Improving Content Area Reading Comprehension of Spanish Speaking English Learners in Grades 4 and 5 Using Web-Based Text Structure Instruction
Wijekumar, Kausalai; Meyer, Bonnie J. F.; Lei, Puiwa; Hernandez, Anita C.; August, Diane L. (2018). Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, v31 n9 p1969-1996 Nov 2018. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1193960
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examining739Students, grades4-5
Single Study Review
Review Details
Reviewed: December 2024
- Single Study Review (findings for Strategy instruction on the web for Spanish speaking English learners (SWELL))
- Randomized Controlled Trial
- Meets WWC standards with reservations because it is a cluster randomized controlled trial with high cluster-level attrition, but the analytic intervention and comparison groups satisfy the baseline equivalence requirement.
This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Findings
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
Evidence tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Gray Silent Reading Test |
Strategy instruction on the web for Spanish speaking English learners (SWELL) vs. Business as usual |
1 Month |
Grade: 4;
|
1.79 |
1.29 |
Yes |
|
|
|
Gray Silent Reading Test |
Strategy instruction on the web for Spanish speaking English learners (SWELL) vs. Business as usual |
1 Month |
Grade: 5;
|
3.36 |
2.66 |
No |
-- |
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Sample Characteristics
Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.
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89% English language learners -
Other or unknown: 100% -
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West
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Race Other or unknown 100% -
Ethnicity Other or unknown 100% -
Eligible for Free and Reduced Price Lunch Free or reduced price lunch (FRPL) 86% No FRPL 14%
Study Details
Setting
The study took place in fourth- and fifth-grade classes from 12 schools in three school districts in the southwestern United States.
Study sample
Participating students were in fourth grade (138 intervention, 195 comparison) and fifth grade (181 intervention, 225 comparison). Over 89 percent of the students were Spanish-speaking English language learners. The majority of students (86%) were eligible for free or reduced-priced lunch.
Intervention Group
Students in the intervention condition received SWELL for part of their language arts instruction. SWELL included one 45–60-minute session per week over a 6–7-month period. Students worked independently at a computer at their own pace. They entered their responses and received feedback and help when necessary. At the conclusion of the class period, the student logged out and the system saved their lesson and page number for use at the next session.
Comparison Group
Comparison students received their usual language arts curriculum. Total language arts instructional time was similar in both intervention and comparison groups.
Support for implementation
During SWELL implementation, researchers captured activities and challenges, conducting observations and interviews with teachers.
An indicator of the effect of the intervention, the improvement index can be interpreted as the expected change in percentile rank for an average comparison group student if that student had received the intervention.
For more, please see the WWC Glossary entry for improvement index.
An outcome is the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are attained as a result of an activity. An outcome measures is an instrument, device, or method that provides data on the outcome.
A finding that is included in the effectiveness rating. Excluded findings may include subgroups and subscales.
The sample on which the analysis was conducted.
The group to which the intervention group is compared, which may include a different intervention, business as usual, or no services.
The timing of the post-intervention outcome measure.
The number of students included in the analysis.
The mean score of students in the intervention group.
The mean score of students in the comparison group.
The WWC considers a finding to be statistically significant if the likelihood that the finding is due to chance alone, rather than a real difference, is less than five percent.
The WWC reviews studies for WWC products, Department of Education grant competitions, and IES performance measures.
The name and version of the document used to guide the review of the study.
The version of the WWC design standards used to guide the review of the study.
The result of the WWC assessment of the study. The rating is based on the strength of evidence of the effectiveness of the intervention. Studies are given a rating of Meets WWC Design Standards without Reservations, Meets WWC Design Standards with Reservations, or >Does Not Meet WWC Design Standards.
A related publication that was reviewed alongside the main study of interest.
Study findings for this report.
Based on the direction, magnitude, and statistical significance of the findings within a domain, the WWC characterizes the findings from a study as one of the following: statistically significant positive effects, substantively important positive effects, indeterminate effects, substantively important negative effects, and statistically significant negative effects. For more, please see the WWC Handbook.
The WWC may review studies for multiple purposes, including different reports and re-reviews using updated standards. Each WWC review of this study is listed in the dropdown. Details on any review may be accessed by making a selection from the drop down list.
Tier 1 Strong indicates strong evidence of effectiveness,
Tier 2 Moderate indicates moderate evidence of effectiveness, and
Tier 3 Promising indicates promising evidence of effectiveness,
as defined in the
non-regulatory guidance for ESSA
and the regulations for ED discretionary grants (EDGAR Part 77).