Classroom Instruction That Works, Second Edition: Research Report
Author: Beesley, Andrea D., Ed.
Date: 2010-11-30
Type: Collected Works - General
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Homework,Educational Strategies,Recognition (Achievement),Cooperative Learning,Testing,Intervention,Advance Organizers,Teaching Methods,Feedback (Response),Cues,Differences,Educational Research,Hypothesis Testing,Inquiry,Notetaking,Educational Objectives,Reinforcement,Meta Analysis,Questioning Techniques

Background: The current study updates and extends the original research synthesis of effective instructional strategies presented in "Classroom Instruction that Works" ("CITW"; Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001). That work identified nine instructional strategies for improving academic achievement and synthesized findings from previous meta-analyses around each. The present study extends and updates this original work. Purpose: The purpose of this review is to update the research base for the nine teaching strategies addressed by "Classroom Instruction that Works": (1) Identifying similarities and differences; (2) Summarizing and note taking; (3) Reinforcing effort and providing recognition; (4) Homework and practice; (5) Nonlinguistic representations; (6) Cooperative learning; (7) Setting objectives and providing feedback; (8) Generating and testing hypotheses; and (9) Cues, questions, and advance organizers. One rationale for an update is to take into account the work that has been done by educational researchers since 1998 on each of the nine strategies. As educational research methods have become more rigorous, partly in response to initiatives from the U.S. Department of Education, a larger body of experimental and quasi-experimental studies has been published. This has resulted in a change in how empirical research is conceptualized, conducted, and interpreted. Arguably, these advances in methodology provide a body of research with improved precision and more accurate impact estimates. The current study leverages these advancements to generate an updated effect estimate for each strategy. In addition, synthesizing more recent literature permits a close look at how the nine strategies are currently being operationalized and studied. Study Sample: Literature search protocols were designed to identify relevant empirical literature and descriptive/theoretical literature around each of the nine strategies published between 1998 and 2008. The search focused on articles published in peer-reviewed journals in order to ensure quality standards were met. To identify study reports with direct relevance to student achievement, only those studies that included measures of academic content knowledge and skills were selected. Research Design: Statistical Synthesis; Data Collection and Analysis: Determination of the appropriate analytic method of synthesis was conducted on a case-by-case basis for each of the nine instructional strategies. Two methods were used--meta-analysis and literature review. Meta-analysis was used when the research team determined that sufficient quantitative data was available to estimate a robust effect size. Whenever a category contained fewer than four independent primary studies, a literature review was conducted. The literature review provides a narrative description of identified studies as well as a description of context and findings. Unlike the meta-analysis, the literature review does not provide a composite effect for the strategy because there is no insurance against the possibility that findings from identified studies may be "outliers" from the theoretical true effect of the intervention. Because of this, a meta-analysis was conducted whenever a sufficient number of studies was available. Findings: Chapters on each of the nine strategies give effect sizes related to student achievement. Although the effect sizes are lower than those reported by Marzano et al. (2001), a more rigorous method was employed in the present study meta-analysis. Conclusion: The effect sizes found for the nine instructional strategies suggest that they have potentially great practical significance in education. This report is divided into ten chapters, as follows: (1) Methods (Charles Igel, Helen Apthorp, Andrea Beesley); (2) Identifying Similarities and Differences (Helen Apthorp); (3) Summarizing and Note Taking (Charles Igel, Trudy Clemons, Helen Apthorp, Susie Bachler); (4) Reinforcing Effort and Providing Recognition (Trudy Clemons, Charles Igel, Andrea Beesley); (5) Homework and Practice (Charles Igel, Trudy Clemons, Tedra Clark); (6) Nonlinguistic Representations (Trudy Clemons, Charles Igel, Sarah Gopalani); (7) Cooperative Learning (Charles Igel); (8) Setting Objectives and Providing Feedback (Charles Igel, Trudy Clemons, Helen Apthorp); (9) Generating and Testing Hypotheses (Jessica Allen); and (10) Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers (Trudy Clemons, Charles Igel, Jessica Allen). This report contains the following appendices: (1) Coding Instrument; (2) Summary of Intervention Characteristics by Article; and (3) Summary of Achievement Lessons and Intervention Characteristics by Article. (Contains 40 tables.) [For the first edition of "Classroom Instruction That Works," see ED450096.