Abstract
The relation between fidelity of implementation and student outcomes in a computer-based middle school mathematics curriculum was measured empirically. Participants included 485 students and 23 teachers from 11 public middle schools across seven states. Implementation fidelity was defined using two constructs: fidelity to structure and fidelity to process. Because of the nested nature of the data, we used a two-level hierarchical linear model for analysis. Four variables, all categorized as fidelity to structure variables, proved significant—total time in intervention (p <.001), concentration of time in intervention (p = .03), direct observation of intervention fidelity (p = .04), and pretest score (p <.001). Fidelity to process was found to be nonsignificant. The importance of measuring the relation between implementation fidelity and student outcomes is discussed as well as implications for researchers and teachers.
|
American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education . (1999). Standards for educational and psychological testing. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Google Scholar | |
|
Baker, E. (2001). Technology: How do we know it works? In Heineke, W., Blasi, L. (Eds.), Methods of evaluating educational technology (pp. 77-84). Greenwich, CT: Information Age. Google Scholar | |
|
Becker, H. J. (1994). How exemplary computer-using teachers differ from other teachers: Implications for realizing the potential of computers in schools. Journal of Research on Computing in Education, 26, 291–321. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Campbell, D. T., Stanley, J. C. (1963). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for research. Dallas, TX: Houghton Mifflin. Google Scholar | |
|
Cavanaugh, C. L., Kim, A., Wanzek, J., Vaughn, S. (2004). Kindergarten reading interventions for at-risk students: Twenty years of research. Learning Disabilities: A Contemporary Journal, 2, 9–21. Google Scholar | |
|
Christ, T. J. (2007). Experimental control and threats to internal validity of concurrent and nonconcurrent multiple baseline designs. Psychology in the Schools, 44, 451–459. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Cohen, P. A., Kulik, J. A., Kulik, C. C. (1982). Educational outcomes of tutoring: A meta-analysis of findings. American Educational Research Journal, 19, 237–248. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Cook, S. B., Scruggs, T. E., Mastropieri, M. A., Casto, G. C. (1985). Handicapped students as tutors. Journal of Special Education, 19, 483–492. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Crawford, L. (2008, March). Effects of an online supplementary mathematics curriculum for English language learners. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New York, NY. Google Scholar | |
|
Digital Directions International . (n.d.). HELP Math: Summary of research findings (Technical report). Carbondale, CO: Author. Retrieved from http://www.helpprogram.net. Google Scholar | |
|
Elbaum, B., Vaughn, S. (2001). School-based interventions to enhance the self-concept of student with learning disabilities: A meta-analysis. Elementary School Journal, 101, 303–329. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Fletcher, J. M., Vaughn, S. (2009). Response to intervention: Preventing and remediating academic difficulties. Child Development Perspectives, 3, 30–37. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Gall, M. D., Gall, J. P., Borg, W. R. (2007). Educational research: An introduction (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. Google Scholar | |
|
Gersten, R., Baker, S., Lloyd, J. W. (2000). Designing high-quality research in special education: Group experimental design. Journal of Special Education, 34, 2–18. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Gersten, R., Edyburn, D. (2007). Defining quality indicators for group design in special education technology research. Journal of Special Education Technology, 22, 3–18. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | |
|
Gersten, R., Fuchs, L. S., Compton, D., Coyne, M., Greenwood, C., Innocenti, M. S. (2005). Quality indicators for group experimental and quasi-experimental research in special education. Exceptional Children, 71, 149–164. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Gresham, F. M. (1989). Assessment of treatment integrity in school consultation and prereferral intervention. School Psychology Review, 18, 37–50. Google Scholar | ISI | |
|
Gresham, F. M., Gansle, K., Noell, G. H. (1993). Treatment integrity in applied behavior analysis with children. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 26, 257–263. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Gresham, F. M., MacMillan, D. L., Beebe-Frankenberger, M. E., Bocian, K. M. (2000). Treatment integrity in learning disabilities intervention research: Do we really know how treatments are implemented? Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 15, 198–205. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
HELP Math (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.helpprogram.net Google Scholar | |
|
