Effective Reading Programs for the Elementary Grades: A Best-Evidence Synthesis

This article systematically reviews research on the achievement outcomes of four types of approaches to improving the reading success of children in the elementary grades: reading curricula, instructional technology, instructional process programs, and combinations of curricula and instructional process. Study inclusion criteria included use of randomized or matched control groups, a study duration of at least 12 weeks, valid achievement measures independent of the experimental treatments, and a final assessment at the end of Grade 1 or later. A total of 63 beginning reading (starting in Grades K or 1) and 79 upper elementary (Grades 2 through 5) reading studies met these criteria. The review concludes that instructional process programs designed to change daily teaching practices have substantially greater research support than programs that focus on curriculum or technology alone.

[1]  H. Miller.  Quantitative analyses of student outcome measures , 1997 .

[2]  Pamela E. Hook,et al.  The Efficacy of Computer-Based Supplementary Phonics Programs for Advancing Reading Skills in At-Risk Elementary Students* , 2006 .

[3]  Linda B. Stebbins,et al.  Education as Experimentation: A Planned Variation Model. Volume IIIA: Findings: Cohort II; Interim Findings: Cohort III. Volume IIIB: Appendices. , 1976 .

[4]  Jack M. Fletcher,et al.  The Role of Instruction in Learning To Read: Preventing Reading Failure in At-Risk Children. , 1998 .

[5]  Roberto Agodini,et al.  Effectiveness of Reading and Mathematics Software Products: Findings From Two Student Cohorts. NCEE 2009-4041. , 2009 .

[6]  Beth Boulay,et al.  Reading First Implementation Evaluation: Final Report. , 2008 .

[7]  T. Stambaugh.  Effects of the Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program on reading comprehension and critical thinking skills of third, fourth, and fifth grade students in rural, Title I schools , 2007 .

[8]  Alfred Lie,et al.  Effects of a training program for stimulating skills in word analysis in first-grade children. , 1991 .

[9]  William R. Penuel,et al.  Effectiveness of Reading and Mathematics Software Products: Findings from the First Student Cohort , 2007 .

[10]  Lynn S. Fuchs,et al.  Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies: Making Classrooms More Responsive to Diversity , 1997 .

[11]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  Effective Reading Programs for English Language Learners and Other Language-Minority Students , 2005 .

[12]  Bobbie Jean Williams.  A quasi-experimental study on the effects of the OpenBook to Literacy Program on fourth-grade students , 2005 .

[13]  James B. Schreiber,et al.  Efficacy of educational technology in elementary and secondary classrooms: a meta-analysis of the research literature from 1992--2002 , 2002 .

[14]  J. Fantuzzo,et al.  Peer-assisted learning interventions with elementary school students: A meta-analytic review. , 2003 .

[15]  R. Morgan,et al.  The Efficacy of Using a Direct Reading Instruction Approach in Literature Based Classrooms. , 1999 .

[16]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  Perspectives on Evidence-Based Research in Education—What Works? Issues in Synthesizing Educational Program Evaluations , 2008 .

[17]  Diane H. Tracey,et al.  Technology and Early Literacy: The Impact of an Integrated Learning System on High-Risk Kindergartners'Achievement , 2007 .

[18]  Tn Memphis.  Center for Research in Educational Policy. , 2007 .

[19]  R. Slavin.  Cooperative Learning: Theory, Research and Practice , 1990 .

[20]  Stephanie Al Otaiba,et al.  Improving Reading Skills in Predominantly Hispanic Title 1 First–Grade Classrooms: The Promise of Peer–Assisted Learning Strategies , 2006 .

[21]  Robert J. Stevens,et al.  Effects of a Cooperative Learning Approach in Reading and Writing on Academically Handicapped and Nonhandicapped Students , 1995, The Elementary School Journal.

[22]  Rosemary Papalewis.  Struggling Middle School Readers: Successful, Accelerating Intervention. , 2004 .

[23]  Edward H. Haertel,et al.  NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS , 2000 .

