Readiness to Implement Evidence-Based Practices in Public Elementary Schools

• NCJ Number: 309505
• Author(s): Alex R. Dopp; Michelle Bongard; Andrea Phillips; M. Rebecca Kilburn; William R. Johnston
• Date Published: March 2022
• Length: 36 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2017-CK-BX-0020
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Grant Sponsored)
• Award: Taking Effective School Violence Prevention to Scale

Annotation

This study examines the adoption of evidence-based practices in public elementary schools.

Abstract

This study seeking to understand teachers' perspectives on their readiness to implement evidence-based practices (EBPs) found that elementary school teachers generally viewed EBPs favorably and were open to using them. Teachers' ratings showed much greater variation for burnout, which could signal teachers' reduced desire or ability to take on the new tasks or roles involved in using a new EBP, and for inner setting variables related to their schools' support for EBP use. It is essential to understand teachers' perceptions of working conditions at their school because teachers' ratings in those domains appeared most informative for efforts to improve readiness for EBP implementation. The authors recommend that schools' initial readiness assessments include teachers' feedback on specific EBP options and a brief check for any anti-EBP attitudes; once an EBP is chosen for implementation, the next stage of readiness assessment should include teachers' perspectives on their working conditions to identify key barriers that might impede implementation of the chosen EBP. There is an increasing emphasis on the use of EBPs by public elementary school teachers, yet little is known about how teachers and other education stakeholders can best support the successful implementation of such practices. The survey covered three domains related to EBP adoption and implementation: (1) innovation characteristics, (2) characteristics of individuals (openness to EBPs, burnout), and (3) inner setting characteristics (EBP implementation climate, management support). Teachers' responses suggest that they view EBPs favorably, but they do not consistently see their workloads and school environments as conducive to using EBPs. The authors discuss the implications of survey findings for EBP implementation in elementary school settings.