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The purpose of this efficacy study was to examine the impact of the Teacher Study Group (TSG) professional development program in vocabulary, on teacher knowledge, observed teaching practice, and student vocabulary achievement, when implemented with first grade teachers in Title 1 schools. This multi-site cluster randomized trial was implemented in 61 schools from 16 districts in four states (California, Texas, Ohio, and Illinois). The analytic sample included 182 first grade teachers and 1,680 of their students. Significant impacts were found at the teacher level for teacher knowledge (g = 0.38, p < 0.05), the "Teacher-Directed Vocabulary Instruction" scale (g = 0.93, p < 0.001), and the "Interactive Vocabulary Instruction" scale (g = 0.47, p < 0.05). No significant impacts were found at the student level on the "Woodcock-Johnson Oral Vocabulary" and "Reading Vocabulary" subtests and the "GRADE Word Meaning" subtest.

The ESEA Blueprint for Reform states that teachers need "effective, ongoing, job-embedded, professional development that is targeted to student and school needs… [and] aligned with evidence of improvements in student learning." Unfortunately, the professional development approaches advocated, though sensible and compelling in theory, have rarely been widely field-tested and evaluated using rigorous research techniques. The situation is slowly changing, but often the results have been mixed. One promising professional development effort in recent years has been the Teacher Study Group (TSG). This approach to professional development is an attempt to orchestrate several of the "best practices" in professional development--linkage to core curriculum, concreteness, establishment of collegial networks, and ongoing related activities--into a feasible model for use in elementary schools. The goal of the TSG professional development program is to enhance instruction by helping teachers integrate research-based instructional strategies into their existing curriculum. The purpose of the study is to examine the impact of the Teacher Study Group, focused on effective vocabulary instruction, on teacher knowledge, observed teaching practice, and student vocabulary achievement when implemented with first grade teachers in Title I schools. The major research questions were: (1) What is the impact of the TSG on teacher knowledge and teaching practice when compared to the professional development efforts being provided by the states and districts?; (2) What is the impact of the TSG on students' vocabulary knowledge when compared with students in classes receiving existing professional development efforts?; (3) What role does fidelity of implementation of the TSG protocols by the facilitators play in moderating the impacts of TSG on teacher and student outcomes?; and (4) What contextual factors facilitate or hinder effective implementation of the TSG? the randomized controlled study was conducted in 61 Title 1 schools (31 treatment and 30 control) from 16 school districts in four states: California, Ohio, Illinois, and Texas. The sample consisted of 182 first grade teachers (94 treatment and 88 control) and a randomly selected sample of 1811 students (940 in treatment and 871 in control). In each district, data were collected from both the TSG and control schools at the same time, by observers and testers blind to condition, to guard against bias entering the data collection process. Preliminary findings demonstrate the potential of the TSG intervention to bring about significant positive impacts at the teacher level (a proximal outcome for a professional development intervention). Tables are appended.