Standards-Based Instruction

Thompson, Carla J. “Preparation, practice, and performance: An empirical examination of the impact of Standards-based Instruction on secondary students' math and science achievement.” Research in Education; May2009, Issue 81, p53-62. EBScohost 16 Sept 09.


Preparation, practice, and performance: An empirical examination of the impact of Standards-based Instruction on secondary students' math and science achievement” provides an analysis of a study done in Oklahoma City from 2000-2002. The study involved over 10,000 student participants and tracked the impact of the use of Standards-based Instruction (SBI) on students standardized test scores. The research showed that there was empirical support for the effectiveness of SBI, in particular the P3: Preparation, Practice, and Performance framework. The study was significant both because of its magnitude (and correspondent reliability) and because of its affirmation of the claims made by SBI reform advocates.
In addition to the overall conclusion that SBI is effective, there were many intriguing trends between varying gender and ethnic groups. For example, it was found that for females manipulatives and self-assessment were effective in math where males’ success was more likely to be achieved through the use of calculators. My personal experience in teaching math aligns well with this claim. I have certainly seen the males in my classroom rely on calculators due to poor arithmetic skills where the females are more likely to need tools for the bigger picture of concepts.
One potential weakness that I detect in the study is the issue of how frequently SBI techniques are employed. It discusses the reality that SBI is just taking root, but it concerns me that rather than an attribute of the current educational landscape, the rarity of SBI is cause for a greater weakness in the study. Supposing that the primarily innovative, reflective teachers are the ones that choose to pursue the newer SBI methods, are those also likely to simply be better teachers? Regardless of the type of activity that is being used, a better teacher should have better results. I would be curious to see how well that discrepancy could be accounted for in future studies.