PREEMPTIVE INTERVENTIONS FOR HIGH-EFFICACY INSTRUCTION ON WRITING

THE PROJECT INTENDS TO EXAMINE A NOVEL APPROACH, PREEMPTIVE INTERVENTIONS FOR HIGH-EFFICACY INSTRUCTION ON WRITING (PRINT-W), TO HELP PREVENT THE FAILURE OF TEACHING EFFORTS IN WRITING AND TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN THAT REQUIRE SPECIALIZED INSTRUCTION. IN CONTRAST WITH ALTERNATIVE FRAMEWORKS FOR PREVENTION OF ACADEMIC DIFFICULTIES, WHICH ARE COSTLY AND WOULD REQUIRE PROFOUND CHANGES TO THE SPANISH EDUCATION SYSTEM, OUR PROPOSAL IS BOTH COST-EFFECTIVE AND A VIABLE OPTION FOR SCHOOL ORGANIZATION AS IS IN SPAIN AND OTHER COUNTRIES WITH SIMILAR EDUCATIONAL STRUCTURES. NOTABLY, OUR APPROACH APPLIES DATA-DRIVEN CRITERIA, WHILE IT CONSIDERS PEDAGOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE TO DECIDE IF FURTHER ACTION IS WARRANTED. MOST IMPORTANTLY, HOWEVER, THE APPROACH THAT WE WILL EXAMINE IN THIS PROJECT CAPITALIZES ON OUR PREVIOUS WORK ON EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES IN WRITING INSTRUCTION, BUT ITS RATIONALE IS ENTIRELY TRANSFERABLE TO OTHER DOMAINS. THE PRINT-W APPROACH TO EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTION INVOLVES TAKING DATA-INFORMED, PREVENTATIVE ACTION TO AVOID WHOLE-CLASS, EVIDENCE-BASED INTERVENTIONS TO FAIL SOME STUDENTS. TO DETERMINE THE EXACT NATURE OF SUCH PREVENTATIVE ACTION, KNOWLEDGE MUST HAVE BEEN OBTAINED ON WHICH PRETEST SKILLS COMPROMISE OR MODERATE THE BENEFICIAL EFFECT OF THE TARGET INTERVENTION. IN PREVIOUS STUDIES, WE HAVE IDENTIFIED THAT READING COMPREHENSION EXERTS SUCH MODERATING ROLE AND THAT CHILDREN WITH LOW READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS DO NOT MAKE GAINS IN TEXT QUALITY AT POSTTEST. TO EXAMINE THE EFFICACY OF PRINT-W, WE WILL RUN A COMPLEX RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL (RCT) TO COMPARE IT TO BOTH ACTIVE-CONTROL CONDITIONS AND TO A BUSINESS-AS-USUAL CONTROL CONDITION. TWO-HUNDRED AND FIFTY 4TH AND 5TH GRADERS, WITH LOW READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS AND AT-RISK OF DIFFICULTIES WITH WRITING WILL BE OUR TARGET SAMPLE, AFTER HAVING CONDUCTED A SCREENING PHASE TO OVER 1,000 STUDENTS. CHILDREN IN THE TREATMENT GROUP WILL RECEIVE A HIGHLY-EFFECTIVE WRITING INTERVENTION TO PLAN OPINION ESSAYS, AS WELL AS A PREINTERVENTION ON READING COMPREHENSION. WE EXPECT THAT OUR INNOVATIVE PREVENTATIVE APPROACH, WHICH ACTS BEFOREHAND ON A MODERATING SKILL, SHOULD OPTIMIZE THE OUTCOMES OF EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES IN WRITING INSTRUCTION AND MINIMIZE THE NEED FOR AT-RISK CHILDREN TO RECEIVE EXTRACURRICULAR SUPPORT. WE WILL ALSO ASSESS THE POTENTIAL FOR THE PRINT-W APPROACH TO IMPACT CHILDREN’S AND TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ATTITUDES TOWARD WRITING. FINALLY, WE WILL DETERMINE WHETHER THE NOVEL APPROACH HAS A CARRY-OVER EFFECT ON OTHER CURRICULAR MATTER (MATH, SCIENCE). IN SHORT, THE PRESENT PROJECT TAKES UP ONE OF THE MOST PRESSING CHALLENGES IN WRITING INSTRUCTION. SPECIFICALLY, IT PROPOSES A NOVEL APPROACH TO AVOIDING THE FAILURE OF EFFECTIVE WRITING INSTRUCTION PRACTICES, INFORMED BY FINDINGS FROM PREVIOUS STUDIES OF OUR RESEARCH TEAM. AS SUCH, IT SHOULD HELP PROVIDE A SOUND RATIONALE FOR WRITING INTERVENTIONS TO REACH ALL STUDENTS IN THE CLASSROOM. THE PROJECT SHOULD GIVE TEACHERS AND POLICYMAKERS CLEAR GUIDELINES FOR IMPLEMENTATION AND HAVE SUBSTANTIAL SCIENTIFIC AND SOCIETAL IMPACT ON WRITING INSTRUCTION, AS WELL AS ACROSS OTHER ACADEMIC DOMAINS. MOSTLY CRITICALLY, IT IS ONE OF THE FEW ATTEMPTS AT PRODUCING FINDINGS THAT SHOULD CONTRIBUTE TO THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF TEACHERS. IN THIS SENSE, THE PROJECT AIMS TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN SCHOOL AND ACADEMIA BY RESPONDING TO TEACHERS’ ACTUAL CONCERNS, BY PROPOSING A FEASIBLE APPROACH TO BE APPLIED IN SCHOOL SETTINGS.