A synthesis of the extant research on reading interventions for students with reading difficulties and disabilities in fourth and fifth grade (ages 9-11) is presented. Thirteen studies with treatment/ comparison study designs and eleven single group or single subject studies were located and synthesized. Findings from the 24 studies revealed high effects for comprehension interventions on researcher-developed comprehension measures. Word recognition interventions yielded small to moderate effects on a range of reading outcomes. Few studies were located implementing vocabulary and multi-component interventions.

This study reports on the perceptions and instructional practices of Grades 3 through 5 special education teachers in a school district that implemented a multitiered response to intervention (RTI) framework for the previous 5 years. The authors used focus groups and interviews to examine special education teachers' perceptions of RTI. In addition, the authors observed the mathematics and reading instruction that these teachers provided. This study contributes to the literature by presenting a qualitative, in-depth description of special education teachers' perceptions related to RTI implementation at the upper elementary level.

Treatment fidelity reporting practices are described for journals that published general and special education intervention research with high impact factors from 2005 through 2009. The authors reviewed research articles, reported the proportion of intervention studies that described fidelity measurement, detailed the components of fidelity measurement reported, and determined whether the components of fidelity reported differed based on the research design, the type of intervention, or the number of intervention sessions. Results indicate that even intervention research articles in high-quality general and special education journals inconsistently report fidelity (less than 70% of the articles). Authors of single-case studies most frequently reported the collection of intervention fidelity data (81.3% of articles, compared with 67.4% of treatment-comparison study articles). Of the 67% of articles that provided information about intervention fidelity procedure, only 9.8% provided data about the quality of the treatment intervention.

The authors conducted a synthesis of studies of reading comprehension interventions for middle school students (Grades 6-8) identified with a learning disability. They identified 12 studies between 1979 and 2009 with treatment and comparison designs and 2 single-participant studies. Findings from the studies indicate large effect sizes for researcher-developed comprehension measures. Few studies (n = 4) reported standardized measures of reading comprehension, which indicated medium effect sizes. The majority of study treatments (n = 13) utilized strategy instruction related to main idea or summarization.

Systematically observing instruction for students with learning disabilities (LD) provides information regarding the quality of school-based interventions, allocation of instructional time, and other implementation variables associated with student outcomes. In this synthesis, observation studies of reading and mathematics instruction from 2000 to 2013 were identified through a systematic literature search. The purpose was to understand findings from observations of typical practice for students with LD during an era of increased exposure to evidence-based practices, educational policy reforms, and reports on reading and mathematics designed to influence instruction, and amid a period of increased academic expectations. Eleven studies focusing on academic instruction for students with LD were identified and reviewed. Cognitive strategy instruction, differentiated instruction, and opportunities for independent application (i.e., text reading, problem solving) were reported infrequently across the published observational research. However, findings provide some evidence of improved teacher use of effective instructional practices in several areas compared with earlier observation study syntheses. Implications for practice and areas for future research are discussed.

A synthesis and meta-analysis of the extant research on the effects of reading interventions delivered using social studies content for students with learning disabilities in kindergarten through Grade 12 is provided. A total of 27 studies met criteria for the synthesis, with 16 studies providing sufficient data for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Reading interventions implemented within the context of social studies have employed the use of graphic organizers, mnemonics, reading and answering questions, guided notes, and multicomponent comprehension instruction. The overall mean effect size for interventions included in the meta-analysis was 1.02, indicating that reading interventions delivered using social studies content have a substantial positive effect on outcomes among students with learning disabilities.

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Teachers are responsible for using evidence-based practices to improve students’ academic and behavioral outcomes. Although teachers have access to a variety of resources on evidence-based practices, poor implementation can adversely affect their effectiveness. However, an inadequate student response to intervention may also be the result of a mismatch between the practice and the student’s needs. As a result, it is important for teachers to determine the degree to which they implement evidence-based practices as intended to determine if an inadequate student response is due to poor implementation or inappropriate selection of intervention. The authors discuss the importance of fidelity of implementation. Methods teachers can use to measure implementation fidelity are reported. Suggested methods are discussed and examples are provided.