The use of investigations in science teaching is both common and commonly advocated for in science education literature. We suggest that the use of investigations should differ depending on the complexity of the subject matter. That complexity can vary depending on both the nature of the information and students' expertise levels. The present…

The pedagogical paradigms of Direct instruction (behaviorism/objectivism) and Constructivism are often seen as opposing paradigms at the ends of an instructional design continuum. Unfortunately, this view makes the two approaches mutually exclusive. Designers must use the one at the expense of the other. A previous study proposed that the two…

Manipulative-based instructional sequences--including both concrete and virtual manipulative instructional sequences--are evidence-based or research-based mathematical interventions for students with disabilities. However, as options for manipulative-based instructional sequences increase, educators need support in deciding the best approach. In…

This study investigated the effectiveness of using a sequence of worked examples as part of the feedback cycle. Worked examples were either presented as full worked examples or partial worked examples (single-step and completion formats). In two experiments, grade 8 students completed a learning phase on a mathematics topic, which was immediately…

For the purpose of this article within this special issue on Structured Literacy™, we were asked to address the code-focused skills of phonemic awareness and word reading. Findings from research studies converge to show that explicit and systematic instruction helps most students understand how speech sounds, or phonemes, map to letters and…

Improving Social and Emotional Learning in Primary Schools reviews the best available research to offer school leaders six practical recommendations to support good SEL for all children. It stresses this is especially important for children from disadvantaged backgrounds and other vulnerable groups, who, on average, have weaker SEL skills at all…

Students with learning disabilities often struggle with math fact fluency and require specialized interventions to recall basic facts. Deficits in math fact fluency can result in later difficulties when learning higher-level mathematical computation, concepts, and problem solving. The response-to-intervention (RTI) and…

This paper presents the results of a quasi-experimental study examining the effectiveness of Amplify Reading, a digital supplemental literacy curriculum that students play independently at school or at home, in improving student literacy outcomes as measured by end of year Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) Next for…

This article investigates the effects of fraction word problem-solving instruction involving explicit teaching of the concrete-representational-abstract sequence with culturally relevant teaching examples for 3 low-performing Asian immigrant English learners who spoke a language other than English at home. We used a multiple probe design across…

Background/Context: Which ideas should be included in the K-12 curriculum, how they are learned, and how they should be taught have been debated for decades in multiple subjects. In this article, we offer mathematics as a case in point of how new standards-related policies may offer an opportunity for reassessment and clarification of such…

Fractions are an essential foundational skill for future mathematics success (NMAP, 2008). The purpose of this article was to review current instructional practices for teaching fractions to struggling learners and to examine the quality and effectiveness of contemporary research with a view to indicating directions for future research. A…