Hofmann, D. A., Gavin, M. B. (1998). Centering decisions in hierarchical linear models: Implications for research in organizations. Journal of Management, 24, 623–641. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Hohmann, A. A., Shear, M. K. (2002). Community-based intervention research: Coping with the “noise” of real life in study design. American Journal of Psychiatry, 159, 201–207. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Hox, J. (2002). Multilevel analysis: Techniques and applications. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Hulleman, C. S., Cordray, D. S. (2009). Moving from the lab to the field: The role of fidelity and achieved relative intervention strength. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 2, 88–110. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Maddux, C. D., Johnson, L., Harlow, S. (1993). The state of the art in computer education: Issues for discussion with teachers-in-training. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 1, 219–228. Google Scholar | |
|
Melde, C., Esbensen, F., Tusinski, K. (2006). Addressing program fidelity using onsite observations and program provider descriptions of program delivery. Evaluation Review, 30, 714–740. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Mellard, D. F., Johnson, E. (2008). RTI: A practitioner’s guide to implementing response to intervention. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Mills, S., Ragan, T. (2000). A tool for analyzing implementation fidelity of an integrated learning system. Educational Technology Research and Development, 48, 21–41. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Mislevy, R. J. (2007). Validity by design. Educational Researcher, 36, 463–469. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | |
|
Mowbray, C. T., Holter, M. C., Teague, G. B., Bybee, D. (2003). Fidelity criteria: Development, measurement, and validation. American Journal of Evaluation, 24, 315–340. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
National Research Council of the National Academies: Committee for a Review of the Evaluation Data on the Effectiveness of NSF-Supported and Commercially Generated Mathematics Curriculum Materials . (2004). On evaluating curricular effectiveness: Judging the quality of K–12 mathematics evaluations. Washington, DC: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Noell, G. H., Gresham, F. M., Gansle, K. A. (2002). Does treatment integrity matter? A preliminary investigation of instructional implementation and mathematics performance. Journal of Behavioral Education, 11, 51–67. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
O’Donnell, C. L. (2008). Defining, conceptualizing, and measuring fidelity of implementation and its relation to outcomes in K–12 curriculum intervention research. Review of Educational Research, 78, 33–84. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Pearson Education . (2008–2009). SuccessMaker 2.0 math reference guide. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Pierangelo, R., Giuliani, G. (2008). Frequently asked questions about response to intervention. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Power, T. J., Blom-Hoffman, J., Clarke, A. T., Riley-Tillman, T. C., Kelleher, C., Manz, P. H. (2005). Reconceptualizing intervention integrity: A partnership-based framework for linking research with practice. Psychology in the Schools, 42, 495–507. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Rohrbeck, C. A., Ginsburg-Block, M. D., Fantuzzo, J. W., Miller, T. R. (2003). Peer-assisted learning interventions with elementary school students: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 240–257. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Shadish, W. R., Cook, T. D., Campbell, D. T. (2002). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for generalized causal inference. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Google Scholar | |
|
Slavin, R. E. (2008). Perspectives on evidence-based research in education: What works? Issues in synthesizing educational program evaluations. Educational Researcher, 37(5), 5–14. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Songer, N. B., Gotwals, A. W. (2005, April). Fidelity of implementation in three sequential curricular units. In Lynch, S. (Chair) & O’Donnell, C. L. , “Fidelity of implementation” in implementation and scale-up research designs: Applications from four studies of innovative science curriculum materials and diverse populations. Symposium conducted at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Montreal, Canada. Google Scholar | |
|
Tucker, A. R., Blythe, B. (2008). Attention to treatment fidelity in social work outcomes: A review of the literature from the 1990s. Social Work Research, 32, 185–190. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Weston, T. (2004). Formative evaluation for implementation: Evaluating educational technology applications and lessons. American Journal of Evaluation, 25, 51–64. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Ysseldyke, J., Bolt, D. M. (2007). Effect of technology-enhanced continuous progress monitoring on math achievement. School Psychology Review, 36, 453–467. Google Scholar | ISI | |
|
Ysseldyke, J., Spicuzza, R., Kosciolek, S., Teelucksingh, E., Boys, C., Lemkuil, A. (2003). Using curriculum-based instructional management system to enhance math achievement in urban schools. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk, 8, 247–265. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Zvoch, K. (2009). Treatment fidelity in multisite evaluation. American Journal of Evaluation, 30, 44–61. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI |

