Explore · I4I

Fraction Face-Off!

2020

Fraction Face-Off! is a supplemental math program designed to support fourth-grade students who need assistance solving fraction problems. The program includes 36 lessons delivered three times a week for 12 weeks, with each lesson lasting 30-35 minutes. Each lesson contains four activities: a warm-up problem, group work using explicit instruction, a speed game to build fluency, and a worksheet to check understanding. The program promotes understanding of fraction magnitude, comparing fractions, ordering fractions, and placing fractions on a number line. Classroom educators, including teachers and paraprofessionals, deliver Fraction Face-Off! to individual students or small groups of up to three students. The program can be implemented during class time or pull-out sessions. Teachers receive up to a week of initial training before implementation, followed by 1-hour meetings every other week for ongoing support.

4th Grade

Talent Development High School Model

2005

Talent Development High School Model is a comprehensive school reform initiative targeting low-performing urban high schools. The model focuses intensively on ninth grade through the Ninth Grade Success Academy, which reorganizes ninth-graders into small learning communities of 100-125 students taught by dedicated teacher teams. Students receive double doses of English and math using extended 90-minute block scheduling, with specialized catch-up courses (Transition to Advanced Mathematics and Strategic Reading) in the first semester preparing them for required courses in the second semester. The model includes a Freshman Seminar for study skills and social adjustment. For grades 10-12, students are organized into Career Academies (small learning communities of 250-350 students around career themes) that provide college-preparatory curriculum and work-based learning. Implementation requires professional development for teachers, curriculum coaches, and an organizational facilitator at each school. The model also includes a Twilight Academy for students with attendance or discipline problems.

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

ACT/SAT Test Preparation and Coaching Programs

2016

ACT/SAT Test Preparation and Coaching Programs are designed to increase student scores on college entrance tests (SAT or ACT) for high school students. The programs generally: (a) familiarize students with the format of the test; (b) introduce general test-taking strategies (e.g., get a good night's sleep); (c) introduce specific test-taking strategies (e.g., whether the test penalizes incorrect answers); and (d) provide specific drills (e.g., practice factoring polynomial expressions). The programs can be delivered in person or online, and in whole class settings, in small groups, and individually. Across the six studies meeting WWC standards, programs varied in format: four focused on SAT coaching and two on ACT coaching; two used computerized coaching with students interacting individually with programs in classrooms or computer labs, while four examined group classes with an instructor. Implementation duration ranged from 6 to 10 weeks, with varying intensity levels.

10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade

Cognitive Tutor

2016

Cognitive Tutor is a secondary mathematics curriculum developed by Carnegie Learning that focuses on how students think about and learn mathematics in grades 8-13. The curriculum can be implemented using a textbook, adaptive software, or a combination of both. In a blended implementation, students spend three periods per week using textbooks for collaborative classroom activities where they work cooperatively to solve problems, participate in investigations, and propose and compare solutions. Two periods per week are spent in computer labs using adaptive software where students learn at their own pace. The curriculum uses a pedagogical approach where teachers facilitate student learning as students acquire and apply new information and discuss their work. Multiple learning styles are accommodated through real world problems, peer review, step-by-step demonstrations, hands-on tools including manipulatives and technology, graphic representations, and classroom discussions. Teachers receive implementation guides, assessments, professional development, and classroom management tools. Students receive texts, personalized instruction using the software system, and supplemental materials such as assignments and skills practice exercises. Teachers implementing the curriculum receive 3-4 days of professional development training led by consultants from the curriculum developer.

8th Grade, 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade, 13th Grade

Achieve3000®

2018

Achieve3000® is a supplemental online literacy program for students in grades preK–12 that provides differentiated nonfiction reading content to build phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, reading comprehension, vocabulary, and writing skills. Teachers assign articles and activities to an entire class, but the program automatically tailors the difficulty level of each article to match each student's reading ability. Students follow a five-step literacy routine: (1) respond to a Before Reading Poll, (2) read an article, (3) answer activity questions, (4) respond to an After Reading Poll, and (5) answer a Thought Question. The program includes more than 15,000 nonfiction articles focused on high-interest, real-world issues and provides progress reports and student usage data to enable teachers to track whole-class and individual student progress. The intervention is designed for diverse student groups, including general education students, struggling readers in need of intensive tutoring, and English learners. Professional learning for classroom teachers is available on-site, live online, and via online videos. Recommended use is 80 lessons over the course of the school year.

