In this response, we first show that Simpson's proposed analysis answers a different and less interesting question than ours. We then justify the choice of prior for our Bayes factors calculations, but we also demonstrate that the substantive conclusions of our article are not substantially affected by varying this choice.

Randomization of large number of participants to different treatment groups is often not a feasible or preferable way to answer questions of immediate interest to professional practice. Single case designs (SCDs) are a class of research designs that are experimental in nature but require only a few participants, all of whom receive the…

The primary objective of the proposed systematic review is to answer the following research question: do parenting programmes for parents of adolescents impact adolescent mental health outcomes, positive development and the parent-adolescent relationship? This will be achieved by systematically searching for and synthesising the extant evaluation…

This case study describes a small randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing alternative strategies for monitoring and supporting academic achievement in Year Up's Professional Training Corps (PTC) program. Year Up is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preparing economically disadvantaged young adults for well-paying jobs with advancement…

Network meta-analysis is becoming a common approach to combine direct and indirect comparisons of several treatment arms. In recent research, there have been various developments and extensions of the standard methodology. Simultaneously, cluster randomized trials are experiencing an increased popularity, especially in the field of health services…

This paper describes the context, processes and issues experienced over 5 years in which a RCT was carried out to evaluate a programme for children aged 7-8 who were struggling with their reading. Its specific aim is to illuminate questions about the design of complex teaching approaches and their evaluation using an RCT. This covers the early…

In this essay, I suggest that a slightly modified version of Freedman's formulation of the clinical equipoise requirement is justified. I begin this essay with a brief discussion of the equipoise requirement. In the second and third sections, I discuss several objections to the clinical equipoise requirement as well as two attempts to justify the…

Conventionally, regression discontinuity analysis contrasts a univariate regression's limits as its independent variable, "R," approaches a cut point, "c," from either side. Alternative methods target the average treatment effect in a small region around "c," at the cost of an assumption that treatment assignment,…

Randomized trials play an important role in estimating the effect of a policy or social work program in a given population. While most trial designs benefit from strong internal validity, they often lack external validity, or generalizability, to the target population of interest. In other words, one can obtain an unbiased estimate of the study…

The paradigm of evidence-based education continues to inform the development of policy in a number of countries. At its simplest level, evidence-based education incorporates evidence, often that provided by randomised controlled trials, into classroom practice. England's Education Endowment Foundation is in the process of exporting evidence-based…

In school settings, nurses lead efforts to improve the student health and well-being to support academic success. Nurses are guided by evidenced-based practice and data to inform care decisions. The randomized controlled trial (RCT) is considered the gold standard of scientific rigor for clinical trials. RCTs are critical to the development of…

Interventions often require multiple decisions to improve outcomes for every student. Whether the decision to implement a practice, tailor an existing protocol, or change approaches, these decisions should be based on individual variables and outcomes via a sequence of treatment. To develop adaptive interventions that have sufficient evidence to…

Experimental studies are often employed to test the effectiveness of teaching innovations such as new pedagogy, curriculum, or learning resources. This article offers guidance on good practice in developing research designs, and in drawing conclusions from published reports. Random control trials potentially support the use of statistical…

This article addresses the gap between what works in research and what works in practice. Currently, research in evidence-based education policy and practice focuses on randomized controlled trials. These can support causal ascriptions ("It worked") but provide little basis for local effectiveness predictions ("It will work…

Data from cluster randomized trials do not always have a pure hierarchical structure. For instance, students are nested within schools that may be crossed by neighborhoods, and soldiers are nested within army units that may be crossed by mental health-care professionals. It is important that the random cross-classification is taken into account…