Issues: P-12 Education

Elementary and Middle School

MDRC’s initiatives seek to promote academic success, particularly in reading and math, and to ease the transition from middle school to high school, through innovative instructional programs, intensive professional development, and structural changes in schools.

The Latest
Issue Focus

Improving Student Behavior in the Classroom: Lessons from a National Study of Training and Support

MDRC recently conducted an evaluation of training and technical assistance for elementary schools implementing a widely used approach called multi-tiered systems of support for student behavior (MTSS-B). This essay summarizes the findings and offers lessons for future applications of the approach.

Overview »
Report

Evaluation of an Expansion Strategy for the Assessment-to-Instruction Professional Support System

Many early elementary-grade students do not achieve literacy proficiency because they do not receive effective personalized literacy instruction. The Assessment-to-Instruction (A2i) Professional Support System helps teachers use differentiated small-group instruction to address that need. This study examined two models’ effectiveness in implementing A2i and improving student literacy in schools nationwide.

Overview »
Full
Key Documents
Issue Focus

Dynamic Tensions

Early Reflections from MDRC’s Evaluation of the Innovative Professional Development Challenge

In the Innovative Professional Development (iPD) Challenge, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is helping school districts redesign their teacher professional development systems to better support teachers in increasing student success. This Issue Focus, the second in a series, offers some early reflections from MDRC’s study of it.

Read More »
Report

The Impact of Family Involvement on the Education of Children Ages 3 to 8

A Focus on Literacy and Math Achievement Outcomes and Social-Emotional Skills

This report reviews 95 studies on how families’ involvement in children’s learning and development through activities at home and at school affects the literacy, mathematics, and social-emotional skills of children. The review also offers recommendations for additional lines of inquiry and discusses next steps in research and practice.

Read More »
Issue Focus

MDRC’s Findings on School Improvement Strategies

The Every Student Succeeds Act gives states greater responsibility for choosing strategies to improve underperforming schools. For over a decade, MDRC has rigorously evaluated school improvement strategies, collecting evidence that can help states determine which strategies are likely to work. This Issue Focus describes four of MDRC’s most recent studies.

Read More »