This best-evidence synthesis reviews the past 20 years of rigorous reading intervention research to identify effective programs of instruction for Grade K-3 English Learners (ELs), as well as to determine the average effect of reading instruction on reading outcomes for this population. We identified 10 studies, all of which only included students…

Reading Recovery (RR) is a constructivist reading intervention used to provide tier 3 instruction to struggling readers in the first grade. The program has been previously evaluated and found effective by Evidence for ESSA (John Hopkins University), What Works Clearing House (intervention report institute for education sciences 2013), and in a…

The purpose of this paper is to describe what we know and what we still need to learn about literacy intervention for children who experience significant difficulties learning to read. We reviewed 14 meta-analyses and systematic reviews of experimental and quasi-experimental studies published in the last decade that examined the effects of reading…

Theoretical perspectives within disciplinary fields are often characterized by initially dichotomous frameworks that become more integrative over time. Indeed, popular discourse on the Science of Reading emphasizes dichotomous contributions of word reading and language comprehension to reading. Yet, these skill sets are inherently complex,…

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…

Examines the effects of a dyadic peer-mediated treatment, Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS), on first-grade children's mathematics development. Results indicated that treatment implementation was strong; teachers judged PALS to be effective and generally feasible; and students with and without disabilities, at all points along the…

Reading Recovery (RR), an early intervention for first graders at risk of literacy failure, was introduced in Maine in school year 1990-91 and has been growing ever since. The Maine Department of Education has been funding the training of RR teachers since the 1994-95 school year. Although there is general agreement that the RR program is…

In Reading Recovery, program-trained teachers provide one-to-one tutoring in 30-minute daily sessions to the lowest 10 to 20% of a first-grade class who have the prerequisite skills for Reading Recovery. Reading Recovery advocates claim that the program brings the lowest performing children up to the average level of their local class by the end…

Discusses the maturationist, behaviorist, and cognitive interactionist views of transitional programs. Research on transitional programs and possible effects of such programs on kindergarten and first grade classes is discussed. (BG)

Extra-year school readiness programs, which serve as "developmental kindergartens" or "junior first grades," are well-intentioned transition programs between kindergarten and first grade that are intended to serve children judged to be at risk for early school failure. Despite their good intentions, these programs are…

Examines the effectiveness of Early Steps, a first-grade reading intervention program in which at-risk students receive one-to-one tutoring lessons. Results reveal that at the end of the school year, the Early Steps group outperformed a comparison group on a variety of reading measures, including oral reading accuracy, comprehension, and…

Reviews 16 studies of 5 1-to-one tutoring models (Reading Recovery, Success for All, Prevention of Learning Disabilities, the Wallach Tutoring Program, and Programmed Tutorial Reading) used with at-risk first graders. Finds (1) substantial positive effects of tutoring; (2) effects of tutoring are generally lasting; and (3) results were more…

The decision by the National Institute of Education panel on the effects of school desegregation to select (for meta-analysis) a small group of preferred studies based upon criteria chosen in advance of examining the studies was, in principle, a mistake. One usually cannot know until the data have been examined which of several competing…