Transcript Corporate Profile

Rudy, 2005
Computer-Based Reading
Programs
Heidi L. Rudy
August 9, 2005
EDSP 765
Indiana University of
Pennsylvania
Rudy, 2005
• Core elements to effective
reading instruction:
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Phonological/ phonemic awareness
Letter identification
Phonics
Fluency
Vocabulary development
Ability to recall and retell
sentences and stories
(comprehension)
Rudy, 2005
National Reading Panel
• Computer-based instruction is relatively new.
• Speech recognition capabilities as well as many multimedia
presentation functions now possible.
• Developments in the Internet, with possibilities of linking schools
and instruction, have further increased interest in technology as a
teaching device.
• Computer technology is different from other areas the NRP
analyzed. It cannot be studied independently of instructional content
and is not an instructional method in itself.
• The use of hypertext, while technically not reading instruction, may
have an instructional advantage. Second, the use of computers as
word processors may be very beneficial, given that reading
instruction is most effective when combined with writing
instruction.
• Striking in its absence is research on the incorporation of Internet
applications to reading instruction.
• Research also is needed on the value of speech recognition as a
technology and the use of multimedia presentations in reading
instruction.
Overview of Reading
Technology
Rudy, 2005
– Majority of research conducted on K-3 reading
technologies has been poorly conceived, implemented
and conducted. From available research, few have
consistently shown to be effective.
– Most are expensive, and the returns in terms of
achievement are moderate at best.
– Most substantial effects have been achieved by
comprehensive school-wide programs, small group
programs, and professional tutoring programs that are
generally less expensive.
– Companies have developed software focusing on reading
readiness skills as well as systematic instructional
reading programs.
– Currently more than 1,000 software titles available to
schools and in the home. Most designers claim their
software is based on the latest reading research, but only
a fraction of companies have tested their products
against other methods.
Computerized Reading
Programs and Students
with Disabilities
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www.k8accesscenter.org
• Step 1 : Ask questions about the research base supporting
the use of interventions specifically for students with
disabilities, and for students with varying types of disabilities.
• Step 2 : Ask questions about the contextual conditions
needed to support effective implementation of the
intervention. What conditions appear to be facilitating or
restricting implementation? How can educators address
those conditions that need to be more fully developed to
facilitate implementation?
• Step 3 : Make sure the following conditions are present to
support access:
– the intervention will support the learning goals defined for
each student, in accordance with the general education
curriculum and content standards;
– Necessary technology and materials are available to
provide instruction through a variety of formats – thus
meeting the demands of diverse learning needs;
– appropriate accommodations are available to address the
unique needs of individual students; and
– appropriate assessments are available for measuring
student progress.
Features of Effective
Reading Programs
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www.mff.org/pubs/ME279.pdf
• Driven by reading research and not ideology.
• Emphasize direct, systematic, intensive, and sustained
reading instruction.
• Require school-wide buy-in before they are adopted.
• Supported by initial professional development and then
extended follow-up training throughout the school year.
• When implementing an effective program, the school
needs to be committed to the integrity of the program’s
instructional approach and materials.
• Make effective use of instructional time, provide
multiple reading opportunities, and employ a variety of
reading assessments.
Computer-Based
Reading Programs
Rudy, 2005
• FastForWord (K - 8)
• Waterford Early Reading Program (Pre-K –
2)
• Accelerated Reader (3 – 11)
• Fast Track Reading (4 - 8)
• Read 180 (4 – 8)
• Daisy Quest (Pre-K – K)
• StudyDog (K-2)
• Rappiń Reader & Say, Say Oh Playmate
(Pre-K – 4)
Rudy, 2005
FastForWord
CD-ROM & Internet-based training program to help at-risk
students build oral language comprehension and other
critical skills necessary for learning to read.
In March of 1997, after an extensive field trial with almost 500
children at 35 sites, the Company launched its first product.
Later that year, a second field trial, with almost 500 students
in 19 schools across the U.S., replicated earlier results,
showing gains of 1-2 years in 4 to 8 weeks.
6 district-level studies completed indicating its effectiveness
with ELL populations; effectiveness also demonstrated in 14
studies with students receiving special education services.
Solid experimental studies with random assignment to condition
at both the clinical and school implementation levels. Found
to be highly successful in improving prerequisite reading
skills (phonemic awareness, auditory processing speed,
phonological awareness, working memory, syntax, grammar,
etc.) for “at-risk” students”. These skills only moderately
correlate with success in reading at later stages.
Milken Family Foundation rating: “E - evidence, some research
with majority of findings showing reading improvement”
(www.mff.org/pubs/ME279.pdf).
