Webinar Archives

Policy Challenges Webinar: Implementing Response to Intervention (RTI) in Mathematics: Research-Based Strategies for Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont Grades K–8 Schools

February and March 2010

During this two-part webinar, Dr. Bradley Witzel of Winthrop University assisted district leaders and other educators in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont in learning how to better implement response to intervention (RTI) in mathematics through a focus on eight research-based recommendations presented in an Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Practice Guide on the topic. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Response-to-Intervention Policies in 16 States

January 2010

In this webinar, researchers from REL Northeast and Islands and REL West presented findings from two Issues & Answers Reports that reviewed state education agency (SEA) policies and supports for response to intervention (RTI) ’presentation, a Vermont-based education consultant discussed the implications of the reports’ findings for practical implementation of RTI in schools and classrooms. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

ADolescent Literacy: Effective Classroom and Intervention Practices

December 2009

In this webinar co-hosted with the New England Comprehensive Center, Dr. Michael Kamil at Stanford University presented five evidence-based recommendations for improving adolescent literacy from an Institute of Education Sciences Practice Guide. In addition, three practitioner panelists from different Northeast states linked the recommendations to their own work helping struggling adolescent readers. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Policy Challenges Webinar: Bridging Research and Practice: Six Recommendations to Address Dropout Prevention

September 2009

In this webinar co-hosted with the Equity Assistance Center for Region II, Dr. Russell Rumberger of the University of California, Santa Barbara, presented six research-based recommendations for reducing high school dropout rates from the Institute of Education Sciences Practice Guide on Dropout Prevention. In addition, a round table with a New York district superintendent, a REL-NEI researcher, and a New Hampshire state-level education administrator linked the recommendations to their own work on dropout prevention and, along with Dr. Rumberger, addressed questions submitted by webinar participants. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

New Measures of English Language Proficiency and Large-Scale Assessments: Presentation and Discussion

September 2009

In this webinar, REL-NEI Lead Researcher Caroline Parker presented key findings from an Issues & Answers Report that found that student performance on the English language domains of reading and writing on the ACCESS for ELLs proficiency assessment are significant predictors of performance on reading, writing, and mathematics assessments on the New England Comprehensive Assessment Program (NECAP). For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Literacy and Technology in the Classroom: The Thinking Reader Study

August 2009

This webinar presented REL-NEI’s Thinking Reader Study, a multiyear randomized controlled trial (RCT) examining the impact on student reading achievement of a computer-based program designed to help advance literacy development among middle-grade students. Study team members discussed the study’s design, methodology, and implementation, as well as demonstrated the Thinking Reader program. Data collection took place in 32 high-need schools in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island during the 2008–2009 school year. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Adolescent Literacy: State Efforts, Classroom Strategies

June 2009

In this cross-REL webinar, REL-NEI researcher Naomi Hupert and REL Central Senior Director Helen Apthorp presented key findings from two newly published Issues & Answers Reports that address state policies and classroom strategies to improve adolescent literacy. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

How State Education Agencies in the Northeast and Islands Support Data-Driven Decision-Making in Schools and Districts

May 2009

This webinar presented findings from an Issues & Answers Report that documents initiatives by state education agencies (SEAs) in the Northeast and Islands Region to support district and school-level educators in developing their capacity to use data for decision-making. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Policy Challenges Webinar: Bridging Research and Practice: Six Recommendations to Address Dropout Prevention

May 2009

In this webinar, Dr. Jay Smink, Director of the National Dropout Prevention Center/Network at Clemson University, discussed evidence-based recommendations and strategies for lowering dropout rates with educators and policymakers in New Hampshire, which has set a goal to reduce its high school dropout rate to zero by 2012. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Parent Involvement Strategies in Urban Middle and High Schools in the Northeast and Islands Region

April 2009

REL-NEI researchers Lydia O’Donnell and Amy Clark, coauthors of an Issues & Answers Report on parent involvement strategies in middle and high schools, presented examples of parent involvement policies, programs, and practices utilized in nine urban school districts in the Northeast and Islands Region and discussed challenges to evaluating the effectiveness of these strategies. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

State Supports for Low-Performing Schools and Districts in the Northeast and Islands Region

March 2009
In this webinar, REL-NEI researchers Sonia Caus Gleason and Leslie Hergert discussed how eight state education agencies (SEAs) in the Northeast and Island support low-performing schools and districts, as well as the rationales SEA administrators gave for their approaches to intervention. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

School Practices to Improve Elementary Mathematics Teaching and Learning for Students With Disabilities

March 2009
REL-NEI researchers Amy Brodesky and Josephine Louie presented findings from an Issues & Answers Report that describes six schools’ practices for improving math learning for elementary students with disabilities and other struggling learners. Fred Gross, a math specialist with the New England Comprehensive Center, facilitated a discussion about the relevance of the findings to practitioners’ work. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Learning from Rural Middle-Grades Classrooms: Discussion of a Long-Term Study of Online Algebra Access in the Northeast and Islands Region

February 2009
This webinar provided an overview of a three-year federally funded research study, implemented in Maine and Vermont schools, that examines how improving access to Algebra I to eighth-graders through an online course benefits student math achievement and course-taking patterns. Presenters discussed regional needs, the design of the online algebra course and of the study, and what practitioners can expect to learn from the findings. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Exploring Teacher Retention Strategies and the Distribution of Highly Qualified Teachers

December 2008
In this webinar, researchers Sarah Guckenburg and Susan Mundry presented findings from an Issues & Answers Report on the distribution of highly qualified teachers in New York State, and researcher Abigail Jurist Levy demonstrated a REL-NEI database of teacher retention policies and programs in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont. Two representatives of the Maine Department of Education provided personal reflections on how these evidence-based resources apply to their work. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Designing and Delivering Research Rooted in the Unique Needs of the Northeast and Islands Region

October 2008
This 22-minute overview of the Regional Educational Laboratory Northeast and Islands presented the REL’s research portfolio and dissemination products. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.

Enhancing Foundation Skills Interventions for Struggling Readers in the Middle Grades

June 2008
Researchers Judith Zorfass and Carole Urbano presented findings from an Issues & Answers Report that describes how four midsize urban school districts in the Northeast and Islands Region assess “foundation” reading skills and provide interventions to struggling readers in the middle grades. The researchers found variations, but also some similarities, in the districts’ use of tests and programs. For more information and additional materials, visit the webinar overview page.