[24]  The Effects of an Integrated Learning System on Third Graders' Mathematics and Reading Achievement. , 1994 .

[25]  Rollanda E. O'Connor,et al.  Accommodations for Individual Differences without Classroom Ability Groups: An Experiment in School Restructuring , 1994 .

[26]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  One Million Children: Success for All , 2000 .

[27]  Kellie A. Cohen,et al.  A Comparative Study of Reading Instruction Management for Selected Third-grade Students in an Urban School District , 1991 .

[28]  Catherine E. Snow,et al.  Preventing reading difficulties in young children , 1998 .

[29]  Donald D. Deshler,et al.  Informed Choices for Struggling Adolescent Readers: A Research-Based Guide to Instructional Programs and Practices , 2007 .

[30]  R. Slavin,et al.  Effects of Bilingual Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition on Students Making the Transition from Spanish to English Reading , 1998, The Elementary School Journal.

[31]  Joseph S. Renzulli,et al.  The Schoolwide Enrichment Model: A How-To Guide for Educational Excellence. Second Edition. , 1997 .

[32]  K. Opuni.  The Effectiveness of the Consistency Management & Cooperative Discipline (CMCD) Model as a Student Empowerment and Achievement Enhancer: The Experiences of Two K-12 Inner-City School Systems. , 2006 .

[33]  Michael D. Coyne,et al.  Using Enrichment Reading Practices to Increase Reading Fluency, Comprehension, and Attitudes , 2008 .

[34]  G. McCullough,et al.  International Encyclopedia of Education , 2008 .

[35]  Steven A Hecht,et al.  Emergent literacy skills and training time uniquely predict variability in responses to phonemic awareness training in disadvantaged kindergartners. , 2002, Journal of experimental child psychology.

[36]  Charles R. Greenwood,et al.  Longitudinal Effects of Classwide Peer Tutoring. , 1989 .

[37]  Allan A. Glatthorn,et al.  Learning in the Small Groups. , 1968 .

[38]  Vivian C. Wong,et al.  Three conditions under which experiments and observational studies produce comparable causal estimates: New findings from within‐study comparisons , 2008 .

[39]  D. Langenberg.  Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction , 2000 .

[40]  Douglas Fuchs,et al.  Is Reading Important in Reading-Readiness Programs? A Randomized Field Trial with Teachers as Program Implementers. , 2001 .

[41]  K. Nation.  Reading and genetics: An introduction , 2006 .

[42]  Patricia G. Mathes,et al.  The Effects of Peer-Assisted Literacy Strategies for First-Grade Readers With and Without Additional Mini-Skills Lessons , 2001 .

[43]  Geoffrey D. Borman,et al.  Comprehensive School Reform and Achievement: A Meta-Analysis , 2003 .

[44]  Geoffrey D. Borman,et al.  The Long-Term Effects and Cost-Effectiveness of Success for All , 2002 .

[45]  Steven F. Roth,et al.  Theoretical and Instructional Implications of the Assessment of Two Microcomputer Word Recognition Programs. , 1987 .

[46]  Lawrence L. Smith,et al.  The Impact of a Structured Integrated Learning System on First-Grade Students' Reading Gains , 2005 .

[47]  Geoffrey D. Borman,et al.  A Multisite Cluster Randomized Field Trial of Open Court Reading , 2008 .

[48]  Henry Jay Becker,et al.  Mindless or mindful use of integrated learning systems , 1994 .

[49]  Nancy A. Madden,et al.  Success for all , 1998, Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education.

[50]  Lana J. Smith,et al.  Preventing Early School Failure: Impacts of Success for All on Standardized Test Outcomes, Minority Group Performance, and School Effectiveness , 1997 .

[51]  J. Chall.  Literacy: Trends and Explanations , 1983 .

[52]  Participating states,et al.  Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) , 2006 .

[53]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  Best-Evidence Synthesis: An Alternative to Meta-Analytic and Traditional Reviews , 1986 .

[54]  E. Vockell,et al.  An Investigation of the Relationship between Integrated Learning Systems and Academic Achievement , 1999 .