Career Academies

2015

Career Academies is a dropout prevention program for high school students (grades 9-12) at risk of dropping out. The program uses a school-within-a-school structure where students take both career-related and academic courses organized around career themes (such as health care, finance, technology, communications, and public service) and acquire work experience through partnerships with local employers. Students are clustered in small learning communities of 50-75 students per grade with 3-5 teachers who remain with them year to year. Students take 2-4 academy courses per year (typically in block-scheduled morning classes) and other courses in the regular high school. The program integrates rigorous academic curricula with career themes, provides work-based learning opportunities, and functions as a community of support with personalized attention from teachers and encouragement of parent involvement. Teachers come from academic and vocational disciplines and receive professional development focusing on student concerns and coordinating career development activities. Schools must have implemented the Career Academies framework for at least 2 years before full implementation.

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

Check & Connect

2015

Check & Connect is a dropout prevention intervention for high school students with learning, emotional, or behavioral disabilities who are at risk of dropping out. The program has two main components: 'Check' involves continuous monitoring of student performance indicators (attendance, suspensions, grades, credits) on a daily basis, and 'Connect' involves individualized attention and support. Each student is assigned a monitor who functions as a mentor and case worker, staying with the student across multiple years and schools. Monitors meet with students at least twice monthly (more frequently when problems arise) to discuss educational progress, problem-solving strategies, and the importance of staying in school. Basic interventions include regular structured discussions, while intensive interventions are tailored to individual needs and include problem solving, academic support (homework assistance, tutoring, schedule changes), and recreational/community service activities. The program emphasizes family outreach with frequent monitor contact with family members. Monitors can be graduate students or community members with human services training, supervised by program coordinators who are teachers or school psychologists. In the studies reviewed, monitors worked 20 hours per week with caseloads averaging 25 students.

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

Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC)

2012

Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC) is a reading and writing program for students in grades 2-6. The program uses daily 90-minute lessons focused on story-related activities, direct instruction in reading comprehension, and integrated reading and language arts activities. In a team setting, mixed-ability students work together in pairs and small groups of four to read, discuss reading to clarify vocabulary, reread for fluency, understand main ideas, comprehend stories, and work through the writing process linked to texts. Students are rewarded based on team performance to motivate cooperation. Teachers receive a two-day training session covering word structure and phonics, vocabulary development, fluency, comprehension skills, program management, and cooperative learning strategies.

3rd Grade, 4th Grade

Core-Plus Mathematics

2010

Core-Plus Mathematics is a four-year high school mathematics curriculum that replaces the traditional sequence with courses featuring interwoven strands of algebra and functions, statistics and probability, geometry and trigonometry, and discrete mathematics. The curriculum is designed for high school students (grades 9-12) and emphasizes mathematical modeling using technology with multiple representations (verbal, numerical, graphical, and symbolic). Instruction is delivered face-to-face through collaborative small-group investigations of problem situations in the classroom, followed by teacher-led whole-class summarizing activities. Students also complete individual work outside of class through MORE tasks (Modeling with, Organizing, Reflecting on, and Extending mathematical understanding). The curriculum includes student textbooks (approximately $88 per course) and instructional materials for teachers. Implementation involves multi-day lessons organized around cycles of instructional activities, with teachers acting as directors, facilitators, moderators, and intellectual coaches throughout different phases of instruction.

9th Grade, 10th Grade

DreamBox Learning

2013

DreamBox Learning is a supplemental online mathematics program that provides adaptive instruction for students in grades K–5, focusing on number and operations, place value, and number sense. The program aims to individualize instruction for each student with millions of unique paths through the curriculum intended to match each student's level of comprehension and learning style. The curriculum is based on the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards and is made up of more than 720 online lessons. Students complete lessons by playing math games and solving puzzles using DreamBox Learning's virtual manipulatives. As students interact with the program, the lesson sequence, difficulty, pace, and number of hints are adapted in real time. DreamBox Learning can be used in a range of instructional settings including the classroom, small groups, or students using the program independently. DreamBox Learning recommends students spend at least 90 minutes a week on the program. In the study, intervention students were scheduled to receive 20 to 40 minutes of DreamBox Learning mathematics instruction per day in a computer lab, with usage statistics showing that students averaged 21.8 hours of usage over the course of the study. The computer labs were run by lab coordinators, noncredentialed hourly staff who played a minimal role in instruction.

Kindergarten, 1st Grade