Provide school-level supports and resources to schools with many traditionally underserved students and broader challenges to learning opportunities¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 2 studies (2 associational), q2 · 0 of 2 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

A policy strategy the brief draws from its finding that individual student performance mirrors school-level characteristics: rather than treating below-benchmark literacy solely as an individual-student problem, direct resources at the school level. The brief states that "school-level supports and resources may be needed to address broader challenges, such as low attendance or lack of experienced teaching staff." It also calls for identifying root causes of disparities and effective school strategies as a critical next step.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Data systems identifying schools with high concentrations of underserved students and learning-opportunity challenges, such as the DESE screening data collection

Constraints¶

• The brief notes that without tackling opportunity gaps affecting students of color and English learner students, it will be difficult to reduce disparities in performance

Target Learners¶

• K–3 students in schools with many traditionally underserved students

Target Learning Goals¶

• Early literacy benchmark attainment and reduction of performance disparities

Claims¶

• Special education service concentration showed divergent patterns: similar ever-below-benchmark rates across quartiles but much higher persistence below benchmark in high-concentration schools [+W]
• School characteristics—percentage of low income students, teacher retention, and attendance—are associated with students' likelihood of being identified as at significant risk in early literacy screening [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Provide early, effective, targeted intensive intervention to disrupt persistent trajectories of reading difficulty

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Lemke, M., Murphy, D., Soo Ping Chow, A., Spencer, H., & Zhang, A. (2023). Opportunity Gaps: Findings From Initial Analysis of Student Performance in Early Literacy in Massachusetts. WestEd. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED638519