Increasing Elementary-aged Students’ Reading Fluency with Small-group Interventions: A Comparison of Repeated Reading, Listening Passage Preview, and Listening Only Strategies

Although reading fluency is one of the five essential early-reading skills students must develop, many elementary-aged students in the United States do not read age-appropriate material fluently. As such, small-group interventions are practical and often more time efficient than individualized interventions aimed to address this problem. However, few small-group interventions targeting students’ reading fluency have been empirically evaluated. The primary purpose of this study was to examine three small-group reading interventions that have been used to improve students’ reading fluency (repeated reading, listening passage preview, and listening only). Using an alternating-treatments design, the effects of each intervention were evaluated with four-second-grade students with average to below average reading skills. Students’ words read correctly per minute (immediately following and 2 days after intervention) served as the outcome measures. Results supported the repeated reading intervention, followed by listening passage preview, as most effective. Findings also suggested that improvements from each intervention remained 2 days later.     

Examining Immediate and Maintenance Effects of a Reading Intervention Package on Generalization Materials: Individual Verses Group Implementation

Fluency has been identified as an important outcome of effective reading instruction, and intervention packages utilizing the method of repeated readings have been shown to improve oral reading fluency. In order to improve the efficiency of these intervention packages, more research is needed on the effectiveness of small group reading interventions. An alternating treatments design was used to compare the effects of two versions of an intervention package that included repeated readings on generalization and maintenance of oral reading rate for 6 second grade students. Both intervention packages included listening passage preview, repeated readings, error correction, and contingent reward. The intervention packages differed only in whether intervention components were provided to students individually or in groups of three. Gains in oral reading rate were observed across conditions, with individual and small group interventions resulting in comparable gains for most participants. Individual differences in performance and implications for reading instruction are discussed.     

Brief Experimental Analysis of Spanish Reading Fluency: An Exploratory Evaluation

Brief experimental analyses of reading fluency are useful for identifying effective interventions for improving reading fluency. The current study extends previous research by conducting an exploratory evaluation of brief experimental analyses of reading fluency for Spanish reading. A 10-year old Hispanic male presented with reading fluency deficits for English and Spanish reading. Brief experimental analyses of English and Spanish reading identified distinct interventions for each which increased oral reading fluency. Intervention procedures evaluated during brief experimental analyses included listening passage preview, repeated readings, and reward. Replication of analyses was conducted to examine changes in instructional need over time. For English reading, the intervention identified during the initial analysis (i.e., listening passage preview with repeated readings) was identified as the most effective when the analysis was replicated. For Spanish reading, listening passage preview was identified as the most effective intervention during the initial analysis, while repeated readings was identified as most effective when the analysis was replicated. Results are discussed in terms of future research given the exploratory nature of the current study.     

Improving oral reading fluency: a brief experimental analysis of combining an antecedent intervention with consequences

A brief experimental analysis was used to evaluate the relative effectiveness of combining two consequences (contingent reinforcement or performance feedback) with an antecedent intervention (listening passage preview and repeated readings) on the oral reading fluency of 6 elementary students. The antecedent intervention increased the number of correctly read words per minute for all 6 students. For 4 of the students, pairing the antecedent intervention with either of the consequences resulted in higher reading rates over the antecedent intervention alone. Undifferentiated results were obtained for the remaining 2 participants. These results suggest that combining an antecedent intervention with consequences may enhance the oral reading fluency of students with reading problems. However, individual responsiveness to the different intervention components indicates that brief experimental analyses are warranted to identify the most effective intervention.     

A comparison of three interventions for increasing oral reading performance: Application of the instructional hierarchy

The instructional hierarchy is a behavior-analytic model that links level of academic skill development (i.e., acquisition, fluency, generalization, adaptation) with appropriate instructional techniques. The present study used the instructional hierarchy to compare the effects of three instructional interventions (listening passage preview, subject passage preview, and taped words) on subjects' oral reading performance on word lists and passages. Subjects were 4 male students with learning disabilities who ranged in age from 8 years 10 months to 11 years 11 months. A multielement design was used to compare the effects of the three interventions to each other and to baseline. Results indicated that the listening passage preview intervention (which contained modeling, drill, and generalization components) produced the largest performance gains. The implications of these results for selecting academic interventions based on the instructional hierarchy are discussed.     

