Improving Middle-School Students’ Knowledge and Comprehension in Social Studies: a Replication

Abstract

This study aimed to replicate findings that demonstrated impact on students’ reading comprehension and social studies content learning. Using a randomized control trial, intervention, and outcome measures, this study was replicated in 85 8th-grade social studies classes with 19 teachers. Teachers were provided professional development on comprehension canopy, essential words, knowledge acquisition, and the use of team-based learning. Measures of reading comprehension administered at pre- and post-testing and measure of vocabulary and knowledge acquisition was administered at pre-, post-, and two follow-up times, 4 and eight weeks following treatment. On the measure of vocabulary and knowledge acquisition, students in the treatment condition outperformed those in the comparison condition at all time points. There were no statistically significant differences for reading comprehension.