention condition received the Second Step Early Learning Curriculum (SSEL), which aims to develop social-emotional competencies and self-regulation skills among students considered at risk. SSEL includes five units and has scripted, five day-a-week, brief large and small group lessons with 28 weekly themes; there are also suggested extension and generalization activities. Intervention teachers implemented SSEL in addition to the existing curriculum, Creative Curriculum. SSEL does not provide specific instruction on pre-math or pre-literacy skills.

Comparison Group

Comparison teachers continued the business-as-usual curriculum, which was Creative Curriculum.

Support for implementation

Teachers assigned to implement Second Step participated in monthly, 2-hour cross-site training sessions during their first year. During their second year of implementation, teachers attend bi-monthly meetings to ask questions and share successes and challenges regarding the program. Members of the intervention development team also visited classrooms monthly to lead a SSEL lesson and provide coaching to teachers. The program developers also provided all training session materials, curriculum kits, and related story books.

A Randomized Efficacy Trial of the Second Step Early Learning (SSEL) Curriculum [Second Step: Social-Emotional Skills for Early Learning vs. business as usual (Creative Curriculum)]