Find the best evidence-based interventions for your students

Curriculum-based professional development on science instruction

9th Grade

This intervention is a year-long professional development program for ninth-grade science teachers that combines comprehensive instructional materials with focused training. The program includes seven days of instruction distributed across four events: a four-day summer institute followed by three follow-up events throughout the school year. The professional development focuses on introducing teachers to the physical and philosophical components of the instructional materials, strengthening their content background, and developing key instructional strategies essential to effective, high-fidelity use of the materials. Teachers implement the instructional materials with their students throughout the school year while receiving ongoing professional development support.

2011

1 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP)

3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade, 9th Grade, 10th Grade

The Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) provides government-funded vouchers for low-income children to attend private schools (secular or religious) in the City of Milwaukee. The maximum voucher amount in 2010-11 was $6,442, and 20,996 children used vouchers. The MPCP is the oldest and largest urban school voucher program in the United States, having begun in 1990. Beginning with the 2010-11 school year, all MPCP schools were required to administer the Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examinations (WKCE) in reading and math to all voucher students in grades 3-8 and 10 and publicly report results by named schools, introducing a test-based accountability policy for the first time.

2012

Cost per student

N/A

Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI)

Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade

Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) is a short-term, small-group, supplemental literacy intervention system designed for students in kindergarten through second grade who struggle with literacy. The goal of LLI is to provide intensive support to help these early learners quickly achieve grade-level competency. Students meet in small groups (ideally three students) for daily 30-minute lessons, and the intervention lasts a maximum of 18 weeks. LLI emphasizes systematic and explicit instruction in phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, and the expansion of oral language skills, including vocabulary. The system uses leveled texts of progressing difficulty measured by the Fountas & Pinnell Text Level Gradient. Teachers selected to be LLI teachers receive eight days of professional development focused on how to implement the LLI instructional program, along with the necessary LLI materials and a detailed teaching guide.

2010

15 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

Chicago Teacher Advancement Program (Chicago TAP)

Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade

Chicago Teacher Advancement Program (Chicago TAP) is a schoolwide reform model implemented in Chicago Public Schools beginning in 2007. The program provides teachers with opportunities to earn extra pay and take on increased responsibilities through promotion to mentor teacher or master teacher positions. Teachers become eligible for annual performance bonuses based on a combination of their contribution to student achievement (value added) and observed classroom performance using a Skills, Knowledge, and Responsibilities (SKR) rubric. The model includes weekly cluster group meetings where teachers and mentors collaborate, and regular classroom observations by a school leadership team to help teachers meet their performance goals. Mentor teachers receive an additional $7,000 per year and lead teachers receive $15,000 per year. Performance bonuses averaged approximately $1,100 in the first year of implementation and $2,500 in subsequent years. The program was piloted in 40 high-need schools over a four-year rollout period from 2007-2011, with 10 schools added each year. Chicago TAP differs from the national TAP model by determining compensation locally, offering performance pay for principals and other school staff in addition to teachers, and initially measuring value-added performance at the school level rather than individual teacher level.

2012

36 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

Making Sense of SCIENCE™ Professional Development Course on Force and Motion

8th Grade

Making Sense of SCIENCE™ is a professional development course designed to improve middle school science teachers' content knowledge and pedagogical skills in teaching force and motion to grade 8 students. The intervention is a 24-hour course delivered over five days during summer, targeting teachers who will teach physical science. The course combines hands-on science investigations, narrative teaching cases, language and literacy activities, and classroom connections to build teachers' understanding of force and motion concepts and strategies for teaching English language learners. Teachers participate in collaborative inquiry, analyze student thinking through case discussions, and engage with standards-based curricula. The course is facilitated by trained local educators and includes materials such as teacher books and facilitator guides. No additional follow-up or support is provided during the school year, and teachers use their existing district curricula and textbooks in their classrooms.

2012

1 Week

Cost per student

N/A

NISL Executive Development Program

3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade

The NISL Executive Development Program is a professional development intervention designed for school principals to enhance their leadership capabilities in improving student achievement. The program targets elementary, middle, and elementary-middle school principals and consists of four courses: World-Class Schooling (Principal as a Strategic Thinker and School Designer, Standards-Based Instruction); Teaching and Learning; Developing Capacity and Commitment; and Driving for Results. The curriculum was designed by experts across multiple fields, reflecting an $11 million investment and five years of research and piloting. Training is delivered through a blended format combining online and face-to-face instruction, using simulations, case studies, school evaluations, self-assessments, pre-work assignments, and application activities. Principals who participated in Cohort 2 began the program in 2007 and completed it while remaining at the same school through 2010. The program costs approximately $4,000 per participating principal.

2011

Cost per student

N/A

Playworks

4th Grade, 5th Grade

Playworks places full-time coaches in low-income elementary schools to provide opportunities for organized play during recess and throughout the school day. The program includes structured recess activities where coaches teach conflict resolution skills and foster student play through structured, inclusive activities; class game time where coaches model positive language and involve teachers; and a junior coach program where fourth- and fifth-grade students develop leadership and conflict resolution skills. The program is designed to engage students in physical activity, foster social skills related to cooperation and conflict resolution, improve students' ability to focus on class work, decrease behavioral problems, and improve school climate.

2012

36 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

Green Dot Locke Transformation Project

9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

The Green Dot Locke Transformation Project converted Alain Leroy Locke High School, historically one of California's lowest performing secondary schools, into a set of smaller Green Dot Charter High Schools serving grades 9-12. The transformation began in fall 2007 with two small off-site schools and was completed in fall 2008 when Green Dot assumed full responsibility for the existing Locke campus and the total neighborhood catchment area. The intervention targets the entire student community with a focus on creating high performing urban schools where all young adults receive the education needed to be prepared for college, leadership, and life. Green Dot's model is based on six basic tenets including small, safe, personalized schools; high expectations for all students; local control with extensive professional development and accountability; parent participation; maximizing funding to the classroom; and keeping schools open later. The model includes recommended practices to standardize superior educational methods across all curriculum and operational areas.

2012

36 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

Problem Based Economics

11th Grade, 12th Grade

Problem Based Economics is a curriculum developed by the Buck Institute for Education that integrates problem-based learning pedagogy with economics instruction for high school students, primarily in grades 11-12. The curriculum comprises nine modules (five were used in this study) covering fundamental economics concepts aligned with national and state standards. Each module presents students with real-world economic problems requiring analysis, investigation, and collaborative problem-solving in small groups. The curriculum is delivered through 4-15 instructional day units and includes teaching guides, student materials, and supporting DVDs. Teachers receive a five-day (40-hour) professional development workshop during summer, followed by ongoing support through scheduled conference calls throughout the academic year. The intervention was implemented over two consecutive semesters (fall 2007 and spring 2008) to allow teachers to become familiar with the approach before the primary data collection semester.

2011

18 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

Teacher Incentive Program with Loss Aversion

Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade

This teacher incentive program targets K-8 classroom teachers, reading and math interventionists in Chicago Heights, IL. Teachers are randomly assigned to receive performance-based financial rewards (up to $8,000, expected value $4,000) based on their students' end-of-year test score improvements relative to similar peers. The program tests two framing approaches: 'Gain' treatments where teachers receive bonuses at year-end, and 'Loss' treatments where teachers receive $4,000 upfront and must return money if students underperform. Within each framing, teachers receive either individual or team-based rewards. The intervention runs for one school year (2010-2011), with rewards calculated using the 'pay for percentile' methodology. Teachers attend informational meetings in October and receive midyear performance reports. No special training, materials, or classroom resources are required beyond the financial incentive structure itself.

2012

36 Weeks

Cost per student

N/A

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