Resources

Barr, J. E., Tubman, J. G., Montgomery, M. J., & Soza-Vento, R. M. (2002). Amenability and implementation in secondary school antitobacco programs. American Journal of Behavioral Health, 26(1), 3–15.

Collier-Meek, M. A., Fallon, L. M., Sanetti, L. M., & Maggin, D. M. (2013). Focus on implementation: Assessing and promoting treatment fidelity. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 45(5), 52–59.

Council for Exceptional Children. (2011). Evidence-based practice: Wanted, needed, and hard to get. Retrieved February 4, 2014, from http://www.bridges4kids.org/articles/2006/8-06/cec8-06.html

Dane, A. V., & Schneider, B. H. (1998). Program integrity in primary and early secondary prevention: Are implementation effects out of control? Clinical Psychology Review, 18(1), 23–45.

Davis, D. (2014). Fidelity of implementation, teacher perspectives and child outcomes of a literacy intervention in a head start program: A mixed methods study. In Open Access Theses and Dissertations from the College of Education and Human Sciences. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1203&context=cehsdiss

De Fazio, C. M., Fain, A. C., & Duchaine, E. L. (2011). Using treatment integrity in the classroom to bring research and practice together. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://www.aea1.k12.ia.us/documents/filelibrary/special_education_services/behavior_resource_team/Treatment_Integrity_Article_382F2457E806C.pdf

Department of Health and Human Services, Family and Services Bureau. (2014). Making adaptations tip sheet. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/fysb/prep-making-adaptations-ts.pdf

Durlak, J. A. (1998). Why program implementation is important. Journal of Prevention & Intervention in the Community, 17(2), 5–18.

Durlak, J. A., & DuPre, E. P. (2008). Implementation matters: A review of research on the influence of implementation on program outcomes and the factors affecting implementation. American Journal of Community Psychology, 41, 327–350.

Emmons, K. M., & Green, L. (2013). Balancing fidelity and adaptation. PowerPoint slides. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://conferences.thehillgroup.com/OBSSRinstitutes/TIDIRH2013/presentations/june4/June_4_Fidelity_EmmonsGreen.pdf

FindYouthInfo.gov. (n.d.). Implementing evidence-based programs: Implementing and adapting. Retrieved May 20, 2014, from http://evidence-innovation.findyouthinfo.gov/implementingAdapting

Fixsen, D. L., & Blase, K. A. (2006). Implementing innovations with benefits to consumers & stakeholders. PowerPoint slides. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://www.gencmh.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=m-IGJEzcIQ4%3D&tabid=181&portalid=0&mid=622

Greenburg, M. T., Domitrovich, C. E., Graczyk, P. A., & Zins, J. E. (2005). The study of implementation in school-based preventive interventions: Theory, research, and practice (Volume 3). Rockville, MD: Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

Harn, B., Parisi, D., & Stoolmiller, M. (2013). Balancing fidelity with flexibility and fit: What do we really know about fidelity of implementation in schools? Exceptional Children, 79(2), 181–193.

Joyce, B., & Showers, B. (2002). Student achievement through staff development. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://literacy.kent.edu/coaching/information/Research/randd-engaged-joyce.pdf

Kretlow, A. G., & Bartholomew, C. C. (2010). Using coaching to improve the fidelity of evidence-based practices: A review of studies. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 33(4), 279–299.

Kretlow, A. G., & Blatz, S. L. (2011). The ABC’s of evidence-based practice for teachers. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 43(5), 8–19.

Kretlow, A. G., & Helf, S. S. (2013). Teacher implementation of evidence-based practices in tier 1: A national survey. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 36(3), 167–185.

Mellard, D., Khan, C., McKnight, M., & Prewitt, S. (2009). Fidelity of implementation within an RTI framework. PowerPoint slides. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://www.rti4success.org/sites/default/files/FidelityImplementation_10-20-09_FINAL.pdf

Montana Office of Public Instruction. (n.d.). Fidelity. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://www.opi.mt.gov/Pub/RTI/Essentialcomponents/fidelity/Reading/Resources/Fidelity.pdf

O’Connor, C., Small, S. A., Cooney, S. M. (2007). Program fidelity and adaptation: Meeting local needs without compromising program effectiveness. What Works, Wisconsin-Research to Practice Series, 4, 1–6.

O’Donnell, C. L. (2008). Defining, conceptualizing, and measuring fidelity of implementation and its relationship to outcomes in k-12 curriculum intervention and research. Review of Educational Research, 78(1), 33-84.

Ringwalt, C. L., Ennett, S., Johnson, R., Rohrbach, L. A., Simons-Rudolph, A., Vincus, A., & Thorne, J. (2003). Factors associated with fidelity substance use prevention curriculum guides in the nation’s middle schools. Health & Education Behavior, 30, 375–388.

Sanetti, L. M. (n.d.). Accessing and promoting high levels of treatment integrity of school-based interventions. PowerPoint slides. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://www.cber.uconn.edu/people/lisa-sanetti-ph-d/

Sanetti, L. M., Fallon, L. M., & Collier-Meek, M. A. (2013). Increasing teacher treatment integrity through performance feedback provided by school personnel. Psychology in the Schools, 50(2), 134–150.

Williams-Taylor, L. (2007). Research review: Evidence-based programs and practices: What does it all mean? In Children’s Services Council, Palm Beach County. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, http://www.evidencebasedassociates.com/reports/research_review.pdf

Carroll, C., Patterson, M., Wood, S., Booth, A., Rick, J., & Balain, S. (2007). A conceptual framework for implementation fidelity. Implementation Science, 2(40). Retrieved on November 26, 2014, from https://implementationscience.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1748-5908-2-40

The authors out of this resource here overview a new model framework for improved implementation fidelity. Discussed are potential limitations and challenges presented by fidelity of implementation, the proposed framework itself, and some brief suggestions for further research and inquiry.

