|
Policy Framework
Low-performing high schools, particularly those serving low-income communities and students of color, are often characterized by high absentee and course failure rates, substantial dropout rates, and — even for graduates — inadequate preparation for postsecondary education and the labor market. As many as one-half to three-quarters of ninth-graders in low-performing high schools embark on their freshmen year with significant reading difficulties, lacking the skills needed to comprehend complex texts assigned in their content courses. Students who face marked literacy deficits are unlikely to do well in high school, and poor reading ability is a key predictor of academic disengagement and, ultimately, dropping out. In addition, interventions intended to support high school students in reading are often supplemental courses or confined to English/language arts classes. At the high school level, content literacy is even more important — that is, the ability of students to navigate different kinds of texts and other sources of information specific to content areas, like science or social studies.
While much has been learned about literacy in the elementary grades, less is known about programmatic approaches that help struggling adolescent readers acquire the skills they need to succeed in high school. A first step in this process is MDRC’s Enhanced Reading Opportunities Study, an evaluation of supplemental reading classes for ninth-grade students. In a complementary effort to build further knowledge about what works to strengthen adolescents’ literacy skills and ultimately to help them be more successful in high school, MDRC has partnered with the Regional Educational Laboratory Midwest (REL Midwest) to evaluate the impact of the Content Literacy Continuum (CLC) on teacher instructional practice and student academic outcomes.
Agenda, Scope, and Goals
The CLC is an instructional framework developed at the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning (KU-CRL) that supports high school literacy instruction in two main ways. First, KU-CRL provides professional development and materials for content area teachers that support the incorporation of content literacy strategies into English/language arts, social studies, science, and mathematics instruction. Second, KU-CRL supports supplemental reading classes for students who are behind in reading. The program developer also provides key supports to each high school: the creation and support of instructional leadership teams; on-site professional development that includes coaching teachers, modeling instruction in classrooms, and large and small group meetings with staff about instruction; and internet-based instructional support through on-line professional development modules.
In this evaluation, the REL Midwest and MDRC plan to answer questions about the impact of this school-wide literacy intervention on student outcomes and teachers’ instructional practice:
- What are the impacts of the CLC program on students’ reading comprehension and other academic outcomes, such as accumulation of core credits and state test scores?
- What are the impacts of the CLC program on instructional practice in core subject area classrooms?
Additionally, the project will address questions about program implementation:
- How well was the CLC program implemented?
- What factors seemed to be associated with more or less successful program implementation?
Design, Sites, and Data Sources
The evaluation employs a school-level random assignment design in which schools are the unit of treatment, random assignment, and analysis. Thirty-three high schools across nine school districts in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin are participating in the study, randomly assigned within each district to implement the CLC program (17 schools total) or continue with “business as usual” (16 schools total). Data from individual student records and a group-administered literacy assessment will be analyzed to determine impacts on student achievement. Data from classroom observations and interviews will be analyzed to determine impacts on instruction as well as to understand implementation fidelity and service contrast.
What's Next
The schools implementing CLC recently completed their first full year of implementation (2008-2009) and are in the middle of their second year of implementation (2009-2010). Data collection and analysis are ongoing. A report on the project and its findings is expected in 2011.
|
|
