As interest and concern rise in U.S. educational circles around the reading achievement of English language learners (ELLs) and struggling readers, researchers and practitioners alike are calling for the increased use of technology as a means to decrease achievement gaps in reading (Jimenez, 2003; Strangman & Dalton, 2005). In this article, we…

The Accelerated Reader/Reading Renaissance program (now called Accelerated Reader Best Classroom Practices) is a guided reading intervention in which teachers direct student reading of text. It involves two components. Reading Renaissance, the first component, is a set of recommended principles on guided reading (or teachers' direction of…

This study examined the relationship between age at school entry and reading readiness in kindergarten. Subjects included 30 kindergarten students selected randomly from a population of 56 students at a parochial school in a predominantly low socioeconomic status neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois. All students were African American and ranged in…

A study evaluated the validity of the Illinois Goal Assessment Program (IGAP) grade-3 reading assessment from 2 perspectives: its relationship to 21 other measures of reading via factor analyses, and the sensitivity of the IGAP to instruction in 3 schools via multiple regression. Data were collected in a longitudinal study involving 350 students.…

A study examined the effect of Direct Instruction (DI) on the reading achievement of sixth graders. Subjects were 72 Chicago Public School students, nearly 100% minority. In the school year of 1994-95 no students received DI. A sample of 30 students who performed poorly, with stanines of 1, 2, and 3 on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) were…

A study explored the effects of bimodal (concurrent auditory and visual stimulus modes) versus unimodal reading on 8 poor readers between the ages of 9 and 12 years. An alternating treatments design was used to compare student performance on 12 passages, 45 in each of 3 presentations modes: bimodal, visual, and auditory. Session measures included…

The summary information in this report provides teachers, school administrators, students, and the general public in Alberta, Canada with an overview of results from the January 1997 administration of the English 33 Diploma Examination. The information in the report is most helpful when used in conjunction with the detailed school and jurisdiction…

This report evaluates the conduct, validity, and uses of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Trial State Assessment (TSA). The report addresses such pressing problems as how participation in NAEP can be maintained and appropriate samples can be achieved; how errors can be minimized in the complex process of scaling and analyzing…

A study investigated the effect of phonemic awareness and cognitive flexibility training on the phonemic awareness, cognitive flexibility, reading, and spelling ability of kindergarten and first-grade students. Subjects were 280 students from 12 classrooms in 3 urban elementary schools. Four pre- and posttest measures were administered. Students…

A study determined if pairing children for reading in first grade would have an effect on their reading achievement. The subjects in this study came from one first grade class in a suburban school district. For 6 weeks, one group of emergent readers was paired with more able readers, while another group of emergent readers in the same class was…

Representing a shift toward performance based education, this content guide and framework is designed to help schools in Idaho develop a K-12 English language arts curriculum and program and formulate some realistic goals for themselves and their students. An introductory section discusses performance based education, goals for English language…

Expanded to cover prereading through grade 12, this book presents a simple method for effectively assessing the reading proficiency of students K-12. The second edition of the book provides, using preprimer and primer passages, a means for assessing the emergent/beginning reading skills of students just entering school. The book includes a special…

A study examined the effectiveness of a Reading Recovery program. Subjects, 14 first-grade students who received the Reading Recovery program and 20 first-grade students who did not receive the program, were administered the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills in the spring of 1994. The subject population was comprised of 100% minority students attending…

Suggesting that too many educators and parents believe the myth of declining student literacy, this fastback puts student literacy in focus by examining trends in reading achievement from 1840 to the 1990s. The fastback discusses "then-and-now" studies, test restandardization studies, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress,…

A study investigated Swedish students' attitudes about the point of being able to read. Subjects were 53 Swedish students in grades 5 and 8. Their answers were distributed into three categories: a survival and participation perspective; a dynamic-instrumental perspective; and a personal experience perspective. Regardless of performance level, most…