General outcome measures (GOMs) provide educators with a means to evaluate student progress toward curricular objectives. Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) is one type of GOM that has a long history in the research literature with strong empirical support. With the increased emphasis on instruction linked to state standards and statewide achievement tests, the relationship between CBM and these measures has been called into question. This study examined the relationships between CBM of reading, math computation, and math concepts/applications and the statewide standardized achievement test as well as published norm-referenced achievement tests in two districts in Pennsylvania. Results showed that CBM had moderate to strong correlations with midyear assessments in reading and mathematics and both types of standardized tests across school districts. The data suggest that CBM can be one source of data that could be used to potentially identify those students likely to be successful or fail the statewide assessment measure.

Randomized field trials were used to examine the impact of the Teacher Study Group (TSG), a professional development model, on first grade teachers' reading comprehension and vocabulary instruction, their knowledge of these areas, and on the comprehension and vocabulary achievement of their students. The multi-site study was conducted in three large urban school districts from three states. A total of 81 first grade teachers and their 468 students from 19 Reading First schools formed the analytic sample in the study. Classrooms observations of teaching practice showed significant improvements in TSG schools. TSG teachers also significantly outperformed control teachers on the teacher knowledge measure of vocabulary instruction. Confirmatory analysis of student outcomes indicated marginally significant effects in oral vocabulary. Impact of the Teacher Study Group 3 Teacher Study Group: Impact of the Professional Development Model on Reading Instruction and Student Outcomes in First Grade ClassroomsOver the past thirty years, a body of research on promising practices for effective professional development (PD) has slowly emerged (e.g., Berman & McLaughlin, 1978;Huberman & Miles, 1984;Ball, 1990;Garet, Porter, Desimone, Birman, & Yoon, 2001).Although this body of research has had a profound impact on the field, a good deal of uncertainty remains. Advocated PD practices, though sensible and compelling, have rarely been widely field-tested and evaluated using rigorous research techniques (Guskey, 2003;Desimone, 2009).The majority of the studies in PD encompass a broad array of methodologies (surveys, comparative case studies, qualitative, mixed methods) that rely heavily on teacher self-report and case study analysis. We possess very little empirical evidence on the critical role these promising practices play in enhancing teacher learning of effective instructional strategies, and more importantly student learning (Wayne, Yoon, Zhu, Cronen, & Garet, 2008). Rarely do studies link PD to student outcomes, and the few that have attempted to do so have often yielded disappointing results. In fact, Garet et al. (2008) found that large-scale PD that included many of these practices did lead to significant increases in teachers' knowledge and observed teaching practice, but failed to enhance student reading achievement significantly.To address this need for effective PD, we developed a PD program, the Teacher Study Group, and tested its effects on teacher and student outcomes using randomized control trials. In this article we delineate the features and format of the PD program, and describe the multi-site randomized control trials study. Impact of the Teacher Study Group 4 Teacher Study GroupThe Teacher Study Group (TSG) PD program used in this study was based on our earlier research efforts to identify strengths and weaknesses of PD strategies for translating research into teaching practice in high poverty schools (Gersten, Morvant, & Brengelman, 1995;Gersten & Brengelman, 1996;Gersten, Darch, Davis, & George, 199...

Integrating comprehension and vocabulary instruction in read‐alouds can help teachers make the very most of class time. The curriculum described illustrates how read‐alouds, when implemented with strategic purpose, can boost learners' vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension. Specifically, the author presents guidelines for: selecting texts to encourage “text‐to‐text” and “text‐to‐self” connections selecting target vocabulary words promoting text‐based discussions incorporating comprehension instruction before, during, and after the reading process

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In this article, we describe the development and evaluation of a beginning spelling intervention for young children at risk of reading disability. We first summarize the literature that supports beginning spelling as an ideal method for strategically integrating the beginning reading big ideas of phonemic awareness and alphabetic understanding. We then summarize the literature on effective instructional principles for students at risk of reading disability. Next, we describe how instructional design was applied to the development of an intervention for young children at risk of reading disability, then summarize the findings of an experimental study supporting the effectiveness of this intervention. Finally, we provide selected examples from the spelling intervention to illustrate the findings' translation into instructional practice.Students who struggle with beginning reading benefit from instruction that emphasizes and strengthens both phonological awareness (explicit knowledge of our language's sound system) and alphabetic understanding (knowledge of the relationship between the letters of written language and the individual sounds of Requests for reprint should be sent to