Developing a Sentence Writing Intervention for Young Struggling Writers

The purpose of the research plan is to iteratively develop, refine, and evaluate a sentence-writing intervention across a series of studies. In Year 1, the PI will conduct a literature review to determine the key elements of early writing interventions and develop the initial version of the intervention with feedback from participating teachers and content experts. In Years 2-3, the PI will test the usability and feasibility of the intervention in a series of single-case design studies with researcher implementers and field trials with teacher implementers. The PI will solicit feedback from teachers and content experts to revise the intervention after each study. In Year 4, the PI will conduct a small randomized controlled trial with approximately 40 students to determine the promise of the final version of the intervention for improving their writing outcomes. Fidelity will be assessed through direct observation throughout the single-case design studies and the randomized controlled trial. Feasibility and usability will be assessed through focus groups and interviews with teachers. Writing outcomes will be assessed using a curriculum-based measure and a standardized writing assessment. Data from the single-case design studies will be analyzed using visual analysis and effect size calculation. Data from the pilot study will be analyzed using multilevel modeling. The PI will also conduct a cost analysis to determine the cost of implementing the final version of the intervention.