November/December 1994

"Success for All": Early Intervention Works Even in Worst Schools, Says Slavin

from New and Noteworthy: Brief Notes on Significant Recent Research in Education

Robert Slavin, director of Johns Hopkins University's Center for Research on Effective Schooling for Disadvantaged Students, thinks that "success for disadvantaged students can be routinely ensured in schools that are not exceptional or extraordinary."

Slavin and colleagues report some promising results for "Success for All" (SFA), an intervention program for low-achieving schools. SFA students scored progressively higher than those in matched control groups as they moved through the primary grades: in first grade they were three months ahead, in third grade seven months ahead, and in fifth grade more than a year ahead. Like Reading Recovery, Slavin's program uses early, intensive intervention where appropriate. SFA, however, uses a more skills-oriented curriculum and requires much less teacher training than RR.

Early intervention is far more effective--and cheaper--than remediation, says Slavin. SFA's success, he maintains, proves that disadvantaged students in the worst of schools can succeed with a small dose of strategic tutoring.

See: R. Slavin, N. Madden, L. Dolan. B. Wasik, S. Ross, and L. Smith. "Success for All: Longitudinal Effects of Systemic School-by-School Reform in Seven Districts." Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association annual meeting, New Orleans, April 1994.