Students show the highest learning gains in classes that are both challenging and where students actually do work aligned with teachers' expectations; grades are higher in challenging classrooms with high support than in easier classrooms with little support¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2018 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Students show the highest learning gains in classes that are challenging and where students actually do work aligned with their teachers' expectations. → Allensworth 2018 q2 i? Grades are higher in challenging classrooms with high levels of teacher support than in classrooms where work is easier but the teacher provides little support. → Allensworth 2018 (2)

Evidence¶

Allensworth 2018¶

Allensworth, E.M., Farrington, C.A., Gordon, M.F., Johnson, D.W., Klein, K., McDaniel, B., & Nagaoka, J. (2018). Supporting social, emotional, & academic development: Research implications for educators. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Consortium on School Research. https://consortium.uchicago.edu/page/presentations

q2 · i? · review · r?

The review reports, citing Allensworth, Gwynne, Pareja, Sebastian, & Stevens (2014) and Kane & Cantrell (2010), that "Students show the highest learning gains in classes that are not only challenging, but also where students are actually doing the work." Neither challenge alone nor effort on unchallenging work suffices. No effect size printed.

"Students show the highest learning gains in classes that are not only challenging, but also where students are actually doing the work that aligns with their teach ers' expectations."

Allensworth 2018 (2)¶

Allensworth, E.M., Farrington, C.A., Gordon, M.F., Johnson, D.W., Klein, K., McDaniel, B., & Nagaoka, J. (2018). Supporting social, emotional, & academic development: Research implications for educators. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Consortium on School Research. https://consortium.uchicago.edu/page/presentations

q2 · i? · review · r2

The review reports, citing Allensworth et al. (2014), a support-by-challenge contrast: "grades are higher in challenging classrooms with high levels of support than in classrooms where the work is easier, but the teacher provides little support." Descriptive grade comparison; no effect size printed.

"In fact, grades are higher in challenging classrooms with high levels of support than in class rooms where the work is easier, but the teacher provides little support."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Displaced students in receiving schools with high student-teacher trust and teacher personal attention showed larger reading and math gains than those in low-support schools — related
• Learners invest more effort in tasks they perceive as interesting, personally important, or useful to their future goals. — related
• Instruction must be challenging for learning gains, but raising challenge without classroom control and student support harms grades and engagement — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)
• Most interviewed CPS seniors describe senior year as unchallenging and easier than previous years — related
• Easier items were perceived as better aligned with the curriculum (strong difficulty–alignment association) — related