Impact Evaluation of Twig Science in Le Mars Community School District

This technical report presents the findings of a quasi-experimental study that evaluated the impact of Twig Science, a K–8 phenomena-based curriculum, on the science proficiency of middle school students in the Le Mars Community School District during the 2024–2025 academic year. The study involved three middle school teachers who implemented Twig Science in selected sections for Grades 6–8. Propensity score matching was utilized to create statistically equivalent treatment and control groups, allowing for a comparison of science proficiency outcomes. The results indicated that students using Twig Science achieved significantly greater growth on the Imagine Galileo science benchmark assessment compared to their non-user counterparts, with an average gain of 8.81 points. The report outlines the research design, population characteristics, curriculum details, and the measures used to assess student outcomes, providing evidence that Twig Science supports enhanced science learning outcomes and contributes to the development of student science proficiency.