Teaching Research

Students at R. Brown McAllister Elementary School use exercises in phonemic awareness during literary instruction on March 19, 2025, in Concorn, N.C.
Students at R. Brown McAllister Elementary School use exercises in phonemic awareness—the ability to recognize and manipulate the sounds in English—during literary instruction on March 19, 2025, in Concord, N.C. New research suggests that such exercises may be more impactful when connected to print and purposeful phonics teaching.
Cornell Watson for Education Week
Reading & Literacy A Popular Method for Teaching Phonemic Awareness Doesn't Boost Reading
In a new study, a highly used program didn't lead to improvements in students' word-reading abilities.
Sarah Schwartz, November 4, 2025
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5 min read
Students in Saxon Brown's 9th grade English class take turns reading as the different characters in To Kill A Mockingbird during class at Bel Air High School in Bel Air, Md., on Jan. 25, 2024.
Students in Saxon Brown's 9th grade English class take turns reading as the different characters in <i>To Kill A Mockingbird</i> during class at Bel Air High School in Bel Air, Md., on Jan. 25, 2024. Teachers say several tips help them build the scaffolding and stamina kids need to tackle complex novels like Harper Lee's masterpiece.
Jaclyn Borowski/Education Week
Reading & Literacy These Teachers Have Their Students Read Multiple Novels a Year. How They Do It
Making time for reading, checking for understanding, and presenting works in context are top priorities.
Sarah Schwartz, October 21, 2025
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5 min read
Students at R. Brown McAllister Elementary School use telephones for phonemic awareness during literary instruction on March 19, 2025, in Concorn, N.C.
Students at R. Brown McAllister Elementary School use telephones for a phonemic awareness lesson on March 19, 2025, in Concorn, N.C. Researchers are homing in on the qualities of high-quality intervention for students who continue to struggle after regular teaching.
Cornell Watson for Education Week
Reading & Literacy What Makes an Effective Reading Intervention? One Researcher's 5 Criteria
Studies highlight targeting specific skills and offering opportunities for practice, among others.
Sarah Schwartz, October 10, 2025
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4 min read
Students at R. Brown McAllister Elementary School use different strategies in phonemic awareness during literary instruction on March 19, 2025, in Concorn, N.C.
Students at R. Brown McAllister Elementary School use different strategies in phonemic awareness during literacy instruction on March 19, 2025, in Concorn, N.C. Teaching spelling in foundational-skills lessons can improve students' reading, research shows.
Cornell Watson for Education Week
Reading & Literacy Why Teaching Spelling Can Boost Students' Reading Skills
New evidence suggests some types of spelling instruction offer bigger payoffs for reading than others.
Sarah Schwartz, October 6, 2025
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3 min read
Collage illustration of a brain with gears, lightbulb, and dot patterns.
DigitalVision Vectors
Teaching What the Research Says The Top 5 Myths Elementary Teachers Believe About the Science of Learning
Most teachers worldwide still believe myths about learning decades after they have been debunked. Here are the most common.
Sarah D. Sparks, September 16, 2025
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4 min read
AI Skeptic 1244482154
iStock/Getty
Artificial Intelligence What the Research Says How AI Simulations Match Up to Real Students—and Why It Matters
New research suggests teachers should be cautious when using AI tools to personalize learning for students.
Sarah D. Sparks, September 10, 2025
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4 min read
A student works a problem in a second grade math class at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver.
A student works a problem in a 2nd grade math class at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver. The math instructional strategies that teachers employ can vary depending on whether they trained as general or special educators—a divide researchers say could hurt struggling students.
Rebecca Slezak/AP
Mathematics How Should We Teach Math? General and Special Ed. Researchers Don't Agree
The divide makes it less likely that students who struggle will get access to proven strategies, researchers argue in a new study.
Sarah Schwartz, August 21, 2025
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8 min read
First grade students listen as their teacher Megan Goes helps them craft alternate endings for stories they wrote together at Moorsbridge Elementary School in Portage, Mich., on Nov. 29, 2023.
First grade students listen as their teacher Megan Goes helps them craft alternate endings for stories they wrote together at Moorsbridge Elementary School in Portage, Mich., on Nov. 29, 2023. In reading classrooms nationwide, teachers tend to mix core and supplemental materials—whether out of necessity or by design.
Emily Elconin for Education Week
Curriculum The Many Reasons Teachers Supplement Their Core Curricula—and Why it Matters
Some experts warn against supplementing core programs with other resources. But educators say there can be good reasons to do so.
Sarah Schwartz, August 8, 2025
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7 min read
First grader Geniss Gibbs practices reading skills at Eastern Elementary School in Washington, N.C., on May 23, 2022.
First grader Geniss Gibbs practices reading skills at Eastern Elementary School in Washington, N.C., on May 23, 2022. Although districts are choosing new curricula purportedly aligned with evidence-based reading practices, they still frequently supplement with other teaching materials.
Kate Medley for Education Week
Reading & Literacy Districts Using 'High-Quality' Reading Curricula Still Supplement With Other Materials. Why?
A new report maps the shifting reading curriculum market.
Sarah Schwartz, August 4, 2025
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5 min read
Education Week opinion letters submissions
Gwen Keraval for Education Week
Mathematics Letter to the Editor Use Poetry to Create Safe Math Classrooms
Psychologically safe classrooms where students trust their teachers can help them learn, writes this letter to the editor.
July 15, 2025
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1 min read
Westwood High School teacher Shaun Reedy instructs students on Oct. 18, 2022 in Mesa, Ariz. For several years, the Mesa district allowed Westwood to pilot a program to make it easier for the district to fill staffing gaps, grant educators greater agency over their work and make teaching a more attractive career. The model, known as team teaching, allows teachers to combine classes and grades rotating between big group instruction, one-on-one interventions, small study groups or whatever the team agrees is a priority each day.
Westwood High School teacher Shaun Reedy instructs students on Oct. 18, 2022 in Mesa, Ariz. For several years, the Mesa district has allowed Westwood to use a team-teaching model allowing teachers to rotate between big-group instruction, small study groups, and one-on-one tutoring. Teachers across content areas set the agenda for their cohort of students. Now, research suggests these collaborative models can aid teacher retention.
Matt York/AP
Recruitment & Retention Team Teaching Reduces Turnover Compared to Going Solo, New Research Finds
Teachers who work together to set the educational tone and practice for their students are twice as likely to stay at their schools.
Sarah D. Sparks, June 23, 2025
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4 min read
102523 IMSE Reading BS
Reading & Literacy Popular Reading Programs Feature 'Multisensory' Instruction. Does It Help?
Many elementary school classrooms incorporate touch and movement into reading lessons. But research on the practice is inconclusive.
Sarah Schwartz, June 19, 2025
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6 min read
A young child climbs out of an X shaped hole.
Eglė Plytnikaitė for Education Week
Mathematics From Our Research Center 5 Research-Backed Ways to Help Students Catch Up in Math
Several areas of math achievement have been on the downward slope for more than a decade.
Sarah D. Sparks, May 5, 2025
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4 min read
A conceptual vector image of a person pronouncing phonemes while another person observes the soundwaves under a magnifying glass.
iStock/Getty Images + Education Week
Reading & Literacy What the Research Says Are Early-Reading Laws Changing Teaching Practices?
Laws mandating shifts in professional development and training don't always give teachers curriculum support.
Sarah D. Sparks, April 25, 2025
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6 min read
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