In 2019, declines in reading achievement across Texas motivated changes for teacher recertification, which required 60-hour professional development in the science of teaching reading (STR). The problem this study addressed was the challenges K-Grade 3 reading teachers encountered when implementing the recently adopted Reading Academy content at a…

This study addressed the effects of Strategies for Teaching Reading, Information, and Vocabulary Effectively (STRIVE), a distributed professional development (PD) model designed to help teachers implement reading comprehension and vocabulary practices in fourth grade social studies classes. Schools (n = 81 schools, n = 235 teachers, n = 4,757…

READ 180 was adopted by a school district in Southern Alabama (SDSA) in response to students' low state reading and comprehension scores statewide. However, after years of implementation, it is unclear whether the READ 180 curriculum and the instructional practices characteristics of the READ 180 have been implemented with fidelity across district…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation of the "Phonics First"® program within one district to inform district level curriculum team decisions and program planning moving forward. As a level 4 Directed State Support district, the studied district was looking for ways to close the achievement gap and raise overall…

Background/Context: Despite increasing school enrollment, significant literacy gaps persist in developing countries, with many children unable to read by age 10. This paper evaluates "M'ap Li Net Ale," a comprehensive intervention aimed at improving early-grade reading skills in Haiti, a context characterized by limited government…

This study examined the effects of behavioral skills training (BST) on teachers' implementation fidelity of a reading racetrack (a board game designed to increase sight word fluency) with elementary students identified as struggling readers. BST, an alternative to traditional professional development, is a performance-based protocol incorporating…

We present results of an evaluation of the first year of a multi-year comprehensive middle school reading program. Four public middle schools in rural Virginia with large populations of students with limited reading proficiency participated in a study to determine the reading program's impact. We evaluated 235 students with low reading achievement…

This multiyear scale-up effectiveness study of Open Court Reading (OCR) involved approximately 4,500 students and more than 1,000 teachers per year in Grades K-5 from 49 elementary schools in seven districts across the country. Using a school-level cluster randomized trial design, we assessed the implementation and effectiveness of Open Court…

Response to Intervention (RTI) is defined by the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) as the practice of providing high-quality instruction and intervention matched to student needs and using learning rate over time and level of performance to make important educational decisions (2007). Both IDEA 2004 and the…

The targeted reading intervention (TRI) is a professional development program for rural kindergarten and first grade classroom teachers to help them provide effective reading strategies with struggling readers. In two randomized controlled trials, the TRI was delivered two ways: (1) literacy coaches provided support for classroom teachers through…

Empirical Education Inc. is the independent evaluator of WestEd's 2012 i3 Development grant for Internet-based Reading Apprenticeship Improving Science Education (iRAISE). This interim report provides an update on the progress of the randomized control trial (RCT) during the 2014-2015 school year. The RCT measures the impact of iRAISE on student…

From October 2006 to June 2011, the Ohio Department of Youth Services (ODYS) implemented Scholastic's Read 180 program in the seven DYS high schools. Read 180, a daily 90-minute structured reading program, is composed of five components -- whole group, individualized learning, computer activities, small group, and wrap up. The program was offered…

One middle school's implementation of corrective reading was evaluated for student reading outcomes and treatment fidelity. Findings indicated that sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students made progress in decoding and oral reading fluency over the school year; however, students did not demonstrate greater gains during the semester enrolled in…

The San Diego Unified School District Striving Readers Project aims to work within the research base on adolescent literacy to conceptualize, describe and apply the elements of effective teaching and professional development with the goal of increasing the literacy achievement of struggling adolescent readers. Since the inception of the Striving…