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This article provides an overview of recent changes to state-level dyslexia legislation. It begins by applying a variant of Kingdon's multiple streams approach to explain how the dyslexia education "policy window" came to be opened. The article then describes the most likely effects and side effects of the new laws. Likely short-term effects include (a) a greater focus in schools on dyslexia screening and intervention, (b) greater use of multitiered systems of support and explicit instruction, and (c) changes in teacher preparation and training. Possible long-term effects include a reconceptualization of what constitutes "normal" school practice.

A growing body of research suggests that the effects of core mathematics instruction on student mathematics outcomes may not be uniform across different skill levels in mathematics. This study investigated the extent to which observed components of explicit mathematics instruction explained why students' initial mathematics achievement was previously found to moderate the treatment impact of an empirically validated, core kindergarten mathematics program. Instructional components examined were as follows: (a) teacher demonstrations and explanations of mathematical concepts, (b) group and individual student practice opportunities, and (c) teacher-delivered academic feedback. Findings suggest that the rate in which teachers facilitated individual student practice opportunities during core mathematics instruction explained the program's differential effectiveness. Implications in terms of differentiating practice opportunities for at-risk learners and utilizing classroom observation data to test potential mediating variables of academic interventions are discussed.

Opportunities for practice play a critical role in learning complex behaviors. In the context of explicit mathematics instruction, practice facilitates systematic opportunities for students with mathematics difficulties (MD) to learn new mathematics content and apply such knowledge and skills to novel mathematics problems. This study explored whether there is an optimal amount of student practice that teachers should provide in core mathematics instruction to maximize the mathematics achievement of kindergarten students with MD, a so called "Goldilocks effect," as opposed to simply "more is better." Results from observation data collected in a large-scale efficacy trial supported the latter rather than the former. Specifically, we found that three individual practice opportunities for every explicit teacher demonstration of mathematical content was associated with increased mathematics achievement for students with MD relative to fewer practice opportunities. Implications for facilitating frequent student practice opportunities during core mathematics instruction and designing professional development for teachers who work with students with MD are discussed.

Accumulating research has established explicit mathematics instruction as an evidence-based teaching practice. This study utilized observation data from a multi-year efficacy trial to examine the longitudinal effects of a core kindergarten mathematics program on the use of explicit mathematics instruction among two distinct groups of teachers: one group that used standard practices in Year 1 of the efficacy trial and the core program in Year 2, and a second group that used the core program in both years. Targeted teaching practices consisted of teacher models, student practice opportunities, and teacher-provided academic feedback. Implementation of the program in Year 2 was found to increase the mean rates of teaching practices of teachers who used standard teaching practices in Year 1. Effect sizes are also suggestive of a positive impact of a second year of implementation with the core program. Implications for designing explicit mathematics programs and investigating evidence-based practices in future research are discussed.

Hope Elementary School recently purchased tablets for all of its students to facilitate the use of technology in the classroom. The principal at Hope Elementary understands that technology can be an efficient and effective way for teachers to access materials and differentiate instruction to support the achievement of all learners. However, some teachers are struggling to determine how to best use the tablets in the classroom. Ms. Williams is a special education teacher at Hope Elementary School. She is excited about the tablet initiative and has a number of ideas about ways she can effectively and meaningfully integrate technology into instruction. The principal at Hope Elementary has asked Ms. Williams to serve as an example for other teachers at the school to help alleviate their concerns about using technology in the classroom. The principal is confident if other teachers see the way Ms. Williams is taking advantage of the school-purchased tablets to differentiate and individualize instruction, they will be better able to differentiate their own instruction to prevent academic difficulty and improve student outcomes in math, literacy, and other content areas. [This paper was published in "TEACHING Exceptional Children" (EJ1108437).]

The purpose of this article is to describe a multicomponent intervention developed and implemented by a consortium of districts in the Pacific Northwest through a researcher-practitioner partnership and the process used for collaboration. The intervention was designed to increase reading proficiency and school engagement for struggling readers in middle school in order to prevent eventual school dropout; however, a rigorous evaluation of intervention impact revealed null effects. The authors provide context for the dropout crisis, describe the partnership that led to the development of the multicomponent intervention framework, and instantiate similarities and differences in districts' implementation of the multicomponent intervention. Project data indicate schools and districts planned to customize interventions to support student success, and schools' selection of specific interventions and practices varied. Results of the collaboration highlight district and school demand for formative data that can be used to improve interventions, including implementation data. The described districts' selected intervention practices and the researcher-practitioner framework provide important information for others seeking to embark on these partnerships and for administrators leading systemic implementation efforts.

This article provides an overview of effective instructional strategies and interventions for kindergarten and first-grade students at risk in mathematics. The article reviews instructional strategies and interventions within a multitier instructional model in order to provide a framework for teachers and schools looking to increase the effectiveness of their instructional support in the area of mathematics. [This article was published in "Intervention in School and Clinic," (EJ1055946).]

This article describes an education program initiated by African American prisoners in the Airway Heights Correction Center in Airway Heights, Washington. The purpose of the program was to help the inmates to make productive use of their time while incarcerated and to help lessen the high return rate of African American men to the prison. Although hesitant to permit a race specific program the correctional center awarded the African American Literature Program as volunteer group of the year.

This study investigated safety in Texas secondary school science laboratory, classroom, and field settings. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) drew a random representative sample consisting of 199 secondary public schools in Texas. Eighty-one teachers completed Incident/Accident Reports. The reports were optional, anonymous, and open-ended; thus, they are unique in capturing the strengths and weaknesses of safety practices in school science settings as perceived by the teachers. Pertinent findings include: a) incidents and accidents (mishaps) increased from 8% to 62% as the class enrollment increased from less than 14 students to greater than 24 students (p less than 0.05), b) mishaps increased from 11% to 66% as classroom space per student decreased from greater than 60 ft[superscript 2] per student to less than 45 ft[superscript 2] per student (p less than 0.05), c) mishaps increased from 11% to 47% as room size decreased from greater than 1200 ft[superscript 2] to less than 800 ft[superscript 2] (p less than 0.05), d) 35% of teachers did not have adequate safety training within the last year, and e) 69% of teachers had a written safety policy. The findings of this study can be used to develop science classroom, lab, and field safety guidelines on a classroom, school, district, state, and a national level.