FastForWord
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FastForWord Language develops students’ listening accuracy,
phonological awareness and language structures.
FastForWord Middle & High School targets students’ memory,
attention, processing and sequencing in the context of key
reading skills such as phonological fluency and language
structures.
FastForWord Language to Reading focuses on sound-letter
comprehension, phonological awareness, beginning word
recognition and English language conventions.
FastForWord Language Basics is designed for children ages
four to six years, building the basic skills necessary for
language and reading development and prepares them for
FastForWord Language.
FastForWord Language, FastForWord Middle & High School, &
FastForWord Language to Reading products are $900 each.
FastForWord to Reading Series is $500, and FastForWord
Language Basics is $100.
For more information, www.scilearn.com
FastForWord
Rudy, 2005
• Supplemental Components
– FastForWord Bookshelf – original, ageappropriate stories for students ages 4-7 years.
– Reading Edge – evaluates language & listening
skills (phonological awareness, decoding,
phonological memory, & letter identification).
– FastForWord Progress Tracker –
administrative, classroom, and individual
progress & intervention reports.
Waterford Early Reading
Program
Rudy, 2005
• Teaches children how to read, write, and keyboard. It is one
of the nation's first research-based, technology-driven reform
models in early reading instruction.
• 3 levels: emergent (automatic letter recognition, phonological
awareness, concepts of print & understanding oral & written
language), beginning (phonics, word recognition, writing,
spelling & comprehension) & fluent (practice reading sight
word recognition, vocabulary, comprehension, extended
phonics instruction & writing activities).
• Requires 15 minutes per day. Take-home materials to
support home-school connection are supplied by Waterford
Institute.
• Standards in alignment with recommendations from Society
for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR), National
Research Council (NRC), International Reading Association
(IRA), National Reading Panel, National Center on Education
and Economy (NCEE), National Institute for Health and
Human Development (NICHD) and Center for the
Improvement of Early Reading Achievement (CIERA).
Waterford Early Reading
Program
Rudy, 2005
• Reading Level One (emergent) prepares students for
beginning reading instruction by teaching print concepts,
phonological awareness, and letter recognition, (typically
used in kindergarten).
• Reading Level Two (beginning) teaches letter sounds, word
recognition, and beginning reading comprehension, (typically
used in 1st grade).
• Reading Level Three (fluent) takes students from beginning
to fluent reading and comprehension, (typically used in 2nd
grade).
• Phonological Awareness helps young students recognize
that words are made up of phonemes. Phonological
Awareness is typically run concurrent with Level One or
Level Two.
• Keyboarding to Read and Write teaches students how to
keyboard by touch. Keyboarding is usually run after
Phonological Awareness.
• Writing is a menu of writing activities, paint programs, and
word processors that allows teachers to devote more
classroom time to developing students' writing skills.
Waterford Early Reading
Program
Rudy, 2005
• Effectiveness research
– Hecht & Close (2002) found improvements in phonemic
awareness and word recognition but not for letter writing,
name or sound knowledge or print concepts. 29% did
not improve by more than 1 point on the sound
segmenting task and 10% did not improve by more than
2 points on the blending task.
– Walberg (2001) examined results of 8 school districts in
Idaho. Best results obtained for students initially
achieving in the lowest third & for those who completed
the program (effects comparable or superior to tutoring
and increasing instructional time). Sufficient staff training
is critical to program’s success.
– Young & Tracey (1998) examined effectiveness in 8
kindergarten classes in New Jersey and found significant
results for the treatment group on Waterford Reading
Inventory (WRI) & Test of Early Reading Ability-2 (TERA2).
Waterford Early Reading
Program
Rudy, 2005
• Effectiveness Research:
– In 2 studies disseminated by the Waterford Institute,
mixed results were reported but the studies were
weakened by treatment and control groups who were not
initially comparable.
– Milken Family Foundation rating: “LE – little evidence,
research with mixed results” (www.mff.org/pubs/ME279.pdf).
• Costs: Most common implementation model is
center of 3 computers in a single kindergarten
classroom. Cost of software, training, & 3-year
supply of material is $19,000.
• For more information, www.waterford.org or
www.pearsondigital.com.
Accelerated Reader
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Rudy, 2005
Computerized reading management system designed for students
ages 8-18. Purpose is not to provide reading instruction, but to help
motivate students to read more books at an appropriate level of
difficulty. AR seeks to motivate students to read advanced level
books and to increase their personal reading time.
Used in more than 13,000 schools and is part of a larger program,
Reading Renaissance.
