To help states and districts make informed decisions about the professional development they implement to improve reading instruction, the Institute of Education Sciences commissioned the Early Reading Professional Development Interventions Study to examine the impact of two research-based programs focused on second grade:
The study used a randomized controlled trial to test the effectiveness of the two professional development interventions in improving the knowledge and practice of teachers and the reading achievement of their students in high poverty schools. Ninety schools in six districts (with a total of 270 teachers and more than 5,000 students) were randomly assigned in equal numbers to treatment A, treatment B, or the control group, which participated in the usual professional development offered by the district. This design allowed the study team to determine the impact of each of the two interventions by comparing each treatment group's outcomes with those of the control group, and also to determine the impact of the coaching above and beyond the institute series by comparing treatment group B with treatment group A.
The study produced the following results: