Using Covariates to Improve Precision for Studies that Randomize Schools to Evaluate Educational Interventions
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| Title: | Using Covariates to Improve Precision for Studies that Randomize Schools to Evaluate Educational Interventions |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Bloom, Howard S., Richburg-Hayes, Lashawn, Black, Alison Rebeck |
| Source: | Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis. 2007 29(1):30-59. |
| Availability: | SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Physical Description: | |
| Page Count: | 30 |
| Publication Date: | 2007 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Evaluative |
| Education Level: | Elementary Education Elementary Secondary Education High Schools Middle Schools |
| Descriptors: | Urban Schools, Pretests Posttests, Educational Change, Intervention, Academic Achievement, Elementary Secondary Education, School Districts, Statistical Analysis, Comparative Analysis, Control Groups, Educational Research, Models, Reading Tests, Mathematics Tests |
| DOI: | 10.3102/0162373707299550 |
| ISSN: | 0162-3737 |
| Abstract: | This article examines how controlling statistically for baseline covariates, especially pretests, improves the precision of studies that randomize schools to measure the impacts of educational interventions on student achievement. Empirical findings from five urban school districts indicate that (1) pretests can reduce the number of randomized schools needed for a given level of precision to about half of what would be needed otherwise for elementary schools, one fifth for middle schools, and one tenth for high schools, and (2) school-level pretests are as effective in this regard as student-level pretests. Furthermore, the precision-enhancing power of pretests (3) declines only slightly as the number of years between the pretest and posttests increases; (4) improves only slightly with pretests for more than 1 baseline year; and (5) is substantial, even when the pretest differs from the posttest. The article compares these findings with past research and presents an approach for quantifying their uncertainty. (Contains 15 tables and 27 notes.) |
| Abstractor: | Author |
| Number of References: | 28 |
| EIS Cited: | ED544801 |
| Entry Date: | 2008 |
| Accession Number: | EJ782432 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | This article examines how controlling statistically for baseline covariates, especially pretests, improves the precision of studies that randomize schools to measure the impacts of educational interventions on student achievement. Empirical findings from five urban school districts indicate that (1) pretests can reduce the number of randomized schools needed for a given level of precision to about half of what would be needed otherwise for elementary schools, one fifth for middle schools, and one tenth for high schools, and (2) school-level pretests are as effective in this regard as student-level pretests. Furthermore, the precision-enhancing power of pretests (3) declines only slightly as the number of years between the pretest and posttests increases; (4) improves only slightly with pretests for more than 1 baseline year; and (5) is substantial, even when the pretest differs from the posttest. The article compares these findings with past research and presents an approach for quantifying their uncertainty. (Contains 15 tables and 27 notes.) |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 0162-3737 |
| DOI: | 10.3102/0162373707299550 |
