Home | Evidence-Based Practice Briefs Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Briefs

We are pleased to introduce a new tool for your everyday decision-making—a combination electronic and print, peer-reviewed journal called Evidence-based Practice (EBP) Briefs.

Since its beginning in 2006, EBP Briefs seeks to answer some of the biggest questions of your daily activities, supported with evidence and written practically and efficiently for you by leaders in speech-language pathology and related disciplines. One of the goals of EBP Briefs is to allow you to read and implement easily. Read an introduction by 2008 (Volume 3) editor, Dr. Chad Nye. You can also read the introduction by Dr. Laura Justice, editor of Volumes 1 and 2.

As always, we are interested in your feedback on EBP Briefs in general and are also looking to you to help identify specific questions you would like us to explore in upcoming EBP Briefs. Thank you in advance!

EBP Briefs is published in two ways for your benefit:

1. FREE Electronic format: four articles are published during the year, quarterly (below).
2. For-purchase Paper format: the four electronic articles from the calendar year plus two additional articles not available online are published annually.

NOW in audio format! Look for a new "podcast" feature to EBP Briefs! No time to read? Just download to your iPod or mp3 player and listen as you travel (not while driving, of course!), exercise, or wait in line. Review the sample at the top of this page and sign up for updates as more podcasts are completed.

Looking for CEUs? EBP Briefs is an appropriate journal for ASHA's Learn and Earn program.

University Alliance Program (UAP) members: consider EBP Briefs as supplementary reading in your classes, in print or electronic formats.

EBP Briefs, Volumes 1 and 2

Volumes 1 and 2 of the annual journal are available for purchase and contain the first four issues as well as two additional articles not available electronically.

Links to Journal Articles Online

The Use of Phonics in the Teaching of Reading and Spelling Volume 3, Number 2, June 2008 by Greg Brooks, University of Sheffield, UK, and Carole J. Torgerson and Jill Hall, University of York, UK	View Brief
Whether or not to teach phonics has long been a polarizing debate between phonics and whole language advocates. The authors provide a research-based review of phonics and its role in teaching reading and writing. Their findings lead to recommendations of how to best incorporate systematic phonics teaching in the classroom and in teacher training.

Making Informed Decisions about Literacy Intervention in Schools: An Adolescent Literacy Example Volume 3, Number 1, April 2008 by Barbara J. Ehren, Ed.D., CCC-SLP, University of Central Florida

View Brief

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in schools are exploring new or expanded roles with literacy, including intervention with students with language impairment (LI). At the same time, they seem to be struggling to find the motivation and time to engage in evidence-based practice (EBP). The author makes the case that EBP fits well within school culture. An example is provided to demonstrate how a school SLP can utilize the questions to make EBP decisions regarding literacy-related interventions. Use the icons to the right to listen to the podcast or author/editor conversation about this article and topic.

Evidence-Based Practice for School-Age Stuttering: Balancing Existing Research with Clinical Practice Volume 2, Number 4, December 2007 by J. Scott Yaruss and Kristin Pelczarski, University of Pittsburgh	View Brief
A speech-language pathologist (SLP) works with a child who stutters to translate successes from the therapy room to her school and home settings. When the current treatment plan isn't working, the SLP looks to research for answers. What process will she use to narrow and evaluate the research in order to make effective treatment changes?

Self-Regulated Strategy Development for Written Expression: Is it Effective for Adolescents? Volume 2, Number 3, September 2007 by Laura Jacobson and Robert Reid, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

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An educator examines why the special education students at his small, urban high school have difficulty with writing and what he can do to help. Because his school system already expects students to have the requisite writing skills, many special education students don’t have the chance to improve their skills during high school and may not pass the district’s graduation exam. The educator and his colleagues respond by applying the research-based Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) model. What will they and their students learn from their efforts?

English Literacy Development for English Language Learners: Does Spanish Instruction Promote or Hinder? Volume 2, Number 2, July 2007 by Kelly M. Thomason and Brenda K. Gorman, Marquette University and Connie Summers, The University of Texas at Austin

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In this brief, the authors consider whether instruction in a child¹s native language (particularly Spanish) hinders or promotes learning of literacy in English. The authors conduct a four-step process for identifying research on this topic, examining this literature, and then determining the answer to this clinical question. The results suggest that supporting a child's home/native language promotes rather than hinders development of English literacy skills.

Parent-Implemented Interactive Language Intervention: Can It Be Used Effectively? Volume 2, Number 1, March 2007 by Laura M. Justice and Khara Pence, University of Virginia	View Brief
In this brief, a hypothetical clinician takes on the task of identifying a "research based" approach for training parents to provide language intervention in the home environment. This brief describes a four-step process for identifying effective interventions, and describes the outcomes of this process as applied to home-based parent-implemented language intervention.

Social Skills Intervention for Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Review of the Experimental Evidence Volume 1, Number 4, December 2006 by Sloane Burgess and Lyn S. Turkstra

View Brief View Summary of Studies

The social situations that adolescents encounter on a daily basis require both speed and agility: they must select comments that directly address the topic at hand, control utterance length so as not to monopolize the conversation, take the perspective of others and use both verbal and nonverbal methods to convey and state implied meaning. Added to this, the idiomatic language of adolescent peer groups continually evolves,and familiarity with this language is important to building and sustaining relationships with one’s peer group. With the vast array of therapy materials and approaches available, how would a clinician determine the most recent evidence available supporting current intervention practices?

Evidence-Based Vocabulary Instruction for Elementary Students via Storybook Reading Volume 1, Number 3, October 2006 by Carla J. Johnson and Erin Yeates, University of Toronto	View Brief
Speech-language pathologists who are interested in evidence-based practice may wish to know whether there is scientific evidence to support particular methods of vocabulary instruction...Do elementary schools students learn new vocabulary more effectively from hearing stories with brief explanations of unknown words than from hearing stories without such explanations?

Improving Communication for Children with Autism: Does Sign Language Work? Volume 1, Number 2, July 2006 by Jamie B. Schwartz, Ph.D., and Chad Nye, Ph.D., University of Central Florida

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One of the signature characteristics of children with autism is failure to develop adequate communication skills. Clinicians often are faced with the decision of selecting and implementing an aided or unaided augmentative or alternative communication system for these individuals. Given that a clinician may recommend sign language training for a child with autism, what evidence is available upon which to base this decision?

Classroom-Based versus Pull-Out Language Intervention: An Examination of the Experimental Evidence Volume 1, Number 1, April 2006 by Anita S. McGinty and Laura Justice, University of Virginia	View Brief
In this brief, we consulted the available experimental evidence to consider an important question that clinicians often ask: Should I provide speech-language intervention within the child’s classroom (classroom-based) or outside of the classroom (pull-out)?