Dunst, C. J., Trivette, C. M., Raab, M. (2013). An implementation science framework for conceptualizing and operationalizing fidelity in early childhood intervention studies. The Journal of Early Intervention, 35(2), 85-101. Retrieved on November 25, 2014, from http://jei.sagepub.com/content/35/2/85.refs

This entry in The Journal of Early Intervention outlines a science framework for approaching decisions about fidelity of implementation in the classroom. Details from a study into the practice and its twin components—implementation and intervention—are also included, as are notes on fidelity measurements, terminology, and more.

Dusenbury, L., Brannigan, R., Falco, M., & Hansen, W. B. (2003). A review of research on fidelity of implementation: Implications for drug abuse prevention in school settings. Health Education Research, 18(2), 237–256.

Similar to the entry above, here the authors undertake an examination of studies of drug abuse prevention programs to determine the extent to which implementation fidelity is a core consideration. Findings indicate that the fidelity captured in twenty-five-years’ worth of studies was indeed quite low, something the authors attribute in part to the tension between implementation fidelity and the need for such programs to be adaptable.

Johnson, L. D., & McMaster, K. L. (2013). Adapting research-based practices with fidelity of implementation: Flexibility by design. Advances in Learning and Behavioral Disabilities, 26, 65–91.

This article—and later book chapter—opens with a detailed explanation of fidelity of implementation and its importance. It presents also an overview of a framework for adapting research into practice, as well as caveats and warnings regarding fidelity and some suggestions for areas of future research and examination.

Lane, K. L., Bocian, MacMillan, D. L., & Gresham (2004). Treatment integrity: An essential—but often forgotten—component of school-based interventions. Preventing School Failure, 48(3), 36–43.

Here the authors offer a brief overview of implementation fidelity while again stressing its importance as an indispensable ingredient in the success or failure of instructional practices and programs.

Leko, M. M. (2015). To adapt or not to adapt: Navigating an implementation conundrum. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 48(2), 80–85.
Here the authors look at the sometimes difficult balance between implementing evidence-based practices and programs with fidelity and knowing when adaptations to those EBPs are necessary. The article stresses the importance of using data to make such decisions, and includes steps for implementing adaptations, sample progress monitoring charts, and more.

Mowbray, C. T., Holter, M. C., Teague, G. B., & Bybee, D. (2003). Fidelity criteria: Development, measurement, and validation. American Journal of Evaluation, 24, 315-318.

It’s clear that implementation fidelity is important, but how exactly can educators gauge the extent to which it is being used in instructional practices and programs? In this journal entry, the authors set out a criteria for doing so. Includes notes on the various steps of the criteria, as well as suggestions for further refinement.

Protheroe, N. (2008). The impact of fidelity of implementation in effective standards-based instruction. Principal, 88(1), 38–41.

This brief overview offers a definition of fidelity of implementation, as well as remarks on its importance to good student outcomes,

Sanetti, L. M. H., & Kratochwill, T. (Eds.). (2014). Treatment integrity: A foundation for evidence-based practice in applied psychology. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

This book-length examination of the importance of implementation fidelity includes chapters on how to measure and analyze treatment fidelity data, the use of performance feedback as a means by which to improve fidelity, ethical issues related to implementation fidelity, and much more.

Wallace, F., Blase, K., Fixsen, D., & Naoom, S. (2008). Implementing the findings of research: Bridging the gap between knowledge and practice. Alexandria, VA: Educational Research Service.

This book-length work attempts to make available to school leaders some of the most-recent research regarding the crucial importance of implementation fidelity in classroom instruction. Subjects treated in-depth include the stages of implementation and implementation drivers, as well as a helpful index for helping school leaders to locate evidence-based practices.

Fixsen, D. L., & Blase, K. A. (2009). Implementation: The missing link between research and practice. NIRN Implementation Brief #1. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina, FPG, NIRN. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED507422.pdf

In this entry, the authors stress the importance of implementation fidelity as a “missing link” between program or practice conception and its actual instructional effects in the classroom. The core components of implementation, as well as its various stages, are briefly overviewed.

Fixsen, D. L., Naoom, S. F., Blase, K. A., Friedman, R. M., & Wallace, F. (2005). Implementation research: A synthesis of the literature. Tampa, FL: University of South Florida. Retrieved on November 24, 2014, from http://nirn.fpg.unc.edu/sites/nirn.fpg.unc.edu/files/resources/NIRN-MonographFull-01-2005.pdf

This expansive resource undertakes a detailed review of research into the importance of implementation fidelity on practice or program outcomes. Users will find notes on implementation within the context of community, core implementation components, and the authors’ conclusions and recommendations, among much, much more.

Witt, J. C., & Emeritus, P. (YEAR?). What do we know about accessing and improving fidelity of RTI. PowerPoint slides. Retrieved from http://www.serve.org/uploads/files/7WittPP.pdf

These PowerPoint slides include information on the importance of implementation fidelity to the success of RTI. Included are digestible notes on methods of assessment, research outcomes, and standards protocols and implementation, among much else.

Website

PRIME Implementation
http://www.primeimplementation.com/

Headquartered at the University of Connecticut Neag School of Education, PRIME Implementation is dedicated to creating resources and programs to help prevent lapses in fidelity of implementation in the classroom. Visitors here will find sections housing information on PRIME projects, resources, and a library for further investigation, among much else.