Combining domain-identical pretests with cross-domain pretests, fluid intelligence, and/or sociodemographic covariates yields only small incremental gains in explained achievement variance¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r2 · q3
Currency · newest study 2024 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? In all grade levels, CP explained additional variance beyond IP, with incremental gains largest in lower secondary school (+5%) and smallest in upper secondary school (+2%). → Stallasch 2024

Evidence¶

Stallasch 2024¶

Stallasch, S. E., Lüdtke, O., Artelt, C., Hedges, L. V., & Brunner, M. (2024). Single- and Multilevel Perspectives on Covariate Selection in Randomized Intervention Studies on Student Achievement. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-024-09898-7

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r2

Meta-analytic covariate-combination results from the German samples quantify incremental validity of CP beyond IP; the article also reports the full covariate battery did not raise explained variance beyond IP in the prior research review.

"In all grade levels, CP explained additional variance in student achievement over and above IP. On average, incremental gains were largest in lower secondary school (+5%) and smallest in upper secondary school (+2%)."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Covariates explaining substantial outcome variance efficiently decrease the MDES and reduce required sample size in randomized experiments — related
• At the school level, domain-identical pretests show exceptional prognostic power from grade 5 onward, but are weaker predictors at the student and classroom levels across the school career — related
• Domain-identical pretests are the most powerful single-level covariate type for student achievement, outperforming cross-domain pretests, fluid intelligence, and sociodemographic characteristics — related
• Sociodemographic covariates outweigh domain-identical pretests for predicting between-classroom and between-school variance in elementary school — related