Setting
The study included two public schools from a school district in an urban area of northern California.
Study sample
Fifty-six fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade students from Vietnamese-American families with low socioeconomic status were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Participating students were fluent in English. The experimental group was divided into four reading groups, each consisting of six to eight students. The control group was divided into three groups, each consisting of six to eight students. After attrition, the analysis sample included 50 students: 29 students in the experimental group, and 21 students in the control group.
Intervention Group
Four experimental subgroups received reciprocal teaching instruction using the school’s current reading materials. Each subgroup worked with the teacher to read and discuss a passage. When reciprocal teaching was first being implemented, the teacher assigned a passage to be read and played the role of the teacher or dialogue leader. The teacher and students read silently, and the teacher modeled comprehension-monitoring strategies by asking a question on the main idea, summarizing the content, discussing, clarifying any difficulties, and making a prediction about future content. Over time, students were encouraged to assume the role of dialogue leader/teacher with the teacher’s support. The intervention was carried out over 20 consecutive days of instruction.
Comparison Group
The control group received the regular reading curriculum. Instructional activities in the three control subgroups included asking students to read aloud, asking vocabulary questions, asking questions based on the questions appearing at the end of the text, and assigning a paper-and-pencil task that required students to answer questions, draw a picture, or write a short paragraph.
Outcome descriptions
For both the pretest and the posttest, students took the paragraph subtest of the Nelson Reading Comprehension Test. For the pretest, students also took the reading comprehension
subtest of the California Test of Basic Skills. For a more detailed description of these outcome measures, see Appendix A2.
Support for implementation
The teacher was credentialed and trained in reciprocal teaching. Details on teacher training were not provided.