Students read books selected for their optimal reading level by the
software and complete a multiple-choice comprehension test on the
computer after they have completed each book. The computer
scores the test, summarizes the results and stores the information
for each student. Each book is assigned a point value, based upon
the book’s reading level and number of words. Point values are
indicators to teachers of how much students are reading and how
well they are comprehending what they read.
Several studies have been conducted to determine the program’s
effectiveness, but few have produced any significant results.
(Publisher lists 64 “scientific research” reports in support of AR but
all 64 are questionable in terms of methodologies or integrity.)
Accelerated Reader
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• Outcome studies:
– Pavonetti, Brimmer, & Cipielewski (2002) failed to find support
for the claim that AR creates lifelong learners.
– Peak & Dewalt (1994) tracked the progress of 50 9th grade
students who used AR since 3rd grade & compared their
achievement scores (on the CAT) to a matched control group.
AR students gained an average of 15 points per year from
grades 3-6 as compared to 10 points for the control group.
AR students gained an average of 13 points (compared to 5)
during grades 6-8.
– Vollands et al. (1999) compared 27 students who used AR
daily for 1 year with control students and found no significant
differences between the groups on comprehension or
vocabulary.
– Samuels & Wu (2004) compared students provided same
amount of independent reading time per day (15 minutes).
AR students completed comprehension quizzes while control
students completed book reports. AR students gained
significantly more points on passage comprehension & total
comprehension portions of GRADE.
Accelerated Reader
Rudy, 2005
• Research:
– Walberg (2001) examined 21,534 students in 76 Idaho
schools and found average student read 38 books per
year and spent 22 minutes per day reading (127%
increase in the average time students at any grade level
spend reading). “Grade effect” evident. Sufficient staff
training necessary for success of program. Program
appears to be most successful when students begin in
the early grades, especially 1st grade.
– Milken Family Foundation rating: “LE – little evidence,
research with mixed results” (www.mff.org/pubs/ME279.pdf).
• Costs: $3,457.35 for Super Kit (includes 20 reading practice
disks, STAR Reading, school network-wide site license for
up to 200 students, software manual and telephone support).
Expansion kits are $29 for 50 students. Does not include the
costs of the books (must be purchased separately).
• For more information, www.renlearn.com
Fast Track Reading
Rudy, 2005
• Supplemental intervention program
for struggling readers (at least 2 years
below grade level) in grades 4-8.
• 3 strands: Word Work (phonics &
word study), Comprehension, &
Fluency.
• Includes lessons in the 5 significant
components of reading: phonemic
awareness, phonics, fluency,
vocabulary, & comprehension.
Fast Track Reading
Rudy, 2005
• Outcome Studies
– Field test in California (2001): no randomization procedures used &
no control group. At pre-intervention stage, 25% of CA participants
scored within 1 SD of the mean on the WJ-III Broad Reading (44%
nationwide), and after 10 weeks of intervention 89% of CA
participants (83% nationwide) scored within 1 SD of mean.
• Basic Reading: CA 67% pre-intervention – 100% postintervention; nationwide 55% pre-intervention – 86% postintervention.
• Central Unified Step School: 17 8th grade students (8 Hispanic, 8
low SES). Broad Reading 88 pre-intervention – 98 after 5 weeks –
103 after 10 weeks. Basic Reading 91 pre-intervention – 102 after
5 weeks – 107 after 10 weeks.
• Garcia ELL Program: 14 elementary students (11 Hispanic, 2
African American, 1 Caucasian). Basic Reading 80 pre-intervention
– 82 after 5 weeks – 84 after 10 weeks – 92 after 1 year.
• Garcia Special Education Program: 11 students (6 Hispanics, 4
African Americans, 1 Caucasian). Broad Reading 75 preintervention – 76 after 5 weeks – 79 after 10 weeks – 88 after 1
year. Basic Reading 79 pre-intervention – 80 after 5 weeks – 83
after 10 weeks – 87 after 1 year.
Fast Track Reading
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• Cost $4,630 per classroom (includes
all materials)
• For more information,
www.wrightgroup.com
Read 180
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• Combines teacher-led instruction with
adaptive instructional software and is
designed for struggling readers (& ELL
students) in elementary – high school.
• Aligns with accountability requirements of
NCLB.
• Components: software, audiobooks,
paperback books, and teacher materials.
Elementary, middle school, and high
school levels.
• Currently used in more than 5,000
classrooms nationwide. Ten years of
research with Vanderbilt University.
