Case Study Of Project Follow Through

Project Follow Through: What We Should Have Learned
Cathy Watkins (1997) reviewed the largest and most expensive experimental project in education that was funded by the U.S. federal government in her book titled Project Follow Through: Case Study of Contingencies Influencing Instructional Practices of the Educational Establishment. Acknowledging key areas that have an impact on education, in her case study, Watkins (1997) thoroughly reviewed Project Follow Through in the following components: history, design, evaluation, dissemination of findings, funding decisions, and educational establishment.
Watkins did not hesitate to make her point of view clear to the reader. Viable solutions to the problem of teaching disadvantage children through
17). There were 13 models evaluated in total that fell within three different model types. The three areas across which the models were assessed include the following: Basic Skills Models, Cognitive-Conceptual Models, and Affective-Cognitive models. The Basic Skills category included Direct Instruction, Behavior Analysis, The Language Development Approach, and the California Process Model. These educational models targeted reading arithmetic, spelling, and language (Watkins, 1997). The Cognitive-Conceptual category included Florida Parent Education, Tuscon Early Educational Model, Cognitively Oriented Curriculum, and the Individualized Early Learning Program. These educational models primarily targeted skills that promote problem solving (Watkins, 1997). The Affective-Cognitive category included Mathemagenic Activities Program, Responsive Education, Interdependent Learning, Bank Street, and Open Education (EDC). These educational models targeted the learner forming self-concept as well as perceptions involved with learning (Watkins,
Engelmann (1999) recommended that the Direct Instruction model should be part of an Affirmative Action plan for at-risk students after the findings from Project Follow Through. The main features of Direct Instruction include the following: Focus on generalizable teaching strategies, faultless communication (effective stimulus control), logical analysis of the repertoire to be taught, active student responding and practice, error correction, and choral responding (Eshelman, 2018). Engelmann, Haddox, and Bruner (1983) developed a research-based program for parents to use with preschool or struggling readers based on direct instruction. Curriculum on the superior model determined from Project Follow Through exists, backed by