[55]  O. Saracho.  The Effects of a Computer-assisted Instruction Program on Basic Skills Achievement and Attitudes Toward Instruction of Spanish-speaking Migrant Children , 1982 .

[56]  Student and Teacher Outcomes of The Superkids Quasi-Experimental Study , 2009 .

[57]  Gary D. Gottfredson,et al.  Success for Some , 1997 .

[58]  Teachers Learning Ladders to Literacy , 1999 .

[59]  Carole Torgerson,et al.  The quality of systematic reviews of effectiveness in literacy learning in English: a ‘tertiary’ review , 2007 .

[60]  Stephanie Al Otaiba,et al.  Effects of a Peer-Mediated Program on Reading Skill Acquisition for Two-Way Bilingual First-Grade Classrooms , 2007 .

[61]  G. Greg Marion,et al.  An Examination of the Relationship between Students' Use of the Fast ForWord Reading Program and Their Performance on Standardized Assessments in Elementary Schools. , 2004 .

[62]  J. S. Leary.  The Effect of Thinking Maps® Instruction on the Achievement of Fourth-Grade Students , 1999 .

[63]  The Effects of Computer Assisted Instruction on the Development of Reading and Language Skills , 1985 .

[64]  H. Freiberg,et al.  Turning Around Five At‐Risk Elementary Schools , 1990 .

[65]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  Enhancing Success for All for Hispanic Students: Effects on Beginning Reading Achievement , 2005 .

[66]  Thomas J. Barrett.  A Comparison of Two Approaches to First Grade Phonics Instruction in the Riverside Unified School District. , 1995 .

[67]  E. Reid.  Exemplary Center for Reading Instruction (ECRI) Validation Study. , 1996 .

[68]  Ingvar Lundberg,et al.  Effects of an Extensive Program for Stimulating Phonological Awareness in Preschool Children. , 1988 .

[69]  Marilyn Jager Adams,et al.  Beginning To Read: Thinking and Learning about Print. , 1991 .

[70]  Xitao Fan,et al.  The Contribution of the Responsive Classroom Approach on Children's Academic Achievement: Results from a Three Year Longitudinal Study. , 2007 .

[71]  Marie Carbo,et al.  Teaching Students to Read Through Their Individual Learning Styles , 1986 .

[72]  George E. Marsh,et al.  A comparison of computerized and traditional instruction in the area of elementary reading , 2000 .

[73]  R. W. Tyler.  The National Assessment of Educational Progress , 1967 .

[74]  Beth Boulay,et al.  Reading First Impact Study Final Report , 2009 .

[75]  Sam Stringfield,et al.  THE BALTIMORE CURRICULUM PROJECT Final Report of the Four-Year Evaluation Study , 2003 .

[76]  Betty Collis,et al.  Writing to Read: An Evaluation of a Canadian Installation of a Computer-Supported Initial Language Environment , 1990 .

[77]  Joseph H. Birch.  The effects of the Delaware Challenge Grant Program on the standardized reading and mathematics test scores of second and third graders in the Caesar Rodney School District , 2002 .

[78]  Achievement, placement, and services: Middle school benefits of Classwide Peer Tutoring used at the elementary school. , 1993 .

[79]  Robert D. Hannafin,et al.  21st Century Education: A Reference Handbook , 2008 .

[80]  Gerd Gigerenzer,et al.  Do Studies of Statistical Power Have an Effect on the Power of Studies? , 2004 .

[81]  Philip C. Abrami,et al.  Technology Infusion in Success for All: Reading Outcomes for First Graders , 2008, The Elementary School Journal.

[82]  Nancy A. Madden,et al.  Effective Programs for Struggling Readers: A Best-Evidence Synthesis. , 2009 .

[83]  R. Slavin,et al.  Success for All/Exito Para Todos. Effects on the Reading Achievement of Students Acquiring English. Report No. 19. , 1998 .

[84]  Steven A. Stahl,et al.  Teaching Children to Become Fluent and Automatic Readers , 2006, Journal of literacy research : JLR.

