Program Profile: Tri-Ministry Study

This is a school-based trial that incorporated three programs: a Classwide Social Skills Program, a Connections Partner Reading Program, and a combination of both programs. The program is rated No Effects. There were statistically significant improvements on teacher- and parent-rated measures of externalizing problems. But there were no statistically significant effects on inappropriate classroom behavior and teacher- and parent-rated social skills.

A No Effects rating implies that implementing the program is unlikely to result in the intended outcome(s) and may result in a negative outcome(s).

This program's rating is based on evidence that includes at least one high-quality randomized controlled trial.

Program Goals/Target Population

The Tri-Ministry Study was a school-based trial that evaluated the effectiveness of three universal programs: 1) a Classwide Social Skills Program (SS), 2) Connections Partner Reading Program (RE), and 3) a combination of both (SS/RE). The program targeted primary school children from kindergarten through 3rd grade with the goals of reducing and preventing behavioral maladjustment.

Program Activities

Programs were administered by classroom teachers who were trained by program facilitators. The curriculum was based on the program manual, which included facilitator- and teacher-checklists to monitor program fidelity.

The SS program consisted of teaching 22 social skills to children in grades 1–3, and teaching 5 social skills to kindergarten children. The classroom teacher introduced selected skills to the entire class using modeling, practice, and feedback; and delivered rewards to students who adequately practiced the skills. Parents were asked to praise their children’s use of said social skills while at home, and to report on their children’s use of these skills.

The RE program consisted of two cycles: one lasted 12 weeks and the other lasted 8 weeks. Activities involved partner reading between students in different grades and between students and family members. Trained individuals coached teachers on how to use instructional strategies, modeling, discussion, partner activities, and cooperative group sessions to introduce, practice, and extend reading skills. Families were asked to read at home with their children for 15 or more minutes per day to reinforce reading strategies taught at school. Families were given a reading package with monthly planning sheets, tracking forms, and a video to structure opportunities for reading at home. Students in the SS/RE group received both the reading program and the social skills program.

Study 1

Hundert and colleagues (1999) conducted a randomized controlled trial of a 5-year, school-based study in Ontario, Canada. Eleven boards of education were chosen based on their adequate representation of diverse constituencies, which included rural and urban populations, immigrant populations, second- and third-generation Canadians, and French-speaking populations. Each of the 11 boards of education selected approximately 6 schools to participate in the study, for a total sample of 60 schools. From each board, schools were randomly assigned to intervention and comparison groups. For all intervention schools, one of the three programs (Classwide Social Skills, Connections Partner Reading, or both) was chosen at random to be implemented. In the intervention group, programs were delivered to all children in grades K–3 for a minimum of 2 semesters.

Although the school was the unit of randomization, the unit of analysis was primary school children. Using stratified random sampling, students were selected for follow-up assessments at random intervals, stratified by levels of emotional–behavioral risk. Emotional–behavioral risk was assessed using an “adjustment problem checklist,” a screening instrument derived from the revised Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS-R).

The selected students were assessed for social, behavioral, and academic functioning several times throughout the 5-year period. Follow-up measures included: 1) interviewer’s observations of positive playground behavior, 2) teacher’s observations of inappropriate classroom behavior, 3) standardized reading assessments derived from the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT), 4) teacher-rated externalizing problems, 5) teacher-rated social skills, 6) parent-rated externalizing problems, and 7) parent-rated social skills. To evaluate program effects, researchers compared follow-up assessments between intervention and control schools using growth curve modeling. The study authors did not conduct subgroup analyses.

Program facilitators were selected by school boards to coach teachers and assist in program implementation. Social skills facilitators typically had backgrounds in special education, psychology, or children’s mental health. Reading program facilitators were recruited by teachers from each school receiving that intervention. Facilitators were trained in their respective interventions based on the program manual. Implementation manuals were developed to assist facilitators, which included self-monitoring logs to document adherence to the program design. Monthly conference calls were conducted to resolve any implementation issues (Hundert et al. 1999).

These sources were used in the development of the program profile:

These sources were used in the development of the program profile: