Essential Evidence-Based Teaching Strategies: Ensuring Optimal Academic Achievement for Students - Paperback

by Garry Hornby (Author), Deborah Greaves (Author)

Examines evidence-based practices (EBPs) that facilitate effective instruction and ensure optimal academic achievement for all students
Guides teachers in distinguishing between EBPs and those with little or no supporting evidence
Explores the theory and research behind each EBP and provides guidelines for effective implementation within schools
Details evidence-based practices that teachers can apply in the classroom

Back Jacket

This book examines evidence-based practices that facilitate effective teaching to ensure optimum educational achievement for school-age students. It identifies key strategies with extensive research evidence that confirms their effectiveness in improving student outcomes. The book offers guidelines for teachers to use in distinguishing between strategies that are evidence-based and those with little or no supporting evidence. It describes common instructional strategies often found in schools despite having little evidence to support their effectiveness. In addition, the book identifies eight key evidence-based teaching practices that can be directly implemented by classroom teachers, reviews the theoretical and research base of each of these strategies, and provides guidelines for special and general education teachers on how to apply them most effectively, with links to video examples of their use in classrooms. The text also examines common barriers to the use of evidence-based practices in schools. It explores implications for teacher education, focusing on training educators to identify and implement evidence-based strategies effectively, avoiding those lacking evidence, even if they are popular in schools.

Essential Evidence-Based Teaching Strategies is a must-have resource for researchers, professionals, and graduate students in educational psychology, child and school psychology, and social work who are interested in learning about and implementing effective teaching methods that improve student engagement and academic achievement, strengthen social-emotional learning, and reduce school dropout rates.

Author Biography

Garry Hornby, Dip.Ed.Psych., Ph.D, CPsychol., FBPsS, is an Emeritus Professor of Education at the Institute of Education at the University of Plymouth in the UK. Dr. Hornby was born in England and completed a degree in physics at the University of Leeds. His first job was as a counsellor/care worker in a residential school for emotionally disturbed and intellectually disabled children in the USA. He then worked as a secondary school teacher of mathematics and science in England and New Zealand. From there, he went on teach a special class for children with moderate learning difficulties in Auckland and subsequently trained as an educational psychologist at Auckland University. Dr. Hornby worked as an educational psychologist and, then, as a teacher educator at the Auckland College of Education before returning to England. He then worked as a lecturer and researcher at the Universities of Manchester and Hull, where he obtained his Ph.D. He also worked as a consultant on special needs education for the Ministry of Education and lectured for two years at Erdiston College and the University of the West Indies in Barbados. In 2002, he moved to Christchurch, New Zealand, where he was a professor of education at the University of Canterbury for twelve years. During 2016 and 2017, he was Director of Research at the Institute of Education at the University of Plymouth in the UK. He is married to a Barbadian and they have two adult sons, with all the family now living in Barbados.

Dr. Hornby's teaching and research is in the areas of educational psychology, special education, counseling and guidance, teacher education and parental involvement in education. He has published more than 200 journal articles and book chapters and 14 books in the field of education, including: Counselling in Child Disability (Chapman and Hall, 1994); Improving Parental Involvement (Cassell, 2000); Mental Health Handbook for Schools (Routledge. 2002); Counselling Pupils in Schools: Skills and Strategies for Teachers (Routledge, 2003); Meeting Special Needs in Mainstream Schools (2nd ed.) (David Fulton, 2000); Parental Involvement in Childhood Education: Building Effective School-Family Partnerships. (Springer, 2011); and Inclusive Special Education: Evidence-based Practices for Children with Special Needs and Disabilities. (Springer, 2014).

Deborah Greaves, EdS, EdD, is an educator with more than 30 years of experience at elementary, secondary, and tertiary levels. Upon completion of secondary school in Barbados, Dr. Greaves pursued studies at The University of Pittsburgh, receiving her first degree in Child and Adolescent Development, followed by studies in Language and Learning Disabilities at York University in Canada under a Canadian Commonwealth Fellowship award. Upon completion of a Master's degree, she returned to Barbados to serve as a Tutor at Erdiston College and did a two-year tenure of service at St. Gabriel's School and Codrington High School. Later returning to The United States, Dr. Greaves worked as a Teacher, Professional Development Trainer, and Special Education supervisor. During her tenure with two of the larger school districts in Atlanta, Georgia, her responsibilities encompassed classroom instruction, providing instructional support and coaching to teachers, and teacher mentoring and training. In her most recent position with DeKalb County Schools in Georgia, she provided support to multiple schools on matters pertaining to Special Education instruction, teacher training and legal compliance with Special Education mandates. During these tenures, Dr. Greaves completed her Doctoral degree in Education Leadership from The University of Georgia. Her research projects have included: Teaching students placed in second dialect classes: An analysis of teachers' perceptions of success (1998) and Data use practices at Newbury Charter: Using an action research approach to examine and inform practices (2018).

Dr. Greaves has presented training modules on Collaborative Coaching and Classroom Management, across Atlanta and notably at a National Staff Development Council Conference in Denver, Colorado. She served as a certified trainer for The Anti-Defamation League and has conducted presentations and training seminars with students, parents, and teachers across Atlanta on issues related to diversity in education, anti-bullying, and anti-hate practices in schools. Dr. Greaves currently works as an independent Education Consultant with interests in education policy development, teacher preparation, curriculum and instruction for diverse learners, and special education advocacy.