Accelerated middle schools show positive effects on progressing in school, with an average improvement index of +35 percentile points¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (3 entries) · quant-synthesis r1–r2 · q3
Currency · newest study 2008 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? All three studies found statistically significant and substantively important effects on progressing in school; the average improvement index was +35 percentile points, ranging from +15 to +44. → What Works Clearinghouse 2008 q3 i? At two-year follow-up, accelerated middle school students had completed more school years than controls in each site (Georgia 8.6 vs 7.9; Michigan 7.3 vs 6.8; New Jersey 7.8 vs 7.5). → What Works Clearinghouse 2008 (2)

Evidence¶

What Works Clearinghouse 2008¶

What Works Clearinghouse. (2008). WWC Intervention Report: Accelerated Middle Schools. U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/11

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r2

WWC synthesis across the three RCTs. The report states the "average improvement index for progressing in school is +35 percentile points" with a range of +15 to +44, and rates the domain positive. No standardized effect size is printed for the domain average.

"Based on these three studies, the average improvement index for progressing in school is +35 percentile points, with a range of +15 to +44 percentile points across the studies."

What Works Clearinghouse 2008 (2)¶

What Works Clearinghouse. (2008). WWC Intervention Report: Accelerated Middle Schools. U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/11

q3 · i? · causal · r2

Georgia RCT (140 applicants for the 1993/94 school year) outcome on years of school completed at two-year follow-up: 8.6 for the intervention versus 7.9 for controls, reported as statistically significant and substantively important. Means are descriptive; no effect size statistic is printed for this measure.

"In the Georgia study the average number of school years completed at the two-year follow-up was 8.6 for accelerated middle school students and 7.9 for control-group students."

What Works Clearinghouse 2008 (3)¶

What Works Clearinghouse. (2008). WWC Intervention Report: Accelerated Middle Schools. U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/11

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r1

New Jersey RCT (535 applicants over two school years), the one study meeting WWC evidence standards without reservations, found higher average years of school completed (7.8 vs 7.5); the Michigan study similarly reported 7.3 vs 6.8. Only means are printed for these comparisons.

"The New Jersey study also found higher average years of school completed for accelerated middle school students—7.8 compared with 7.5 for the control group."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Accelerated middle schools show potentially positive effects on staying in school, with an average improvement index of +18 percentile points — related
• The average improvement index for New Chance on completing school is +8 percentile points — related
• Effects of accelerated middle schools on dropping out varied by site: significant in Michigan, substantively important but not significant in Georgia, and null in New Jersey — related