Programming for the Generalization of Oral Reading Fluency: Repeated Readings of Entire Text versus Multiple Exemplars

This study compared a multiple exemplar approach involving the training of key words and sentence structures to a typical repeated readings procedure for their effects on students’ generalized oral reading fluency. The two training approaches were also compared in terms of their relative learning rates (i.e., fluency gain per minute of instruction time). Participants were 111 first- and second-grade students from three public schools in a large urban school district. This study utilized an across students pre-test/post-test experimental design and one-way analyses of variance on the gain scores from pre-test to post-test to assess the effectiveness of multiple exemplar instruction, listening passage preview/repeated readings, and a time and attention control condition. Results showed significantly higher gain scores for students in both the multiple exemplar and listening passage preview/repeated readings groups versus controls on the trained and generalization passages. Multiple exemplar instruction also resulted in significantly larger learning rates than listening passage preview/repeated readings. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.     

Recorded Readings: A Taped Parent-Tutoring Intervention

Parent tutoring has been successfully used to increase children’s oral reading fluency. However, commonly used procedures pose a challenge for parents who are not proficient in reading or who speak English as a second language. A taped reading program that included listening passage preview, repeated reading, and performance feedback was developed for parental implementation during home tutoring sessions. A multiple baseline design across participants was used to evaluate the effects of parent tutoring on the oral reading fluency of two elementary-aged English language learners. Data were collected on oral reading fluency using high- and low-word overlap passages. Results revealed an immediate increase in generalized oral reading fluency for one child upon intervention implementation and continued growth for both children 2 months following termination. Findings suggest recorded readings was an effective and acceptable parent tutoring intervention for increasing reading performance for language minority families.     

Promoting Generalization of Oral Reading Fluency: Providing Drill versus Practice Opportunities

Extensive evidence exists demonstrating the benefits of repeated readings (RR) interventions at increasing students’ fluency on intervention passages. Few studies however have examined the extent to which repeatedly reading one passage improves students’ reading fluency on similar passages. Using an alternating treatment design, we examined the extent to which two interventions resulted in improvements in students’ fluency on generalization passages. While both interventions incorporated RR, one intervention involved students reading one passage four times and the other involved students reading two similar passages each twice. Intervention effects were evaluated by having students read a generalization passage prior to and following intervention implementation. Results indicate that both interventions were effective in increasing students reading fluency on generalization passages. For 3 participants the RR intervention produced greater gains in fluency on the generalization passages, while data for the remaining 3 participants are inconclusive. Implications of these findings for practice and for better understanding application of the instructional hierarchy to the development of reading interventions are discussed.

Effect of the Reread-Adapt and Answer-Comprehend Intervention on the Reading Achievement of Middle and High School Readers Who are Deaf

Two studies were conducted to determine if the Reread-Adapt and Answer-Comprehend (RAAC) repeated reading fluency intervention is effective in improving the reading achievement of deaf middle school and high school students. Participants included six middle school students and eight high school students. We found consistently good comprehension during the interventions sessions and consistent improvement in ability to read fluently increasingly more difficult passages in both studies. We also found statistical and practical significance for pre- and post-tests on the Woodcock-Johnson for reading comprehension for the high school students but not for the middle school students and no statistical significance for reading fluency in either study.     

Tier 2 Reading Fluency Interventions With Middle School Students: A Comparison of the HELPS-SG Program and a Teacher-Directed Evidence-Based Intervention

This randomized study evaluated two evidence-based reading interventions with 121 middle school students who presented with reading fluency deficits. One intervention was teacher-directed and utilized numerous evidence-based strategies; the other intervention, the Helping Early Literacy with Practice Strategies for Small Groups Program, provided a structured implementation protocol of evidence-based strategies and specific intervention materials. Students in both groups demonstrated statistically significant growth on standardized measures of reading fluency and comprehension, but there were no differences between intervention conditions for any of the dependent measures. Practical implications for using oral reading fluency interventions at the middle school level are discussed.     