Read 180
Rudy, 2005
• Software specifics: Each passage is available at several
different reading levels, assigned to students using
diagnostic assessments. Opportunity to read and reread
with high degree of success builds word recognition, fluency,
and comprehension. Passages are written to include words
that provide multiple exemplars of targeted sound-spelling
patterns, high-frequency words and grade-appropriate
content-area vocabulary words. As students progress
through software, they are presented with activities that
repeat words from the controlled passages. Software
equipped to identify each student’s level of proficiency with
specific phonic elements, and provides adjusted &
individualized activities. Same principles for spelling training.
Before reading each controlled passage, students are
presented with a video that develops background knowledge
and vocabulary (building a mental model to comprehend
passage). By presenting images and background
information, the software presents students with the context
necessary to understand new vocabulary and academic
language.
Read 180
Rudy, 2005
• Orange County Literacy Project
(1994-1999): used with more than
10,000 students.
• Publisher provides no details of
outcome studies conducted in LA
Unified School District, Department of
Defense Schools, and large, urban
schools through Council of Great City
Schools.
Read 180
Rudy, 2005
Daisy Quest
Rudy, 2005
• Pre-reading program teaches critical
phonological awareness skills
(rhyming, beginning, middle and
ending sounds; blending phonemes;
and segmenting).
• 15-20 minutes per session playing
increasingly difficult games.
• Developed by Dr. Joseph Torgesen
Daisy Quest
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• 2 Outcome Studies:
– Foster, Erickson, Foster, Brinkman, & Torgesen
(1994): 70 students in K. Experimental &
control groups. 4 pretests (PA) – 16 sessions
(5 hours per student)– post-tests. Average
effect size = 1.05.
– Torgesen & Barker (1995): 54 1st grade
students at-risk for reading. Experimental &
control groups. Same 4 pretests (PA) – 8 hours
program – post-tests. Average effect size =
0.91 except for phoneme-blending task.
Daisy Quest
Rudy, 2005
• Best used with Pre-K, and at-risk K and 1st grade students.
• Software self-contained so no formal teacher training
necessary.
• Cost: $29.95 per machine, MAC only.
• For more information, http://www.smartkidssoftware.com
StudyDog
Rudy, 2005
www.studydog.com
• Designed for students K-2 who are struggling with reading.
Internet-delivered series of 15-minute reading lessons.
• Based on K-3 standards for FL, NY, CA & TX. Covers
NRP’s 5 critical areas of early reading & program
requirements of Reading First Program.
• 2 Review members: Dr. Roland Good & Dr. Arlene Hett.
• Follows a simple learning model. Explicit instruction,
concrete modeling, practice opportunities, corrective
feedback, 80% mastery to proceed to next lesson.
• Lessons have animated characters & overall storyadventure. Frequent encouragement & help provided.
• Earn Lost Island coins to exchange for prizes sent through
the mail.
• Parents receive weekly progress reports, including specific
reading skill performances and suggested reading activities
& supplemental reading books.
StudyDog
Rudy, 2005
• Outcome Studies:
– Several studies with low SES, struggling-to-read students in K2nd grade in 17 public schools in Oregon & Washington, and in
an after-school program in Missouri.
• Oregon:213 scholarships awarded to students in 14 schools. 65%
to 77.5% on StudyDog reading test, or 90% of students improving
performance from non-proficient to proficient level of performance.
• Missouri: pre & post-test, experimental & control groups. 45
students included. Gain scores for treatment group (t=3.4, p<.001)
reveal group average shifted from failing to average & above
average reading skills. 80% average performance across lessons.
Treatment group performed significantly better (F=4.6, p=0.38),
and achieved an effect size of 0.69.
• Overall, 90% students who complete the program gain 1-year of
reading skill development in 10-14 weeks of participating in the
program.
• 32 reading studies complied by NRP (2000), and by comparing
effect sizes, StudyDog performed better than 81% (26) of the
studies.
StudyDog
Rudy, 2005
• ELL (fits within both immersion & bilingual
programs).
– 5 features make it unique supplemental
program for teaching beginning English to ELLs
• Focused on critical reading skills, explicitly teaches
each reading skill, provision of guided practice,
encourages gains in English fluency & strong
comprehension skills, & lessons are highly engaging.
– 2 years of implementation in ELL reading
program in Oregon with K-2nd grade students.
Kindergarten pre-to-post test gains (t=4.966,
p<.001) and 1st grade pre-to post-test gains
(t=4.539, p<.001) consistent with results of
other validation studies.
