Setting
The study took place in 16 public elementary schools, which were located in six school districts in three states. One district was located in a large metropolitan area, one was located in a midsize city, and the remaining districts were located in rural areas. The students were in fourth grade.
Study sample
The authors provide sample characteristics for the randomized sample, not the analysis sample. The randomized sample was: 49% male, 46% Hispanic, 35% Black, 44% White, 17% American Indian, 1% Asian, and 2% multiracial. About 13% of students for whom language status was reported were either receiving English language services or had a primary language other than English. Eighty-five percent of the sample was described as low income or qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Fifteen percent of the students in the sample had an identified disability. Most of these students either had a learning disability or a speech/language disability.
Intervention Group
The study examined the effectiveness of a reading intervention for students struggling with reading. The intervention was called Passport to Literacy. It consisted of 30-minute lessons that were provided daily for 25 weeks. For a full school year, this would sum to 120 lessons. Teachers delivered the intervention to small groups during the school day, but not during the time when core literacy instruction was delivered in the classroom. Instead, sessions were typically scheduled for a time reserved for intervention or enrichment. The intervention was divided into 12, 10-day adventures. Each lesson covered phonics and word recognition, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Teachers did not deliver the entire 120 lesson intervention. Instead, they delivered between 83 and 106 lessons to their intervention groups. On average, lessons lasted 28.56 minutes (SD=4.07). About 27% of the intervention group was also receiving supplemental instruction that was provided by the school.
Comparison Group
Students in the comparison group received the typical instruction provided by their schools. For 30% of comparison students, this included supplemental instruction provided by the schools.
Support for implementation
Intervention teachers participated in an 8-hour training that was delivered over two days. During the training, they gained familiarity with the intervention program and instructional routines, practiced implementing lessons, and discussed positive behavioral supports. Project coordinators provided coaching to teachers twice per month. During these sessions, they offered feedback on implementation, answered questions, and discussed any concerns. Within each site, all of the teachers met once per month. These meetings were designed to offer continual support to teachers and ensure the intervention was implemented with fidelity.
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