1 Intervention Design: Implications for Research Michael D. Coyne, Ph. D. Assistant Professor IES Research Conference Washington DC, June 2006 Department of Educational Psychology Neag School of Education University of Connecticut

2 Overview  Examining components of instructional design and delivery as a framework for talking about different approaches to intervention research.  Research Emphasis  Research Questions/Design Intervention Research

3 Project VITAL: Vocabulary Intervention Targeting At-risk Learners ( ) Reading Comprehension Research Goal 2: Development PI: Michael Coyne Research Purpose: Develop, refine, and evaluate strategies for teaching vocabulary to kindergarten students

4 Project ERI: Early Reading Intervention ( ) Early Intervention for Young Children with Disabilities Goal 3: Efficacy Co-PIs: Deborah Simmons & Michael Coyne Research Purpose: Test and replicate the curriculum efficacy of ERI as an intervention reading program with kindergarten students at risk for reading difficulties

5 Goal 2: Research Emphasis Determining the relative emphasis of intervention content within an academic domain Project VITAL  Not a primary emphasis in Project VITAL  Controlled for content to focus on other components  Possible research questions:  “What words should we teach?”  “What type of words should we teach?” Content: What We Teach

6 Goal 3: Research Emphasis Comparing interventions with different content emphases within an academic domain Project ERI  Difficult to isolate in Project ERI  Will compare ERI to typical practice intervention although we will control for general content focus  Important component in development of ERI  Possible research question:  “How does ERI compare to a PA/Comp intervention ?” Content: What we Teach

7 Instructional Design Features Instructional design refers to the way information in a particular domain is selected, prioritized, sequenced, organized, and scheduled for instruction within a highly orchestrated series of lessons and materials (Simmons & Kameenui, 1998). Design: How We Teach

8 Instructional Design Features  Sequence & scheduling of objectives & tasks  Control of task difficulty  Example selection  Material scaffolds  Amount & type of teacher modeling  Instructional language  Student response procedures  Feedback & error correction  Immediate & delayed practice  Review cycles Design: How We Teach

9 Goal 2: Research Emphasis Determining the instructional design features that allow content to be taught most effectively and efficiently. Project VITAL  A primary emphasis in Project VITAL  Research questions:  “How should we teach vocabulary (embedded/extended)?”  “How should we review vocabulary (embedded/extended)?”  Research design:  Within-subjects design (controlling for content) Design: How We Teach

10 Embedded Instruction  Simple explanation of target words provided within the context of the story. Provides both definitional and contextual information. (Biemiller & Boote, 2006; Stahl & Fairbanks, 1986; Penno et al., 2002) Project VITAL: Design

11 “These bricks will make a fine sturdy house,” said the third little pig. Sturdy means strong. Now I’ll say the sentence again with word that mean sturdy. “These bricks will make a fine strong house.” In the picture the little pig says that the bricks (point to the bricks) will make a sturdy, or strong, house. Everyone say sturdy.

12 Extended Instruction  Simple explanation of target words provided within the context of the story. Extended activities after story reading.  Extended vocabulary instruction is characterized by explicit, conspicuous teaching that includes using both contextual and definitional information, giving multiple exposures of target words in varied contexts, and encouraging deep processing. (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2002; Stahl, 1986; Stahl & Fairbanks, 1986) Project VITAL: Design

13 Extended Instruction Let’s play a word game. I’ll tell you about some things. If you think it is strong, say “That’s sturdy!” If you think it is not very strong, say “Uh oh, that’s not very sturdy!” Examples: A big jet airplane in the sky. A little paper airplane on a windy day. A tall tower made of cards. This school. A big huge rock. A snowman on a hot sunny day. Project VITAL: Design

14 Extended Instruction Do you think a cauldron is sturdy? Why? Would you be approaching a cauldron that was full of snakes? Why? If a storm was approaching, would you go into a sturdy house ? Why? Would you put a cauldron on a chair that wasn’t sturdy? Why? What would you do if a dog was approaching your cauldron full of food? Why? Project VITAL: Design

15 Goal 3: Research Emphasis Comparing interventions with different instructional design features within an academic domain. Project ERI  A primary emphasis in Project ERI  We believe instructional design specificity differentiates ERI from other PA/AU interventions  Major finding from initial ERI research  Research design:  Between-subjects experimental design (ERI vs. Typical Practice Intervention) Design: How We Teach

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18 Goal 2: Research Emphasis Strategically consider key contextual/delivery factors Project VITAL  Controlled for many contextual factors to strengthen internal validity  Two-week studies – intervention delivered by researchers to small groups outside of classroom in 1-3 schools  Targeted key contextual/delivery factors  Whole class vs. small group implementation  18-week implementation Context/Delivery: Where & When We Teach

19 Goal 3: Research Emphasis Efficacy of intervention across key contextual/ delivery factors Project ERI  Evaluate efficacy of ERI across variations in contextual/delivery factors  TX, CT, & FL in urban, suburban, rural schools  Different classroom reading instruction  ELL & L1 English speakers  Implemented by teachers, paraprofessionals, specialists  Support independent of program developers Context/Delivery: Where & When We Teach

20 Goal 3: Research Emphasis Efficacy of intervention across key contextual/ delivery factors Project ERI  Control for key contextual/delivery factors  Whole-year small-group implementation  Supplement classroom core reading instruction  Monitor fidelity of implementation  Consistent training & professional development  Year 3 study  Size of small group (4 students vs. 2 students) Context/Delivery: Where & When We Teach