Rudy, 2005
Rappiń Reader & Say, Say Oh Playmate
(www.ciera.org/library/reports/inquiry-1/1-004/1-004.html)
• Designed to improve beginning reading skills of African
American students by using knowledge of music lyrics as a
scaffold in the building of their sight vocabulary in culturally
authentic learning environments.
• Rappin' Reader uses rap lyrics and Say, Say Oh Playmate
uses the context of well-known clapping games to scaffold
children's acquisition of beginning reading skills. The
programs are created using Lyric Reader, which allows the
programs to be tailored for individual students.
• Rappin' Reader provides children with simultaneous wordsound exposure by coordinating a song's soundtrack and
visual text on the screen.
• http://www.umich.edu/~medal/rrshots/index.html
• http://www.umich.edu/~medal/ssopmweb/software.html
Rappiń Reader & Say,
Say Oh Playmate
Rudy, 2005
• Preliminary findings have shown a 21% increase
on average in students' sight reading of the words
in the study songs from pre to post sight
vocabulary test for Rappin' Reader and a 24%
increase for Say, Say Oh Playmate. Analysis of
video transcripts revealed that students
consistently used their prior knowledge of song
lyrics to reconstruct the lyrics to existing songs. In
addition, both systems appear to have positive
motivational effects. When students were asked to
compare Rappin' Reader and Say, Say Oh
Playmate to leading educational software
applications, the majority of students ranked both
systems as their favorite applications.
Websites of Interest
Rudy, 2005
• www.starfall.com Free website containing explicit phonics
activities, online book series, etc.
• www.bookadventure.com Free reading motivation program
for children in grades K-8. Children create their own book
lists from over 6,000 recommended titles, take multiple
choice quizzes on the books they've read offline, and earn
points and prizes for their literary successes. Book
Adventure was created by the Sylvan Learning Foundation
and is sponsored by Sylvan Learning, Inc.
• www.rif.org Spanish language resources & literacy games
for children (Alphabet Soup, Story Maker, Poetry Splatter,
Super Sorter, etc.).
• www.isomedia.com/homes/jmele/mcultlink.html Collection of
multicultural links, many containing books, articles, links &
information.
• www.readingpenpals.com Site helps students select books
to read and provides a pen pal to write to about it.
References
Rudy, 2005
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Http://www.bookadventure.com
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http://www.ciera.org/library/reports/inquiry-1/1-004/1-004.html
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http://www.isomedia.com/homes/jmele/mcultlink.html
http://www.k8accesscenter.org
http://www.mff.org/pubs/ME279.pdf. http://www.readingpenpals.com
http://www.renlearn.com
http://www.rif.org
http://www.smartkidssoftware.com
http://www.scilearn.com
http://www.starfall.com
http://www.studydog.com
http://www.waterford.org
http://www.wrightgroup.com
Foster, K.C., Erickson, G.C., Foster, D.F., Brinkman, D., & Torgesen, J.K.
(1994). Computer assisted instruction in phonological awareness:
Evaluation of the DaisyQuest program. The Journal of Research and
Development in Education, 27(2), 126-137.
Hecht, S.A. & Close, L. (2002). Emergent literacy skills and training time
uniquely predict vulnerability in responses to phonemic awareness training
in disadvantaged kindergarteners. Journal of Experimental Child
Psychology, 82, 93-115.
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Rudy, 2005
Pavonetti, L.M., Brimmer, K.M., & Cipielewski, J.F. (2002). Accelerated
Reader: What are the lasting effects on the reading habits of middle school
students exposed to Accelerated Reader in elementary grades? Journal of
Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 46(4), 300-312.
Peak, J.P. & Dewalt, M.W. (1994). Reading achievement: Effects of
computerized reading management and enrichment. ERS Spectrum 12(1),
31-35.
Samuels, S.J. & Wu, Y.C. (2004). The effects of immediate feedback on
reading achievement. Unpublished manuscript.
Torgesen, J.K. & Barker, K.A. (1995). Computers as aids in the prevention
and remediation of reading disabilities. Learning Disability Quarterly, 18,
76-87.
Vollands, S.R., Topping, K.J., & Evans, H.M. (1999). Computerized selfassessment of reading comprehension with Accelerated Reader: Impact on
reading achievement and attitude. Reading and Writing Quarterly, 15(3),
197-211.
Walberg, H.J. (2001). Final evaluation of the reading initiative: Report to the
J.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation. Idaho: Albertson Foundation.
Young, J.W. & Tracey, J.H. (1998). An evaluation of the Waterford Early
Reading Program: Newark, New Jersey, 1997-1998 school year. Sandy,
UT: Reprinted with permission by the Waterford Institute.