Co-Principal Investigator: Pentimonti, Jill

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a targeted shared book reading intervention for improving the language and literacy skills of prekindergarten (Pre-K) children who meet screening criteria on the Preschool Early Literacy Indicators (PELI). Existing research suggests that shared book reading supports young children's knowledge and skill development in three areas most closely linked to later reading achievement: (1) oral language, (2) print knowledge, and (3) phonological awareness. Shared book reading is recommended as a foundational practice in Pre-K classrooms.  However, the quality of teachers' book reading practices has been shown to vary widely. The research team evaluated a comprehensive shared book reading program, called TeacherRead, that addresses all three critical skill areas, along with the instructional approaches that have been shown to be the most effective for teaching these skills in Pre-K.

Project Activities: The researchers investigated the effects of a targeted book reading intervention on the language and literacy skills of children who meet screening criteria in Pre-K. They recruited and randomly assigned 131 public Pre-K teachers and classrooms to one of three conditions, TeacherRead in large groups, TeacherRead in small groups, and control. Teachers in the treatment groups received initial training and ongoing supports to implement the intervention. The researchers collected data from parents and teachers, conducted classroom observations, and assessed two cohorts of children during their Pre-K year. The study was originally designed to have three cohorts (2018-19, 2019-20, and 2020-21). The COVID-19 pandemic happened in the middle of cohort 2, preventing the research team from delivering the full intervention or collecting any outcome data during that year. The pandemic also forced the researchers to postpone recruitment and implementation for cohort 3 to the 2021-22 school year. The team fell short of the overall sample size goals, which means that this study is slightly underpowered statistically. TeacherRead implementation in cohort 3 was somewhat compromised by the pandemic, due to higher-than-normal absenteeism, mask requirements, and other operational challenges faced by the New York City Pre-K for All programs that participated in the study. The researchers were able to implement TeacherRead with fidelity and they did not find significant differences in program effectiveness between the pre- and post-COVID cohorts.

Key Outcomes: The main findings of this project will be shared as they become available in publicly accessible peer-reviewed publications.

Structured Abstract

Setting: This project took place in preschool classrooms in New York City.

Sample: The sample included 131 Pre-K classrooms and 726 children in New York City's Pre-K for All program, which offers free, full-day, universal Pre-K for 4-year-old children. The sample included a racially and ethnically diverse group of children, including dual language learners.

Intervention: The TeacherRead intervention combines replicable instructional targets and practices from three effective book reading interventions: dialogic reading, print knowledge training, and phonological awareness training. TeacherRead addresses all key language and literacy skills that predict later reading achievement and correspond with criterion scores on the Preschool Early Literacy Indicators (PELI). It is designed to complement foundational book reading and provide more intensive learning opportunities for struggling learners who constitute the target group.

Research Design and Methods: The researchers conducted this study over a 6-year period (extended due to COVID). They used a two-cohort cluster randomized control trial (RCT) to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention with one classroom/teacher per school randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) TeacherRead/small group (45 teachers), (2) TeacherRead/large group (41 teachers), or (3) control (45 teachers). The researchers evaluated the impact of the intervention for two cohorts of children enrolled in these classrooms. In the implementation year, teachers in the two treatment conditions implemented the intervention. Teachers in the treatment and control classrooms both received professional development. Children in treatment and control classrooms who scored below the benchmark on the PELI were selected as target participants in the study. Target children were assessed at the beginning and end of the Pre-K year on a battery of language and literacy assessments. In year 1, the researchers recruited the study sample and conducted data collection training. In years 2 through 5 (data from year 2/cohort 1 and year 3/cohort 2 were not used because of COVID and similarly for student data from year 5/cohort 3), teachers in the two treatment conditions received professional development, refresher trainings, and ongoing supports to implement the intervention. Fall data collection occurred in year 2, year 3, and year 5 and spring data collection occurred in year 2 and year 5.  The researchers originally planned to collect kindergarten data collection years 3 through 5, but they had to abandon this due to the COVID pandemic. The research team instead used teacher-recorded video from fall, winter, and spring of each implementation year and daily lesson logs from treatment group teachers to assess fidelity of implementation and changes in the shared book reading environment in the classroom. Data analyses and dissemination activities were conducted in year 6.

Control Condition: In the control condition, teachers used Division of Early Childhood Education Interdisciplinary Units and other curricula that met NYC Pre-K for All program quality standards.

Key Measures: Primary measures included standardized direct child assessments of children's early language and literacy skills, measures of fidelity of implementation (adherence and dosage) and instructional quality, and teacher and family surveys to collect data about demographic characteristics (e.g., home language exposure, child/family demographics, classroom/program characteristics) of the study sample. The researchers used the Preschool Early Literacy Indicators (PELI) as a screening tool to identify target children for inclusion in the study. Direct assessments also included the Woodcock Johnson-IV Picture Vocabulary, Letter-Word Identification subtests, and the Print Knowledge and Phonological Awareness subtests of the Test of Preschool Early Literacy (TOPEL). Parents completed a survey to provide information about family- and child-level demographic characteristics. Teachers completed a questionnaire to provide information about teacher characteristics and classroom characteristics. The Systematic Assessment of Book Reading (SABR) was used to examine the quality of teachers' shared book reading practices.

Data Analytic Strategy: The researchers used hierarchical linear modeling to analyze the data. They conducted multilevel analyses to evaluate the impact of the intervention on children's language and literacy skills during Pre-K. The research team also examined differential impacts of the intervention on target children who were dual language learners and for classrooms in which teachers used higher quality instructional practices and implemented the intervention with higher fidelity.

Cost Analysis: The researchers were unable to collected detailed cost data because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They estimated that creating and updating lesson guides and other program materials took approximately 350 hours of staff time and that providing professional development and coaching added another 248 hours. Teachers spent approximately 17 hours participating in professional development and coaching activities related to TeacherRead. At an average loaded rate of $90 an hour, this amounts to a total cost of approximately $186,930 or $2,149 per treatment group teacher or $386 per target child. This relatively modest investment suggests that TeacherRead is likely to be cost effective when implemented at scale, although a more formal cost-effectiveness analysis would be needed to confirm that.

Related IES Projects: Efficacy of TeacherRead-MaestrosLeer for Enhancing the Foundational Language and Literacy Skills of Dual Language Learners (R305A220086)

Products and Publications

ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.

Publicly Available Data: The research team prepared a final analysis data file. These data are deidentified and are available to be shared with other researchers upon request.

Project Website: https://www.air.org/project/teacherread; https://teacherread.org/