Treatment fidelity data (descriptive and statistical) are critical to interpreting and generalizing outcomes of intervention research. Despite recommendations for treatment fidelity reporting from funding agencies and researchers, past syntheses have found treatment fidelity is frequently unreported (e.g., Swanson, "The Journal of Special…

Picture books engage young learners across the elementary curriculum and can effectively help teach about a variety of social studies topics. Social studies may be a neglected subject in many elementary schools, but purposefully incorporating it through children's literature provides an effective means of advancing both literacy skills and social…

Response to intervention (RTI) is a comprehensive early detection and prevention strategy used to identify and support struggling students before they fall behind. An RTI model usually has three tiers or levels of support. Tier 1 is generally defined as classroom instruction provided to all students, tier 2 is typically a preventive intervention…

"Reading Mastery" is designed to provide explicit reading instruction to students in grades pre-K-5. One of several Direct Instruction curricula from McGraw-Hill, "Reading Mastery" is available in two versions: (1) "Reading Mastery Classic" (for grades pre-K-2) aims to help beginning readers identify letter sounds,…

This guide summarizes "Effective Programs for Struggling Readers: A Best Evidence Synthesis," a research review conducted by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Research and Reform in Education. The purpose of the review was to evaluate the achievement outcomes of alternative approaches for struggling readers in grade K-5: (1) one-to-one…

This article systematically reviews research on the achievement outcomes of three types of classroom approaches to improving the reading achievement of students in grades 2-5: Reading curricula, computer-assisted instruction (CAI), and instructional process programs. Study inclusion criteria included use of randomized or matched control groups,…

This study examines claims regarding the benefits of systematic and explicit phonics programs by comparing literature-based programs with commercial phonics-based programs to determine which best supports second grades' reading strategies and comprehension. Students in literature-based programs performed comparably in their use of graphophonics…