Setting
The study took place in 10 adult education program sites offering classes for English language learners in four states. These programs included 66 adult English as a Second Language (ESL) classrooms.
Study sample
The initial sample consisted of 1,344 learners. These learners were eligible for low-literacy–level adult education English as a second language classes and enrolled in one of the 10 participating adult education programs. Fifty-nine percent of learners were female, and the average age was 40. About 14 percent were Asian, Pacific Islander, or Native Hawaiian, or identified as another unspecified race; 12 percent were African American; and 25 percent were White. Race was not reported for 49 percent of learners.
Intervention Group
The Sam and Pat Volume I reading textbook was used in instruction. The textbook, which is described by the authors as targeted to the needs of English learners with low levels of literacy, is a modification of a traditional reading curriculum that was developed for native English speakers (the Wilson and Orton-Gillingham reading systems). The textbook and curriculum give explicit instruction on reading, writing, pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar, designed for English learners. The curriculum is designed to give multiple opportunities for repetition, guided practice, and review. The vocabulary and reading passages focus words and themes relevant to the learners' lived experience. Each lesson is designed to include at least one two-and-a-half-hour session per week of pre-reading instruction, and one two-and-a-half hour session per week of decoding and reading comprehension instruction. The textbook includes 22 lessons, which developers expect would take two terms to cover. In this study, an average of 13 in-class lessons were covered, ranging from 3 to 22 lessons. Learners in the treatment group attended, on average, 79 hours of instruction.
Comparison Group
The comparison group received standard preexisting ESL instruction, which focused primarily on learning English. The learners in the comparison condition spent more time on English language acquisition and functional reading, writing, and math instruction, and less time on reading development instruction than the treatment classrooms did. On average, learners in the comparison condition attended the ESL class for approximately 72 hours.
Support for implementation
Treatment teachers received three days of training, which included an overview of the approach, specific guidance on lesson planning, and opportunities for reflection. The treatment developers provided a refresher webinar just before the start of the second term. The trainers also conducted a site visit to each treatment classroom about six weeks into the beginning of each term and called the teachers biweekly during the first two months. They also provided one-day individualized training to teachers who were having the most difficulty implementing the curriculum as determined by the site visits and phone calls.