Structured Abstract
Setting
This project is being conducted in a suburban public school district in southern California.
Sample
Each year, the project includes 160 students divided equally between 2nd and 4th grades. Yearly participants include 120 poor readers and 40 average readers. The school district includes approximately 40 percent Hispanic students, 11 percent African-American students, and more than half of the participating students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
Intervention
Over the 3 years of the project, the team is gathering data to support the development of an optimal fluency intervention.
Research design and methods
In each phase of the project, the researchers are experimentally testing a specific question around the development of reading fluency and comprehension of poor readers, including (1) the relative effects of continuous and repeated reading, (2) the relative effects of text difficulty, and (3) the amount of time spent practicing. After the last experiment, the researchers are combining the most powerful components of each tested intervention and are testing its effects in a partner reading trial. Using a randomized blocks design, the intervention will be tested by randomly assigning matched trios of poor readers within classes to specific fluency variations or control and comparing the outcomes of the variations on the development of fluency and comprehension of poor readers.
Control condition
In phases 1 and 2, control children are not receiving any training or practice over and above what they would normally receive and are considered an untreated control. Control students are being provided with 10 weeks of fluency practice after the experimental phase of the research is completed. In phase 3, students serve as their own controls in a within-subject design.
Key measures
Participating students are assessed three times a year using a literacy battery that includes multiple standardized and descriptive reading measures. In addition, measures of reading fluency are being administered twice monthly.
Data analytic strategy
Effects of each variation are tested through two-level hierarchical linear modeling, in which children are nested within teacher. Researchers also test for interactions between treatments, grade level, and severity of reading difficulty. The last analyses consider the effects of moderator variables such as phoneme awareness, working memory, vocabulary, severity of initial reading deficit, gender, and ethnicity on the growth of fluency and comprehension.
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Products and publications
ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.
WWC Reviews:
O'Connor, R. E., Swanson, H. L., & Geraghty, C. (2010). Improvement in reading rate under independent and difficult text levels: Influences on word and comprehension skills.Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(1), 1. [WWC Review]
Swanson, H. L., & O'Connor, R. (2009). The role of working memory and fluency practice on the reading comprehension of students who are dysfluent readers.Journal of Learning Disabilities, 42(6), 548-575. [WWC Review]
Select Publications
Journal articles
O'Connor, R.E. (2018). Reading Fluency and Students With Reading Disabilities: How Fast Is Fast Enough to Promote Reading Comprehension?. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 51(2): 124-136.
O'Connor, R.E., Gutierrez, G., Teague, K., Checca, C., Kim, J., and Ho, T. (2013). Variations in Practice Reading Aloud: Ten Versus Twenty Minutes. Scientific Studies of Reading, 17(2): 134-162.
O'Connor, R.E., Swanson, H.L., and Geraghty, C. (2010). Improvement in Reading Rate Under Independent and Difficult Text Levels: Influences on Word and Comprehension Skills. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(1): 1-19.
O'Connor, R.E., White, A., and Swanson, H.L. (2007). Repeated Reading Versus Continuous Reading: Influences on Reading Fluency and Comprehension. Exceptional Children, 74(1): 31-46.
Swanson, H.L., and O'Connor, R.E. (2009). The Role of Working Memory and Fluency Training on Reading Comprehension in Children who are Dysfluent Readers. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 42(6): 548-575.
Supplemental information
Co-Principal Investigator: Swanson, H. Lee
Questions about this project?
To answer additional questions about this project or provide feedback, please contact the program officer.
