Does the What Works Clearinghouse Work?
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Date
2013-09-09
Authors
Stockard, Jean
Wood, Timothy W.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI)
Abstract
The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) is a federally funded program established in
2002 to evaluate educational interventions and provide reliable and trustworthy summary
ratings and reports of their effectiveness. Yet, some of their reports directly contradict the
conclusions of the research literature, giving positive ratings to a program that scholars have
found to be ineffective (Reading Recovery) and failing to give positive ratings to programs
the research literature has found to be highly effective (Direct Instruction). This article uses
a comparative case study approach to examine how these contradictory conclusions
developed. We contrast the methods used by the scholarly world and the WWC to
summarize literature and their conclusions about the two curricula. We then examine errors
in the three major steps of the WWC review process: 1) compiling lists of studies to examine,
2) applying WWC criteria to select studies for further analysis, and 3) interpreting and
reporting the results of the studies. Extensive problems are documented at each step,
systematically favoring RR and not favoring DI. Implications of the results are briefly
discussed.
Description
18 pages
Keywords
What Works Clearinghouse (WWC), educational interventions, direct instruction, Reading Recovery