Project Activities
The project used an iterative design approach to develop the ILSG professional development intervention, which included teacher feedback, focus groups, and field trials to test its feasibility, efficiency, and usability. The final year of the project involved a randomized controlled design pilot study of the fully developed ILSG intervention as well as dissemination-related activities.
Structured Abstract
Setting
During the first 3 years, the research took place in elementary schools in a large urban school district in Washington State. During the final year, the randomized controlled trial took place in five different states—Oregon, Washington, California, Arizona, and Nevada.
Sample
The development study (years 1-2) sample included two cohorts of eight elementary school teachers of students with or at risk of EBD. The first cohort included experienced teachers and the second cohort included both teachers who were experienced in reading instruction and new teachers who worked with students with EBD. During the feasibility study (year 3), 14 general and special education educators participated. The pilot study (year 4) included 72 teachers and 128 elementary school students with EBD.
ILSG is a digitally delivered professional learning program that combines behavior support with high-quality reading instruction to improve academic outcomes for students with EBD. Drawn from Enhanced Core Reading Instruction, the reading content features educator explanations, modeling of the skill or strategy, signaling for individual and group responses, practice for students, error corrections, and checks for understanding. The behavior component includes high-leverage practices from widely adopted, evidence-based social, emotional, and behavioral interventions, such as verbal praise. ILSG consists of 10 modules to be completed online in the learning management system with other educators in a study group. Modules 2–9 follow a systematic sequence: (a) introduction, (b) a reflection question, (c) new content, (d) guided practice, (e) application activities, and (f) two discussion questions. Each module incorporates two topics—tier 2 reading routines for small groups and social, emotional, and behavior strategies educators can use with their students with EBD — and one video segment each for reading and behavior that models routines and strategies. Active practice includes self-recorded videos of educators rehearsing a routine without students. Peers give feedback in an online forum. In modules 8–9, instead of a practice video, educators prepare a lesson plan for their students. Educators implement the routines and strategies that best fit their students' needs.
Research design and methods
The research team used an iterative process to develop ILSG. The process involved multiple cycles of implementation and revision to the components of the intervention based on teacher feedback. Multiple measures of formative assessment data from the development study guided the form and content of revisions. During the feasibility study (year 3), the team tested the hypothesis that ILSG would increase self-efficacy for general teaching, reading, and behavior and decrease burnout. Fourteen general and special education educators took part in the 12-week feasibility study and were assigned to an ILSG study group, with 4–5 educators in each. Each educator used the ILSG course for 10 weeks (1 module/week), regularly documenting progress and giving usage and feasibility ratings. During the pilot study (year 4), the research team conducted a randomized wait-list control trial to test whether ILSG decreased teacher burnout, increased teacher self-efficacy and knowledge, and increased student reading performance, engagement, and motivation.
Control condition
In the pilot study, the control group consisted of teachers receiving their usual, ongoing professional development activities at their schools.
Key measures
During the development phase, data were collected using focus groups and a user satisfaction/acceptability survey. During the feasibility study, at pre- and post-test, educators completed assessments of self-efficacy in the areas of general teaching (instruction, management, and engagement), reading instruction, and behavioral supports for students with EBD using the Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale, and three project-developed measures. A project-developed measure was used to assess teacher knowledge of evidence-based reading and behavioral practices for students with EBD. Teachers also completed the Teacher Burnout Scale to assess stress and burnout. Measures were also used to assess teacher usage, satisfaction, acceptability, relevance, and implementation of the intervention. In addition to the above teacher measures, during the pilot study, student outcomes were assessed using the Academic Competence Evaluation Scales and the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills.
Data analytic strategy
The research team used qualitative methods to gather, interpret, and analyze feedback on the intervention. Descriptive analyses were used to assess teacher satisfaction, knowledge, self-efficacy, and fidelity in the feasibility stage. For the pilot study, the team used multilevel modeling and effect size estimates to examine the effect of the intervention on teachers and their students who received the intervention compared to those who did not.
Key outcomes
The main findings of the research, as reported by the principal investigator, are as follows:
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Products and publications
ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.
Project Website: https://trifoia.com/lsg/
Additional Online Resources and Information: Overviews of ILSG and pilot study outcomes are available at www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JX2CqyLGFU and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHxgabv8aNc&feature=youtu.be
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Supplemental information
- Teachers made statistically significant improvements relative to the control group in self-efficacy for general teaching, teaching reading, and behavior management.
- Educators demonstrated improved knowledge and reduced burnout, though these were not statistically significantly.
- Students whose teachers participated in the intervention showed significantly higher academic engagement in reading instruction compared to students whose teachers were in the control group. Students of intervention teachers also demonstrated improved reading scores compared to control students, although this difference was not statistically significant.
- Teachers rated the acceptability, relevance, satisfaction, and usability of ILSG very highly.
Questions about this project?
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