Research on MegaSkills®
Program Effectiveness
1990-2009
The MegaSkills Programs are recognized programs with an established academic and character development track record extending over twenty years.
The MegaSkills programs have been adopted by schools across the nation. Sites where the program has been used with documented success include Warwick, RI, Lowndes County, MS, Edgewood, San Antonio, TX, Winslow Township, NJ, San Diego, CA, Broward County, FL, Louisville, KY, Lyford, TX, and Fairfax County, VA.
The MegaSkills Program is identified by the Character Education Partnership (CEP) as a nationally recognized character education program and over 700 websites link MegaSkills and character education.
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2009: Longitudinal Study of the Experience and Outcomes of the Title I MegaSkills Parent Workshop Program in Warwick, RI.
A study was conducted in the spring of 2009 of the experience and outcomes for parents and children who participated in the MegaSkills parent workshops conducted by the Warwick, RI, Public Schools’ Title I Program over the ten year period from 1998 to 2008.
Data collected included parent feedback sheets completed at the time parents attended the workshops program and extensive interviews with a limited sample of parents who had participated in the program during this time period.
A major component of the program are the weekly take-home activities. They teach parents to take advantage of the teachable moments; folding laundry, setting the table. They illustrate how academics and character development are part of everyday life. The goal is to set a pattern for parents of new educational strategies which they can continue to use to support their children’s education long after they completed the workshop program.
Longer Term Benefits of the Workshops: 100% of the parents interviewed reported that they continued to be satisfied with their children’s school performance, both academically and in terms of behavioral expectations of the school, well after they had participated in the parent workshops.
These parents had been out of the workshop program from one to ten years at the time they were interviewed in the spring of 2009. This finding is in accord with a body of research literature that indicates that involvement of parent in their children’s education can have long term effects well beyond the actual period of school-sponsored involvement.
Major Outcomes for Parents: Outcomes reported by strong majorities of parents included more confidence in helping their child, greater ability to structure both their own and their child’s use of time, better understanding of their child’s strengths and needs, more effective communication with teachers, higher educational aspirations for their child and more involvement in other school activities.
Major Outcomes for Children: Strong majorities of parents reported that children become more organized and self-reliant, more confident and able to express themselves, developed better relations with family members and other children, more interest in school and better behavior and stronger academic performance as reported by teachers.
Consistency of the Data: With the exception noted below, the parent responses over the ten year period and between two very different groups of parents were remarkably consistent. This consistency testifies to both the proven nature of the MegaSkills Workshop Program as an effective way of involving parents in their children’s education and to the program’s flexibility in meeting the needs of parents with children at different ages and grades in school.
Need for Early Monitoring and of the Media: While 100% of the parents of Pre-K children reported that their children spent less time watching TV, only 40% of the parents in the regular K-12 Title I workshop program, whose children were spread across a wide range of grades, including two high school students, reported their children watching less TV.
This finding suggests that parents need to begin in early to monitor and limit use the media, particularly now where the variety and quantity of electronic games and media is overwhelming.
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2008: MegaSkills Essentials in the Classroom Training Winslow Township, NJ
Responses indicated that Winslow Township educators learned from the trainers’ model lessons and watching peers teach the MegaSkills lessons to colleagues. These practice lessons, role-playing, group activities, and high levels of interaction were highlighted as strengths of the training format.
Winslow Township participants noted that the training content stressed practical uses of the MegaSkills Essentials in the Classroom curriculum while emphasizing academic learning. A major thrust was incorporating and integrating learning and discussion of the MegaSkills into academic lessons through all curriculum areas including literature.
The MegaSkills Essentials in the Classroom Program was evaluated to be a valuable in-service experience. The Winslow Township educators, after learning how to use the program and developing Action Plans, indicated they will be implementing it immediately.
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Research Findings: 2006
In Support of the work of MegaSkills
Psychological Science, Dec. 2005
Study by Duckworth and Seligman:
Reported by Gerald Bracey in the Kappan March 2006: “What distinguishes top students from others? Are they simply smarter? If so, what explains the wide range of performance among children with equal IQ?”
The results suggest that self-discipline has a bigger effect on academic performance than does intellectual talent. The researchers also state: “…we believe that insofar as grade point average reflects performance on hundreds of exams. Papers, class discussions and homework assignments assessed by multiple teachers over the course of a school year, GPA is a more valid indicator of academic achievement than a standardized test that samples a student’s knowledge and skills over a course of a few hours”
Phi Delta Kappan: February 2006
Character and Academics: What Good Schools Do
Study by Jacques S. Benninga et al
“It is clear that well-conceived programs of character education can and should exist side by side with strong academic programs…At a time when resources are scarce, we see schools cutting programs and narrowing curricula to concentrate on skills measured by standardized tests. Our research suggests that school goals and activities that are associated with good character programs are also associated with academic achievement.”
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The MegaSkills Programs have been used with diverse populations in a variety
of settings:
Groups served include African-American, Hispanic, Native American, Pacific, newly arriving immigrant families and at-risk families. Materials are culturally sensitive and have been translated into Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, Lao and Creole for non-English speaking families. The program has been adopted for all Title I Schools in Broward County, FL .
MegaSkills Program has been used successfully in special education centers
- The MegaSkills Classroom program provides learning activities for different learning modalities including visual, auditory, and kinesthetic experiences and at a range of ability levels.
Lowndes County, MS. (2004)
“Over twelve years Lowndes County increased the school success of children and the participation of parents in the schools’ academic programs. The lowest academic achieving children whose parents participated in the program showed improvement in such school achievement indicators as grades, tests, and reduction of disciplinary incidents.
The program has strengthened communities and parent involvement. Due in large part to the MegaSkills parent workshop program, Lowndes County School District has reported increased parental involvement by more than 10% each year. Based on the 2002-2003 report cards for Lowndes County Schools, fewer students are in the minimal proficient level of distribution and more students are in the proficient level of distribution. None of our schools are in school improvement. The graduation rate has increased to more than 75%.”
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MEGASKILLS MENTOR (TRAIN-THE-TRAINER) TRAINING
First piloted with the Broward County (FL) and San Diego (CA) schools in partnership with the Council of the Great City Schools, MegaSkills Mentor training, in which educators are trained in how to train others in the use of the MegaSkills Parent Workshop and Classroom Essentials Program, has been successfully provided in cooperation with other educational organizations: National Education Association (NEA) (2002-2003); Fairfax Education Association (FEA)/Virginia Education Association (VEA) (2003).
In 2003, MegaSkills Mentor training under a NEA grant was extended to representatives from organizations serving Hispanic families, including The National Council of La Raza, ASPIRA, and the National Association for Bilingual Education.
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Documented MegaSkills Program Impact
