Meta-analyses and reviews of the educational research literature have identified hundreds of efficacy studies. Yet the What Works Clearinghouse reports that very few of these analyses meet its selection criteria and standards of evidence. This report examines why these differences occur. It finds that the WWC procedures differ markedly from standard practices within the social sciences. The WWC gives no academic or scholarly justification for their policies. Moreover, an empirical, quantitative analysis of the utility of the WWC approach indicates that it provides no “value added” to estimates of a curriculum’s impact. The costs of applying the WWC standards are far from minimal and result in highly selective and potentially biased summaries of the literature. It is suggested that the public would be better served if the WWC adopted the standard methodological practices of the social sciences.
Engelmann and Carnine examined British Philosopher John Stuart Mill’s 1843 publication “A System of Logic” in terms of education. Mills described four major templates for organizing examples so they only support one interpretation. Mill did not apply his logic to education, viewing it as an art rather than a science. Engelmann and Carnine hypothesize the effects of Mill’s methods on teaching if applied beginning in the 19th century. The authors believe that if Mill’s theories on instruction were implemented in the early 19th century the way children were taught would have changed dramatically. By approaching instruction as a scientific practice the development of misguided instructional theories and failed expectations, which have been prevalent in the past 200 years, would have likely been avoided. Engelmann and Carnine also explore how John Dewey would have been affected if Mill’s logic was applied to education. Additionally, the authors demonstrate the similarities between Mill’s logic and the principles behind Direct Instruction programs.
In this highly theoretical book Engelmann and Steely breakdown the critical elements necessary for learning new actions and concepts. They diagram the necessary functions and systems for any organism or machine to perform an unlearned task. By analyzing the key components for the simplest organisms or machines to learn, Engelmann and Steely are able to construct meta-blue prints to better understand the simplest and most efficient way for humans to learn. The authors determined that once the foundation for unlearned responses is established learning mechanisms can be attached to the foundation, thus allowing for the demonstration of new, learned acts. The accumulation of new, learned acts will lead to higher order demonstrations involving concepts and language. The book is divided into four parts; performance of non-learning systems, basic learning, extended learning, and human learning and instruction. Additionally, the authors assess the implications of their model in relation to artificial intelligence entities.
Engelmann and Carnine developed their theory of instruction through the application of logical analysis to existing empirical observation, following the principles of natural science theories. Their theory is based on two assumptions: learners perceive qualities, and they generalize upon the foundation of the sameness of qualities. Engelmann and Carnine provide guidelines to effective instruction to ensure all children can learn. This comprehensive coverage of their theory is divided into 9 sections: overview of strategies, basic forms, joining forms, programs, complete teaching, constructing cognitive routines, response-locus analysis, diagnosis and corrections, and research and philosophical issues. Each section further explains the principles behind their theory, while providing examples of efficient and effective instruction.