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LISTENING AND READING COMPREHENSION OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEXT AT INCREASING GRADE LEVELS

This study examined the hypotheses that (a) the relationship between listening and reading comprehension becomes stronger after decoding mastery; (b) the difference between listening and reading decreases with increasing grade level; and (c) similar patterns of relationship and difference are obtained with narrative and expository texts. The sample included 612 students in Grades 2, 4, 6, and 8. Students read and listened to two narratives and two expository texts and completed corresponding comprehension tests that were in the form of sentence verification tasks. The findings confirmed the first two hypotheses but not the third one. In the case of expository text, the relationship between listening and reading comprehension was weaker than the corresponding one with narrative text, and performance levels were comparable across all elementary grades. Moreover, reading comprehension levels were higher than listening comprehension levels in Grade 8, regardless of text type. The implications of these findings with respect to the dominant unitary process model and the assessment and instruction of oral and written language comprehension are discussed.     

The Effects of Text Difficulty on Second Graders' Fluency Development

In this study, two groups of second graders participated in Fluency-Oriented Reading Instruction (FORI) but their repeated reading experiences used different kinds of texts. One group—the Literature group—read texts from the district's literature-based, basal reading program. The second group—the Content group—read from a set of science and social studies texts that were written to have few rare, multisyllabic, single-appearing words. Control-group students read from the district's literature-based program. Both intervention groups made greater gains in reading rate than Control group students and Content students made greater gains in reading rate than Literature students. Content and Literature groups outperformed Control students on the comprehension measure but did not perform significantly differently from one another. The gains made by the Content classrooms were made in approximately half the amount of time allocated to reading instruction as by Literature classrooms.     

Effects of Different Listening-While-Reading Rates on Comprehension in Secondary Students with Reading Deficits

Abstract

Effects of instructing students to read silently as another person reads aloud (listening-while-reading) on comprehension in secondary students with learning disabilities were examined. Two separate treatment conditions were implemented. During student rate listening-while-reading, (SLWR), experimenters read aloud at rates that approximated each student's oral reading rate. During fast rate listening-while-reading, (FLWR), experimenters increased their reading rates. A silent reading (SR) control condition was also implemented. Following each intervention the students answered five literal and five inferential questions. SLWR resulted in lower inferential accuracy than FLWR and SR. Discussion focuses on future research and implications for accommodating secondary students with reading skills deficits in general education classrooms.     

Using Small-Group Instruction to Improve Students' Reading Fluency: An Evaluation of the Existing Research

Reading fluency is necessary for reading comprehension, but approximately 40% of U.S. fourth-grade students have inadequate reading fluency skills. Because small-group (SG) instruction is often used as a first line of intervention for struggling readers, SG instruction targeting deficiencies in text reading fluency ought to be part of every school's intervention toolbox. The authors summarize the existing research on instruction and interventions that specifically targets reading fluency and is implemented by an adult with 3 or more students at once. Key findings revealed that most studies used a single-case design, nearly all studies were rated positively in terms of methodological quality, and the majority of participants significantly improved as a result of receiving SG intervention. Furthermore, of the five studies examining comparable SG and 1-on-1 interventions, 79% of the students performed equally well from both interventions. Implications and several recommendations for future research are discussed.     

THREE VERSUS SIX REREADINGS OF PRACTICE PASSAGES

Although the literature clearly demonstrates that repeated readings result in immediate effects on students' performance on the intervention materials as well as long‐term benefits, data are less promising regarding its immediate generalization effects to similar materials. Using an alternating treatments design, the current study evaluated the effects of a multicomponent repeated reading intervention on generalization passages after students had read a passage three versus six times. Results indicated improvements in fluency as a result of both interventions, with slightly greater maintenance effects when students were given six opportunities to read passages.     

