Within their teacher preparation courses and field experiences, preservice teachers are introduced to numerous instructional practices, not all of which are considered research-based. For this reason, instruction in how to evaluate the effectiveness of one's practices is essential, but it is often a lacking component of initial certification…

Research regarding the role of the school psychologist in response-to-intervention (RTI) and other multitiered systems of support is minimal (Ball & Christ, 2012). However, the National Association of School Psychologists' (NASP) "Model for Comprehensive and Integrated School Psychological Services" (2010), "Best Practices in…

We can now get purposefully directed in the way we assess our learners in light of the emergence of evidence from the field of neuroscience. Why higher-order learning or abstract concepts need to be the focus in assessment is elaborated using the knowledge of semantic and episodic memories. With most of our learning identified to be implicit, why…

In the generative classroom, teachers provide well-designed learning environments that result in the combination, recombination, and reorganization of repertoires such that new untaught repertoires are likely to occur. One component that can contribute to such generativity is Precision Teaching (PT), a frequency building instructional…

In today's educational environment, schools struggle to meet the academic needs of every student. Many schools are challenged by the use of a response-to-intervention framework in which too many students need strong interventions. This article details a data-driven, decision-making response-to-intervention reading team model in which teachers,…

Education reform has been on a new path over the last 15 years; a path that leads to more accountability, more choice for students and parents, highly qualified teachers, as well as, best practices in instruction. In an effort to move along the path of reform and as a result of previous reform, the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA reviewed the field…

This edited volume provides an overview of the latest advancements in adaptive training technology. Intelligent tutoring has been deployed for well-defined and relatively static educational domains such as algebra and geometry. However, this adaptive approach to computer-based training has yet to come into wider usage for domains that are less…

For middle and high school teachers of social studies and English, this book is filled with examples of instructional strategies that address students' readiness levels, interests, and learning preferences. It shows teachers how to formatively assess their students by addressing differentiated learning targets. Included are detailed examples of…

What causes students to leave school? According to Azzam (2007), over 47% of students in the United States who drop out of school reported they did so because school was boring and irrelevant to their life situation. What can schools and teachers do to encourage students to stay in school? One possible solution may be to look at experiential…

Presents case study exemplifying use of curriculum-based measurement (CBM) in educational decision making. CBM is portrayed as more than just set of brief fluency tests with strong conceptual ties to three related assessment models (behavioral, ecological, and problem-solving assessment). Delineates key elements of each model. Case study shows how…

Recommendations of commission reports on improving quality in public education are seen as primarily political statements reflecting the public outrage over the declining quality of American schooling. If the recommendations for sharpening basic skills spill over into higher education, there will be pressure to make colleges into trade schools.…

Describing the state of the art of delivering research and evaluation assistance to rural school districts, this article addresses the philosophy, organization, function and potential of Mississippi's PREPS (Program of Research and Evaluation for Public Schools) which helps districts identify their problems and utilize a task force approach. (DS)

This study examined the problem-solving and decision-making concepts included in the Consumer and Homemaking curricula in Illinois. Data were taken from a larger study, "Evaluating Program Outcomes: Occupation of Homemaking," conducted under the auspices of the Illinois State Board of Education. Through telephone interviews, 333 randomly…

Program administrators for 64 Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) programs in New York City were asked to respond to a questionnaire rating scale concerning the helpfulness and quantity of information that had been provided to them by the program evaluators. The rating scale categorized areas of administrative decision making in five…

The problems and opportunities for institutional research in academe as it becomes increasingly policy analytic in activity and orientation are explored. It is suggested that for the 1980s the most viable and dynamic role for institutional research will be in providing leaders in higher education institutions with policy-relevant knowledge in…