Implementing a scientifically based educational intervention in mainstream primary schools before and during COVID-19 era: Evidence from Greek-speaking children.
Quick daily lessons on how compound words fit together doubled spelling scores for Greek 8- to young learners, even during COVID.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Teachers gave 3rd and 4th graders short daily lessons on compound words. Kids learned how parts like "snow" + "man" build new words and meanings.
The team ran the lessons in regular Greek classrooms before and during COVID-19. They tested spelling and word meaning at the start and end of the term.
What they found
Classes that got the lessons gained twice as much on spelling tests. Even the lowest readers caught up to average classmates.
The gains stayed the same in the pandemic year, even with masks and missed days.
How this fits with other research
McGarty et al. (2018) also showed that direct literacy lessons work. They paid parents 50 cents a session to read with preschoolers and saw the same jump in print skills.
Aznar et al. (2005) looked at adults with delays learning sight words. Repeating errors three times beat saying them once. Both studies prove that small, clear teaching moves lift word skills across ages.
Courtemanche et al. (2021) showed you can train 18 staff at once and still hit a large share fidelity. Torelli et al. (2023) did the same in classrooms, proving the lessons survive real-world chaos like COVID.
Why it matters
You can slip a 10-minute compound-word routine into any reading block. No extra staff, no tech, just a list of words and quick practice. Try it Monday: pick five compound words, break them apart, have kids rebuild them aloud and write them down. Track spelling for two weeks and watch the gains.
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Join Free →Open your next session with a 5-minute compound-word drill: say "butter" + "fly," have the child write "butterfly," and chart spelling accuracy for one week.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: While morphological awareness has been recognized as a fundamental skill in students' literacy acquisition, experimental evidence is still scarce, especially regarding studies during pandemic. AIM: The aim of the study was to present a scientifically based educational intervention of morphological awareness which was implemented in two mainstream primary schools in Greece during COVID-19 era (2020-2021). METHOD: Participants were 72 primary school students (3rd/4th Grades) who were divided into an intervention and a control group per class. All students were assessed via tests of intelligence, literacy and language before pandemic. The intervention took place during pandemic in the school classroom of the experimental groups and included a pre-test, a training program and a post-test. The experimental material comprised of compounds which pose particular difficulties to children in terms of spelling and meaning. RESULTS: The results showed that the systematic exercise of the morphological structure of words increased significantly students' spelling and semantic performance, including those with low literacy performance. CONCLUSIONS: These findings underline the importance and feasibility of implementing scientifically based educational interventions in mainstream education during COVID-19 era. Theoretical and practical issues concerning the implementation of hybrid models of educational interventions and scientific research in education are discussed.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2023 · doi:10.1177/0022219413509972