[85]  Rebecca F. Guy,et al.  The Impact of a Year of Computer Assisted Instruction on the Development of First Grade Learning Skills , 1998 .

[86]  Kristi L. Santi,et al.  A Comparison of Teacher-Directed versus Peer-Assisted Instruction to Struggling First-Grade Readers , 2003, The Elementary School Journal.

[87]  Lesley Mandel Morrow,et al.  The Impact of a Literature-Based Program on Literacy Achievement, Use of Literature, and Attitudes of Children from Minority Backgrounds. , 1992 .

[88]  Carole L. Bond,et al.  The effects of the sing, spell, read and write program on reading achievement of beginning readers , 1995 .

[89]  C. Juel.  Learning to read and write: A longitudinal study of 54 children from first through fourth grades. , 1988 .

[90]  R. K. Bramlett.  Implementing Cooperative Learning: A Field Study Evaluating Issues for School-Based Consultants. , 1994 .

[91]  J. R. Nelson,et al.  Fostering the Development of Vocabulary Knowledge and Reading Comprehension Though Contextually-Based Multiple Meaning Vocabulary Instruction , 2007 .

[92]  Barbara Ann Easterling,et al.  The Effects of Computer Assisted Instruction as a Supplement to Classroom Instruction in Reading Comprehension and Arithmetic , 1982 .

[93]  Patricia J. Green,et al.  The Reading Literacy of U.S. Fourth-Grade Students in an International Context: Results from the 2001 and 2006 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) (NCES 2008-017). , 2007 .

[94]  R. Slavin,et al.  Effective Reading Programs for Middle and High Schools: A Best‐Evidence Synthesis , 2008 .

[95]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  Achievement effects of embedded multimedia in a Success for All reading program , 2005 .

[96]  Marjorie Ragosta,et al.  Computer-Assisted Instruction and Compensatory Education: A Longitudinal Analysis. , 1983 .

[97]  Linda M. Phillips,et al.  Effect of early literacy intervention on kindergarten achievement , 1990 .

[98]  Jeanne T. Hoffman.  Reading achievement and attitude toward reading of elementary students receiving supplementary computer assisted instruction compared with students receiving supplementary traditional instruction , 1984 .

[99]  Geoffrey D. Borman,et al.  Final Reading Outcomes of the National Randomized Field Trial of Success for All , 2007 .

[100]  Robert J. Stevens,et al.  The Cooperative Elementary School: Effects on Students’ Achievement, Attitudes, and Social Relations , 1995 .

[101]  Robert E. Slavin,et al.  Effective Programs in Elementary Mathematics: A Best-Evidence Synthesis , 2007 .

[102]  Robert J. Stevens,et al.  Reading and Integrated Literacy Strategies (RAILS): An Integrated Approach to Early Reading , 2008 .

[103]  Marcella R. Dianda,et al.  Report on Workstation Uses: Effects of Success for All on the Reading Achievement of First Graders in California Bilingual Programs. , 1995 .

[104]  J. Brunstein,et al.  Improving students' reading comprehension skills : effects of strategy instruction and reciprocal teaching , 2009 .

[105]  Steven L. Miller,et al.  Language Comprehension in Language-Learning Impaired Children Improved with Acoustically Modified Speech , 1996, Science.

[106]  Darlene M. Tangel,et al.  Developing phonological awareness and word recognition skills: A two-year intervention with low-income, inner-city children , 1999 .

[107]  Hilde Van Keer,et al.  Comparing two teacher development programs for innovating reading comprehension instruction with regard to teachers' experiences and student outcomes , 2005 .

[108]  Joy Frechtling,et al.  The Voyager Universal Literacy System: Results From a Study of Kindergarten Students in Inner-City Schools , 2006 .

[109]  Lynn S. Fuchs,et al.  Effects of Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies in Reading with and without Training in Elaborated Help Giving , 1999, The Elementary School Journal.

[110]  Robert J. Stevens,et al.  Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition: Two Field Experiments. , 1987 .

[111]  Wolfgang Viechtbauer,et al.  Publication bias in meta-analysis: Prevention, assessment and adjustments , 2007, Psychometrika.