An Intervention Program to Increase Reading Fluency

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of a self-modeling/ self-monitoring intervention to increase oral reading fluency in 5 elementary school students. Initially, students were videotaped reading from grade-appropriate text. The videotape was then edited to create a self-modeling intervention tape of approximately 5-minutes in duration, depicting the students reading in a fluent manner. The edited videotape was shown back to the students on two occasions in order to initiate the self-modeling intervention. Following this, students were videotaped reading 1-minute reading passage probes and these videotapes, without editing, were then shown back to the students during each subsequent session. The videotapes were viewed by the students twice weekly for a period of 4 weeks. To promote self-monitoring, after each passage reading session students were provided with performance feedback in the form of words correct per minute (WCPM) and progress toward their long-term goal. Results indicated increases in growth of oral reading rate overtime with concomitant advances in instructional placement criteria.     

An Investigation of Student-Selected and Parent-Delivered Reading Interventions

In this study, we examined whether individualized, student-selected, parent-delivered reading interventions would produce generalized oral reading fluency improvements. Three 3rd-grade students received reading fluency interventions (repeated readings, modeling, error correction, and flashcard instruction) 1 at a time and were shown the results that each intervention produced. The students then selected the intervention strategies they wanted their parents to use. We trained parents in the student-selected reading intervention package who delivered the interventions for 4–5?weeks, and students were given the opportunity to earn rewards for generalized performance improvements at the end of each week in school. Using an alternating treatments design, results of parent tutoring were compared to a control condition that included a reinforcement contingency for generalized performance improvements to control for reinforcement effects across conditions. Generalized improvements in oral reading fluency (to high-word-overlap passages) were found for all participants. Results are discussed in terms of how educators can improve parent-tutoring outcomes by influencing students’ motivation to engage in tutoring procedures.     

THE INTERFERENCE OF SOME ANAPHORIC EXPRESSIONS ON READING COMPREHENSION

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the interference of certain anaphoric expressions (pronouns) on eighth grade students’ reading comprehension. The subjects (n=103) were administered cloze .tests of anaphoric comprehension in which either 0%, 33%, 66% or 100% of the pronouns were replaced by appropriate referents. Analysis of covariance was utilized to analyze the resulting data, using passage form as the independent variable, and SRA reading achievement scores as the covariate. The null hypothesis was rejected, which stated there would not be significant differences among subjects’ cloze scores on reading the four different forms of the passages. The results suggest that use of anaphoric expressions in some instances will interfere with the reading comprehension of eighth graders. Practical and theoretical implications of the results are discussed     

The Effects of Familiarization with Oral Expository Text on Listening and Reading Comprehension Levels

This study examined the effects of text type and early familiarization with oral expository text structures on listening and reading comprehension levels. Second-grade students read and listened to narrative and expository texts, and their comprehension was assessed with a sentence verification task. Half of the students had participated in a nine-week long intervention designed to familiarize them with oral expository structures in the previous year while in first grade. The findings indicated that familiarization did not lead to the expected advantage of listening over reading for either expository or narrative text. Implications concerning the conceptualization of comprehension as a unitary process construct are discussed.     

HOW ELEMENTARY STUDENTS REFERRED FOR COMPENSATORY READING INSTRUCTION PERFORM ON SCHOOL‐BASED MEASURES OF WORD RECOGNITION,FLUENCY, AND COMPREHENSION

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to examine how elementary students referred for compensatory remedial reading services performed on several key reading process variables: total word recognition errors while reading brief passages, significant or meaning‐changing errors, comprehension, and reading rate. In order to maximize ecological validity, the students were assessed by the school‐based reading specialist/teacher using assessment materials normally used in diagnostic evaluations of students referred for compensatory reading instruction. Although performance across all variables was below instructional levels for students’ assigned grades, both word recognition variables and comprehension approached instructional levels. Reading rate alone was consistently and significantly below several previously identified standards of performance. We feel that poor performance in rate may be an indicator of fluency problems (including automaticity in word recognition and text phrasing). Suggestions for instruction to overcome difficulties in fluency were presented.