Project Activities
This project used an iterative process to develop a professional development program comprised of online content modules to support teachers in implementing evidenced-based instruction at different instructional tiers, and a lesson study process to improve teachers' implementation of coordinated, tiered instruction. Researchers developed this program in phase 1 and collected information about its usability. In phase 2, researchers collected information about Project Coordinate's feasibility, fidelity, and initial evidence of promise for improving teachers' implementation of coordinated, evidence-based instruction. In phase 3, researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial to determine the promise of efficacy of Project Coordinate for improving teacher and student outcomes.
Structured Abstract
Setting
This study was conducted in approximately 29 public elementary schools within urban, suburban, and rural school districts in Arizona and Florida.
Sample
In phase 1, five general and special education teachers (two schools) participated. In phase 2, 10 teachers (3 schools) participated. A total of 24 teachers representing 9 teaching teams and 563 students receiving Tiers 1, 2, or 3 instruction participated in phase 3.
Project Coordinate was comprised of five online content modules that (1) incorporate content knowledge underlying evidence-based word study and connected text instruction, (2) provide models of effective implementation of evidence-based practices and tiered instruction, and (3) support teachers in learning to analyze student data and develop appropriate goals for instruction. Modules were completed in an iterative process, each followed by Lesson Observation and Debriefing cycles. Once teachers completed an introductory module introducing them to the project and a module that focused on summarization and research-supported vocabulary instruction, they participated in a complete lesson study process. The lesson study process included a framework and facilitation process that provides teachers with a structure for collaboratively (1) planning instruction, (2) revisiting knowledge and pedagogy acquired in the online content modules, (3) analyzing implementation of instructional efforts for promoting effective, coordinated instruction across the tiers of a Response-to-Intervention model, and (4) analyzing student performance and set goals for coordinated instruction..
Research design and methods
In phase 1, researchers developed, implemented, and refined the online content modules and lesson study process. Two teams of general and special education teachers completed the modules and lesson study and provide summative and formative data to inform changes needed to the modules and lesson study process. In phase 2, three teaching teams participated in a pre-post study to provide information on the fidelity and feasibility of implementing the modules and lesson study, as well as initial promise of improving teacher outcomes. This information was used to make final revisions to Project Coordinate. In phase 3, researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial, randomly assigning nine schools (one teaching team each) to either the intervention or control condition. During this phase of the study, researchers investigated the promise of Project Coordinate for improving teachers' knowledge and coordinated use of evidence-based instruction and reading outcomes for students.
Control condition
For the phase 3 randomized controlled trial, teachers in schools assigned to the control condition received the professional development typically provided in the schools and were invited to participate in voluntary professional development on the high leverage practices on social/ emotional/behavior hosted by the Project Coordinate team.
Key measures
Three types of measures were used to develop and refine Project Coordinate and to assess its promise for improving teacher and student outcomes. Process measures were used to understand the feasibility, usability, and fidelity of Project Coordinate. Teachers completed surveys on their perception of the quality of the information provided in each module, the usefulness of the Lesson Study process training, and the feasibility of implementing the process. They also participated in exit interviews on the overall usefulness and feasibility of Project Coordinate. Implementation fidelity was assessed using online data to monitor teachers’ completion of the modules as well as an observational lesson study checklist completed by research project staff for both planning and observation meetings of the LSP cycle. To measure promise of impact, researchers used three teacher measures and three student measures. Teacher measures included a researcher-developed: a) knowledge survey, b) collaboration survey, and b) instructional practice measure to code video-based observations of teachers' instruction to determine the degree to which teachers were implementing coordinated, evidence-based, tiered instruction and the quality of this instruction. Student outcome measures included: a) the MAZE, b) a researcher developed morphological assessment, c) and the Core Phonic Survey. These measures assessed the impact of decoding instruction, including multisyllabic decoding instruction, morphological awareness skills, and text comprehension.
Data analytic strategy
To assess the impact of Project Coordinate on student outcomes, the research team used multilevel models. To assess the impact of Project Coordinate on instructional practices, they used single level models to assess changes in teacher knowledge and collaborative practice and cross-classified models to assess changes in instructional practice.
Key outcomes
The main findings of this project, as reported by the principal investigator, are as follows:
- Teachers participating in Project Coordinate made significant, large gains in knowledge for teaching and moderate gains in their use of GIST practices and explicit instruction. They also increased in their perception of team functioning for planning and implementing reading instruction.
- Students of Project Coordinate teachers made gains in their morphological problem solving compared to students who did not have teachers participating in the program.
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Project contributors
Products and publications
ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.
Related projects
Questions about this project?
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