Sometimes it seems every product or practice promoted in education today is labeled “evidence-based” or “research-based” by its creators. How can an educator be sure that a practice is really evidence-based; i.e., proven through high-quality studies to meaningfully improve student outcomes? One way is by using websites that experts in the field have identified as trustworthy sources. In a 2015 article, Test, Kemp-Imman, Diegelmann, Hitt and Bethune identified 26 websites that list instructional EBPs as trustworthy, each with a “clear, specific set of criteria to classify a practice as evidence based”. Here is a set of five of those resources that we often use as jumping-off points:
* Johns Hopkins’ Best Evidence Encyclopedia
* American Institute for Research, National Center on Intensive Intervention
* National Technical Assistance Center on Transition: http://transitionta.org/evidencepractices
* IRIS Center at Vanderbilt
* OSEP’s What Works Clearinghouse
Test, D. W., Kemp-Inman, A., Diegelmann, K., Hitt, S. B., & Bethune, L. (2015). Are online sources for identifying evidence-based practices trustworthy? An evaluation. Exceptional Children, 82(1), pp. 58-80.
Interested specifically in what works for students with disabilities? Click on the “Learn More” button below to read the article by RSE-TASC Special Education School Improvement Specialist, Andrew Ecker, that identifies practices from 13 trustworthy websites relevant to teachers of students with disabilities. The EBPs are organized into six categories: schoolwide framework, literacy instruction, math instruction, assessment, behavior/social skills instruction, and transition.
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