[112]  Steven L. Miller,et al.  Temporal Processing Deficits of Language-Learning Impaired Children Ameliorated by Training , 1996, Science.

[113]  2 Million children: Success for all (2nd ed.). , 2009 .

[114]  Greg A. Brigman,et al.  Closing the Achievement Gap: A Structured Approach to Group Counseling , 2005 .

[115]  R. Gersten,et al.  An Evaluation of Two Contrasting Approaches for Improving Reading Achievement in a Large Urban District , 2006, The Elementary School Journal.

[116]  Maureen Lewis,et al.  Responses to Rose: The Final Report of the Independent Review of the Teaching of Early Reading , 2006 .

[117]  Zollie Stevenson.  Achievement in the Writing To Read Program: A Comparative Evaluation Study. , 1988 .

[118]  Sharon J. Crawley,et al.  The effect of computer-assisted instruction on the reading skills of emergent readers , 2006 .

[119]  Mary M. Kennedy,et al.  Findings from the Follow Through Planned Variation Study , 1978 .

[120]  Kristen L. McMaster,et al.  Scaling Up an Early Reading Program: Relationships Among Teacher Support, Fidelity of Implementation, and Student Performance Across Different Sites and Years , 2008 .

[121]  Rollanda E. O'Connor,et al.  The Effect of Kindergarten Phonological Intervention on the First Grade Reading and Writing of Children with Mild Disabilities. , 1996 .

[122]  Joseph K. Torgesen,et al.  The Effects of Peer-Assisted Literacy Strategies for First-Grade Readers With and Without Additional Computer-Assisted Instruction in Phonological Awareness , 2001 .

[123]  W. Shadish,et al.  Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Generalized Causal Inference , 2001 .

[124]  Mark W. Lipsey,et al.  Practical Meta-Analysis , 2000 .

[125]  W. Schneider,et al.  Short- and long-term effects of training phonological awareness in kindergarten: evidence from two German studies. , 1997, Journal of experimental child psychology.

[126]  Howard S. Bloom,et al.  The Impact of Two Professional Development Interventions on Early Reading Instruction and Achievement. NCEE 2008-4030. , 2008 .

[127]  Barbara A. Wasik,et al.  Success for All: Longitudinal Effects of a Restructuring Program for Inner-City Elementary Schools , 1993 .

[128]  Catherine Alifrangis.  An integrated learning system in an elementary school: implementation, attitudes, and results , 1991 .

[129]  Michael Pressley,et al.  Reading Instruction That Works: The Case for Balanced Teaching , 1998 .

[130]  M. Muñoz,et al.  Educating Students Placed At Risk: Evaluating the Impact of Success for All in Urban Settings , 2004 .

[131]  Douglas Fuchs,et al.  Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies for First-Grade Readers: Responding to the Needs of Diverse Learners. , 1998 .

[132]  樊希强,et al.  Cooperative Learning , 2020, Teaching High School Physics.

[133]  Karen O'Quin,et al.  Investigating the effectiveness of an integrated learning system on early emergent readers , 2003 .

[134]  D. Francis,et al.  Increasing the Reading Achievement of At-Risk Children Through Direct Instruction: Evaluation of the Rodeo Institute for Teacher Excellence (RITE) , 2002 .

[135]  Regina Boulware-Gooden,et al.  Teaching reading in an inner city school through a multisensory teaching approach , 2002 .

[136]  Jonathan Solity,et al.  Delivering phonological and phonics training within whole-class teaching. , 2008, The British journal of educational psychology.

[137]  Kelly S. Shapley,et al.  Evaluation of the Texas Technology Immersion Pilot: Findings from the Second Year. , 2007 .

[138]  Katharine Mabie Hickie.  An Examination of Student Performance in Reading/Language and Mathematics after Two Years of Thinking Maps® Implementation in Three Tennessee Schools. , 2006 .

[139]  I. S. Brown,et al.  Effects of instruction on beginning reading skills in children at risk for reading disability , 1990 .